Heaven Can Wait is a slight and charming film starring Don Ameche and it has no bearing with the film of the same title starring Warren Beatty made some decades later.
The story takes place at the turn of the century although it then goes forward in time as the character of Henry Van Cleve ages. Ameche plays the older Henry who after his death goes down to see the devil (Laird Cregar who plays him as a kindly official just doing his duty.) Henry who was always a bit of a rogue and a womaniser thinks he deserves to go to hell but as the devil has not gone through his file properly he recounts his life to him. His escapades with his French nanny, his winning relationship with his grandfather, taking his cousin's fiancé for himself then marrying her and later cheating on her.
The film is shot in glorious technicolour and we feel for Ameche as the years advance and the old lothario ages. Ironically as Ameche the actor was re-discovered in his later years in films such as Trading Places the old man make up shows us the Ameche we knew in our youths.
The story is a little bit cheeky, has plenty of humour regarding dysfunctional families and astoundingly acted by all concerned.
The story takes place at the turn of the century although it then goes forward in time as the character of Henry Van Cleve ages. Ameche plays the older Henry who after his death goes down to see the devil (Laird Cregar who plays him as a kindly official just doing his duty.) Henry who was always a bit of a rogue and a womaniser thinks he deserves to go to hell but as the devil has not gone through his file properly he recounts his life to him. His escapades with his French nanny, his winning relationship with his grandfather, taking his cousin's fiancé for himself then marrying her and later cheating on her.
The film is shot in glorious technicolour and we feel for Ameche as the years advance and the old lothario ages. Ironically as Ameche the actor was re-discovered in his later years in films such as Trading Places the old man make up shows us the Ameche we knew in our youths.
The story is a little bit cheeky, has plenty of humour regarding dysfunctional families and astoundingly acted by all concerned.