JohnHowardReid Copyright 4 January 1944 by Loew's Inc. New York opening at the Capitol: 24 March 1944. U.S. release: April 1944. Australian release: 14 September 1944. 8,515 feet. 94 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Feeling neglected because Bill, her astronomer-husband, is preoccupied with a new comet, Vicky Whitley seeks some diversion. She meets an astrologer who tells her that, by the twenty-second of the month, she will fall in love with a man who has traveled widely. Vicky informs Bill of the prediction. Upset at her belief in astrology, Bill leaves her and goes to his observatory. Vicky patiently waits for her "man" to appear. After an uneventful day on the twenty-second, she telephones Bill; and admitting that she was wrong, asks him to return home. Just as midnight approaches, however...VIEWER'S GUIDE: Ideal for insomniacs.COMMENT: This wartime escapist farce is pretty tough sledding. The most generous assessment at our Hollywood Classics screening was that the wittiest thing about the movie was its title. A slight comedy spun out to 94 minutes, well beyond the point of tedium. A complete waste of some fine players. Admittedly, In the hands of a less talented director than Alexander Hall, who makes the most of the occasional jokes and mildly intriguing if far too repetitive situations, the results would have been considerably less than the just barely passable entertainment that this Heavenly Body offers.ADDITIONAL COMMENT: As bores go, The Heavenly Body is something rather special, in that it offers the ultra-luxury of being bored by no less a personage than Hedy Lamarr. - PM Reviews.

craig-20741 Very surprised to see an unfavorable review of this on the front page. No, it's not a classic like some Orson Welles flick, but it is funny, and it is chock full of fine actors.Honestly, if this comes on some Saturday afternoon, and you're bored, you can't go wrong. You will laugh, and you will feel better.

iamyuno2 I usually avoid watching movies that get less than a 3-star rating on the Turner Classic Movies channel but maybe I should reevaluate that policy because - being a big William Powell fan and an admirer of Hedy Lamarr - I decided to watch this movie, having never seen it. Glad I did. Yes, it's got its silly side - but so do many comedies. What's really significant is that it features William Powell at his comedic best, with many brilliant creative and hilarious scenes you just have to see and enjoy. Though this is a flawed movie, it is nonetheless engaging and highly entertaining due to Powell's ability to conjure up some of the most ingenious funny scenes ever. Though Hedy Lamarr is a ditz here and not necessarily the kind of character most men would want as a wife (being quixotic and ruled by astrologers), there are in fact women like this (I was married to one) and so even her part rings true to those of us who've "been there." So...silly but not so silly. Yet...really really funny! And you don't have to be a William Powell fan to like this one. Enjoy! (You will!)

MartinHafer "Heavenly Body" is not a bad film, though it isn't all that good either. As a result of indifferent writing and a typically wooden performance by Hedy Lamarr, it's just a pleasant little time-passer. And, as a result, you can see why Joan Crawford passed when the part was first offered to her.The film begins with a happily married couple--the astronomy professor (William Powell) and his pretty wife (Lamarr). Though very happily married, Hedy's love for her husband vanishes almost completely just because a local astrologer tells Hedy that she'll fall in love with another. This is a VERY weak point in the film. After all, if their love is that fragile, why should the audience care AND why should Powell try so hard to try to win her back from her new beau (James Craig)? I felt throughout the film that Powell would have been better off with this faithless idiot. But, he works hard to win her--and a few of his actions are pretty funny. Overall, the film offers few surprises and Powell is his usual competent and clever self.By the way, didn't it seem odd Hedy played a French woman and not a Austrian? My guess is that the US was at war with her country of birth at that time and so she was supposed to be French!