Heaven Can Wait (1978)
October 28th, 2006
This tasty 1978 Warren Beatty remake of Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) continues my recent theme, “Angels among us.”
Cover art notwithstanding, Beatty’s character isn’t an angel and he doesn’t wear wings. In this comic tragedy simple jock Joe Pendleton, quarterback for the LA Rams, is plucked off his bike and sent heavenward seconds before he would have died in a car crash. The problem is that he was taken out too soon and wouldn’t actually have died. By the time the mistake is discovered his body has already been cremated, so the search for a new body begins.
Much of the humour in this somewhat old-fashioned morsel, originally a stage play, arises from the sight of dumb jock Joe Pendleton in the body of an eccentric multi-millionaire industrialist, whose real appearance we never see. This character has a lifestyle based on fake naval uniforms, elaborate hats, and polo, and every night the servants fire off a cannon as they are lowering the flag.
After saving the porpoises and an English village, Joe decides to use the rest of the industrialist’s millions to buy the Rams and make himself the quarterback. The gags are sharp, the timing is spot-on, and the supporting characters are excellent, with the possible exception of Julie Christie as the love interest. Julie Christie is one of the most beautiful women in the world and a fine actress, but here she doesn’t seem at ease. Her hair is too big and curly, and she plays her librarian character a bit too mousy to be believable as a match for Beatty’s Joe Pendleton. Never mind! She’s still Julie Christie.
The tragic kicker to this frothy cocktail is that Joe only gets to enjoy his new body and new-found love for a short period of time. This is strongly reminiscent of the bitter twist in City of Angels, where the fallen angel’s love interest is killed - in a bike crash! - just one day after he has given up eternity to be with her. I find in these details a subtle homage to this earlier film.
I haven’t seen the original version of this, Here Comes Mr. Jordan, but I’m keeping an eye out for it. There has also been another remake, Chris Rock’s 2001 Down to Earth.
Heaven Can Wait stands up well almost 30 years later. Smart, funny, with an emotional kick, it is highly recommended.
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