This film is entertaining. I like Warren in this film, and the script is crazy enough that it works. There is a message about hope in this film, and we all need hope. Some parts of the film can be so funny, I like how they end it. This film ties all the lose ends up nicely. I remember the 78 and 79 Rams those were pretty good teams. 7 or 8 out of ten.
Heaven Can Wait
1978
Action / Comedy / Fantasy / Romance / Sport
Heaven Can Wait
1978
Action / Comedy / Fantasy / Romance / Sport
Plot summary
Joe Pendleton is a football quarterback preparing to lead his team to the Superbowl when he is almost killed in an accident. An overanxious angel plucks him to heaven only to discover that he was not ready to die, and that his body has been cremated. Another body must be found without his death being discovered, and that of a recently murdered millionaire is chosen. His wife and accountant, the murderers, are confused by this development, as he buys the Los Angeles Rams in order to once again quarterback them into the Superbowl. At the same time, he falls in love with an English environmental activist who disapproves of his policies and actions.
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A good comedy
The ending was very gut wrenching
I agree with one of the reviewers - Heaven Can Wait deserves more than a 6.9 rating because it's a fine movie that is timeless in its spirit and message.
Warren Beatty should have won an Oscar for his role (he was nominated, along with Jack Warden and Dyan Cannon for their impressive performances). Anyway, he co-directed this with Buck Henry (who was a delight in The Blues Brothers).
The ending was incredibly emotional and I wonder what could have been and will become of the Beatty and Christie characters. It plays on the mind, and I especially liked the scene where the stadium lights gradually go out.
"If he weren't going to be dead soon, he'd need years of psychiatric help."
The 1941 film, "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" rates a 7.6 on IMDb as I write this, while this remake comes in at a 6.9. I find that a bit odd because this version is every bit as effective as the prior film, while cleverly updating the characters and situations to make them slightly different from the Robert Montgomery/Claude Rains classic. For example, Joe Pendleton (Warren Beatty) is a pro football quarterback here, while Montgomery's Pendleton was a boxer. And he 'died' in a car accident instead of a plane crash, that point being a moot one because it was an angel's mistake that brought Joe to a way station to begin his heavenly journey. Yet just as in the prior movie, Buck Henry's escort character didn't get much of a comeuppance for his blunder. At least Edward Everett Horton got a meaningful slap on the wrist for his.
What makes this a more humorous story is the presence of Charles Grodin and Dyan Cannon as the philandering duo that intend to take Julia Farnsworth's (Cannon) husband out of the picture by any means possible. Grodin has the perfect disposition for roles like this, being a real smarmy character while exhibiting poise and grace while masking a devious heart. Meanwhile, Pendleton intentionally dismisses the behavior of his personal secretary Abbott (Grodin) and his wife, much to their befuddled consternation. That's Abbott's comment about Joe Pendleton to Julia in my summary line above.
As much as I enjoyed the earlier picture, I think I liked this one even more. A lot of it has to do with the ancillary characters, like those in Farnsworth's household staff who go about their daily chores while trying to make sense of their boss's newly acquired erratic behavior. The prospective romance between Farnsworth and Betty Logan (Julie Christie) is also handled deftly, in as much as Pendleton's memories will eventually be erased by heavenly gate keeper Mr. Jordan (James Mason). I have to say, the players were perfectly cast here all around, and if the newly recycled Tom Jarrett had to begin from square one all over again, I'd say he was off to a pretty good start.