Film
The Bishop’s Wife
- Director
- Henry Koster
- Certificate
- U
- Running Time
- 109 mins
Something of a cash-in on the 1940s fad for angelic fantasies in the Here Comes Mr. Jordan and It’s a Wonderful Life vein, this whimsical Cary Grant comedy nonetheless benefits from fine performances all round and bagged five Oscar nominations (including Best Film) back in 1947. David Niven is cast as a grumpy, materialistic bishop who needs divine help to patch up his marriage to Loretta Young and raise cash for a new church. Enter Angel Cary from on high to assist with both tasks.
The screenplay benefits from an uncredited polish by Billy Wilder and gifts Cary the line: “The only people who grow old are people who were born old to begin with.” It’s also a great deal better than that bland, anodyne 1996 remake, The Preacher’s Wife.
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