The Heavenly Body

Enjoyed this silly 1944 Comedy starring William Powell, (William S. Whitley) and his wife, Vicky Whitley, ( Hedy Lamarr). Vicky is being badly neglected by her husband and seeks the aid of a woman Astrologist who predicts she will meet another man and fall in love. Vicky's husband Bill is a very famous Astromist who has recently discovered a new planet in the solar system and has no idea that his wife Vicky is not happy with him. Vicky does meet a handsome young man in her life who is a neighbor and is also an Air Raid Warden, which was needed during World War II. Hedy Lamarr looked fantastic in this film and her natural beauty is clearly shown along with her great acting abilities. Great actor William Powell gave and excellent supporting role and it looked like they both enjoyed making this film. This is a worth while film to view from 1944.

This delightful film works well because of the perfect combination of William Powell and Hedy Lamarr. It's a classic screwball romantic comedy -- silly, fluffy, hilarious. Stunningly beautiful Hedy Lamarr (who was actually a serious intellect offscreen) is surprisingly convincing as a ditz who is blithely unaware of the effect her obsession with astrology is having on her long-suffering professor/astronomer husband (Powell). If this were real life, you'd want to throttle her -- but that's a lot of the humor here. Powell puts across just the right amount of loving good humor mixed with near-homicidal frustration. There are some cute surprises along the way, and lots of recognizable character actors rounding out the cast. While the script falls short of the witty dialogue you'll find in comedies like The Palm Beach Story and Bringing Up Baby, it's still a fun trip down memory lane.

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.

"The Heavenly Body" is a fine play on words as the title for this film. William Powell is astronomer William Whitley who has discovered a comet. While he is so occupied with his work, another heavenly body sits at home all alone. Hedy Lamarr plays his wife, Vicky. She's so bored because of lack of attention, that she gets rooked into and then hooked on astrology. The story takes place around one of the observatories in Arizona. The time is the early 1940s, while World War II is taking place.

The two leads and the rest of the cast are fine in this film, and the idea for the plot is quite good. Some reviewers found it too silly that an astronomer's spouse would be into astrology. Of course it's silly, but silliness often makes for very good comedy.

The problem with this film is that the script just isn't very funny. In William Powell comedies, one is used to some very clever and witty dialog, usually along with some funny antics. There's little of either in this movie. Still, Powell's efforts with this lackluster role in an almost ho-hum story, earns this seven stars with a little stretch.

Helping that stretch are a couple of things one seldom sees in movies with stories in the U.S. during World War II. The first is Civil Defense wardens. James Craig plays one here as Lloyd Hunter. So, here was an American community during WW II that had people serving as air raid wardens.

The second unique thing for movies of that period also is related to the war. Rationing was enforced across the U.S. during the war. Different things were controlled at different periods during the war. Apparently, during the time of this film, food rationing was widespread. William Whitley discovers that the astrology guru, Margaret Sibyll has been hiding something. She finally comes clean and reveals that she has been stockpiling canned food supplies obtained with extra ration cards.

It was strange though, that William Whitley was used to a breakfast every morning of bacon and eggs. Apparently those things weren't rationed, or he got the full amount for their family. So, those two little extras about the history of the time add something to this film and boost its interest level some.

Obviously, the title of this movie described this actress perfectly. She had perfect chemistry with that thin man Powell. It was a different time and the country at war, but it brings back many memories of what went on during that period. ..the air raid wardens, the blackouts and Hedy waving at the window while Powell was telescoping her magnificence in that nightgown. A harmless and pleasant comedy.