craig hill
Everybody is skewered in this potentially really good film, which falters as noted, no one comes out looking great, Christian, non- Christian, charity cases, welfare cheats, oblivious do-gooders, selfish non-do-gooders alike, with great insight offered on all of the above throughout. The primary comment seems to be that modern times has gotten Christianity right, that its message is obsolete, that the govt has filled in for dwindling public charity because society has moved from giving to being provided for---to the extent that the tattered welfare state is continuing. The oft-castigated ending was aqdded to continue in this vein the idea that Christianity, which doesn't work on Earth any more, may work better in its only alternative left, outer space, by sending broadcasts down from the heavens. At least that's the message the Boultings seemed to have wanted us to get, tho few on this site have. Like those few films that try to deliver important stories but don't quite work, the effort was worth it. Sellers plays his character perfectly, the entire cast is very good, the script is excellent for what it's trying to accomplish, and the ending, which does seem tacked on and out of place, is actually the logical extension to the quandary of Christianity in modern times that's displayed through the film.
ella-48
I shan't go on at any length, as others have already done the job for me. Instead I'll just drop in a couple of interesting factoids about this film.1) "Heavens Above!" was the third in a trio (a triptych??) of films satirising great pillars of the British establishment:The military;Industry/the trade unions;The church.The previous two in the series were "Private's Progress" (Ian Carmichael as Stanley Windrush - a fraightfully posh chinless wonder, drafted into the army for WWII and finding himself embroiled unwittingly in a grand scheme to steal great works of art) and "I'm Alright, Jack" (Carmichael as the same Stanley Windrush, now de-mobbed and dumped by his despairing family into the shop floor workforce at one of their factories, in the hope that he might learn the business). The Windrush family characters were dropped for Heavens Above, although Carmichael makes a small appearance as "the other Vicar called Smallwood".2) Fans of the Small Faces should keep their eyes peeled for 'Jack' - eldest son of the huge family of itinerant scroungers who take up residence in the vicarage. It's none other than cheeky cockney mudlark STEVE MARRIOTT, fresh from his West End stint as The Artful Dodger in Oliver !
no-skyline
This is one of the classic British comedies of the 1960's Peter Sellers is superb as the Rev Smallwood a socialist priest mistakenly sent to an upper-crust English village. Eric Sykes and Cecil Parker excel in their roles, Sykes as the lay about, work dodging Smith and Parker as the holier than thou archdeacon. Irene Handle and Ian Carmicheal also make appearances in this film in their typical roles played to perfection.This film is a satire (with elements of farce) on British society particularly the class system as well as religions role in it. The character are typically English and all show their true nature as the Rev Smallwood bumbles his way into a media frenzy without really knowing it.All in all if you like British comedy this film is a must see but if you haven't lived in the U.K some of the lines and issues may be lost on you.A classic up there with the likes of The Ladykillers and Lavender Hill Mob as the cream of British Comedy. 8/10
Adrian Bailey
Peter Sellers is great as the Brummie vicar whose gaucheness brings a small country town to its knees in this famous 60s satire. It's difficult to pin down the film's target; perhaps the film's so likeable because it seems to get a dig in at everybody at the same time. Among the targets are: religion, capitalism, communism, and British society and mores. The moral of the tale seems to be that no matter your efforts or intentions, you're unlikely to improve on the status quo (and could make things a lot worse). So in the last analysis maybe it's Conservative propaganda.The film stomps merrily through all the issues with fun effect and should've quit when it was ahead. The final segment is crass and takes off some of the shine.
AD
