maltvaterexpensivebeingpunk Thankfully, nothing to do with the awful 80's movie with the same name, starring Warren Beatty and Julie Christie. This is one of the finest comedies, criminally overlooked. A young Don Ameche and the beautiful Gene Tierney are both fabulous in the lead roles, in fact, they're one of the finest screen couples in film history. In an overall good cast, Charles Coburn and Eugene Palette, both great (comedy-)actors of their time (sadly, overlooked too), stand out particularly. Like many other Lubitsch-comedies, the clever plot and witty dialogue, are well ahead of its time. Trivia: The screenplay was based on the play 'Birthday' by Leslie Bush- Fekete.

Frances Farmer Heaven Can Wait is a very bad movie that can be summarized as follows:Strengths: Excellent production values; lavish, over-the-top decor and costumes; glorious technicolor photography; scene of Eugene Palette and Marjorie Main at tableWeaknesses: Characterless, watery, stone-age, middlebrow humor; lame, stilted dialogue; very stereotyped and completely shallow family dynamics driving all of the action; some *Really* bad acting (especially the teenaged versions of the male characters and the voice of the stupendously irritating "mademoiselle" character)The first half hour and the last 15 minutes were especially painful and I was very tempted to walk out but, somehow, suffered through the whole thing. I regretted going to see this movie and would not wish the experience of seeing it on my worst enemy.

blanche-2 Strangely, the title of this film was used in 1978 to remake another movie, "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" which probably sounded old-fashioned to the filmmakers."Heaven Can Wait" is a 20th Century Fox production directed by the great Ernst Lubitsch and starring Don Ameche, Gene Tierney, Charles Coburn, Laird Cregar, Spring Byington, Marjorie Main, Eugene Palette, and Louis Calhern. Ameche plays Henry van Cleve, who at the start of the film is an old man who has just died. Figuring he's going straight to hell, he enters and meets "His Excellency" (Laird Cregar) who looks a bit like Satan. His Excellency wants to hear Henry's story and why he thinks he belongs in a hot atmosphere. The story is then told in flashback, going back to Henry's childhood up until the time he died.A playboy, Henry at the age of 25 fell madly in love with his cousin Albert's fiancée, Martha (Gene Tierney) and marries her. Henry adores her but he still has an eye for the ladies. At one point, Martha leaves him and returns to her family in Kansas. Henry's grandfather (Coburn) loves Henry, but he realizes that Martha is the best thing that ever happened to him. He insists that Henry go after her and make things right.Filmed in vivid color, this has the Lubitsch stamp of Lubitsch's finesse and charm all over it. It's not uproariously funny, rather, it's a pleasant comedy with an underlying warmth and sweetness.The performances are wonderful. Don Ameche is a darling Henry, a vain man who worries about how old he looks as he ages and wonders if he's getting a paunch but who is nevertheless lovable because of his adoration for Martha and the love he has for his family. He's delightfully out of it, which somehow makes him all the more appealing. Gene Tierney looks like a goddess and gives a lovely performance as the patient Martha. As Henry's outspoken grandfather, Charles Coburn gives one of his best performances.The film is well cast, with Spring Byington and Louis Calhern as Henry's confused parents, Marjorie Main and Eugene Palette as Martha's disapproving parents, Signe Hasso as a French maid who introduces Henry to some of the wilder parts of life when he's a teenager, and finally Laird Cregar as His Excellency. Here he seems so much like Raymond Burr. Had he lived past the age of 31, he would have had a magnificent career. Unfortunately, his heart couldn't withstand the crash diet he went on, and he died the year after this film's release.Lubitsch films are like champagne - they're bubbly and sublime. This is one of his best.

TheLittleSongbird I have loved Gene Tierney since Laura and The Ghost and Mrs Muir, and Ernst Lubitsch is a brilliant director, I am especially fond of The Shop Around the Corner and The Merry Widow. Heaven Can Wait is a wonderful film, and another one of Lubitsch's best. The production values are impeccable, with stunning costumes and beautiful photography and sets and the Technicolour is as radiant now as it was then. Alfred Newman's score is wonderful, and the soundtrack choices are perfectly chosen and incorporated. The script is filled with warmth, charm, wit and honesty, while the story is never dull and Lubitsch's direction superb. Don Ameche is perfectly cast, Gene Tierney looks gorgeous, Laird Cregar is very effective in his satanic role and Charles Coburn is hilarious as the wise-cracking grandfather. So all in all, a classic. 10/10 Bethany Cox