On va se faire sonner les cloches

FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE, George Seaton's 1950 heavenly comedy, is worth seeing mostly for the very funny performance of Clifton Webb. Webb is the whole show, playing an angel who comes to earth to help overly busy couple Robert Cummings and Joan Bennett have a baby.

Cummings and Bennett really have very little to do and are mostly wasted, though Joan Blondell has several funny scenes and is her usual breezy, likeable self.

Not a classic heavenly fantasy like HERE COMES MR. JORDAN or IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, but enjoyable and worth seeing for Webb's fine comic performance.

"For Heaven's Sake" is a most unusual movie....far different than the typical movie of the era. Clifton Webb and Edmund Gwenn play angels whose job it is to find parents for children waiting to be born. One of the unborn kids (Gigi Perreau) is a problem case for Webb's character...she insists on being born to a power couple from Broadway (Bob Cummings and Joan Bennett). But these people are too self-absorbed and career-oriented to be parents...but the child refuses to give up on the notion that they'll one day be her parents. In frustration, eventually Charles (Webb) takes human form and decides to deal with the couple directly. He poses as 'Slim'...a Texan who is quite stereotypical. And, over time, he REALLY comes to like being human...with all its vices as well.

The notion of seeing Clifton Webb playing a rich Texan is strange to say the least! He usually was the embodiment of sophistication and breeding and not the type to wear bolo ties and talk about life on a ranch! Strange casting indeed!

So is it any good? Well, if you love Clifton Webb, you'll like the film. Even though it's one of his weaker films, he himself is quite nice in this against type role. In fact, because so much of the focus of the film is of him and his performance, the movie really doesn't give most of the rest of the cast anything to do other than be there for Webb. This isn't so much a criticism...just an observation. Additionally, I loved the special effects at the beginning of the picture...they were amazing for 1950. However, the film itself is very, very weird...so much so that I guarantee that many folks will give up on it before it's complete.

When Clifton Webb says this, he is referring to cowboy boots. In this exceptionally peculiar movie, he is an angel. So is Edmund Gwenn. Gigi Perreau and Tommy Rettig are also, though they are angels of a different, rather mawkish, sort.

When Webb utters this comment, he is pretending to be a Texan and an angel of a different sort: a theatrical angel. You see, little Gigi wants to be born as a human child (as does little Tommy.) Gigi has chosen her prospective parents: Robert Cummings and Joan Bennett. (Does this seem to anyone else like an unlikely match?) They are a theatrical couple -- he a director, she a star. They live in a chic Manhattan duplex. Cummings is urbane and Bennett looks luscious.

There are in-jokes about pets named Alfred and Lynn and tossed-off comments about Arlene and Martin. It has a swanky style.

Webb is saddled (no pun intended) with a highly unflattering hair style when he plays the Texas millionaire. He gets top billing but for the most part his considerable talents are wasted. OH! And he falls for the as always delightful, here tanned and rather plump Joan Blondell. She is playing a famous playwright.

The combination of the cynical story of the selfish theatrical people with the icky concept of angels waiting to be born as children makes for a fascinatingly strange concoction.

Utterly charming comedy with Clifton Webb and Edmund Gwenn delightful as a pair of guardian angels tasked with getting a little girl born to a self absorbed but good hearted couple.

Joan Bennett comes across well as the prospective mother, a warm presence this film came along just as she was segueing from her period as a film noir chippy to character and mother roles. Joan Blondell is great fun as a flashy screenwriter injecting her special brand of zip whenever she's on screen. Robert Cummings is bland as the father to be but he fades into the background and doesn't hurt the picture.

As enjoyable as the two Joans are this is really Clifton's show and he makes the most of it especially after he temporarily returns to earth in human form and has many misadventures. A sweet, feel good film in the best sense of that phrase.

This film shows up occasionally on cable but has never, to the best of my knowledge, come out on video. It's a lot of fun and Webb, as usual, does a great job as a goofy angel who fancies himself a cowboy. The premise of this movie is that all children are designated, in heaven, a time to be born. If the parents aren't getting along, as in this film, the kids continue to develop mentally. If born years after their designated birthdates, they end up as "one of those horrible child prodigies." Webb and Edmund Gwenn (the original "Kris Kringle") are angels on a mission to ensure that their little wards are successfully delivered. I think Webb is one of the most under-appreciated comics and recommend, if you enjoy this film, checking out "Sitting Pretty" and the original "Cheaper by the Dozen" which are available on home video.