One Foot in Heaven (1941)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Irving Rapper

Writers:

Hartzell Spence (book)
Casey Robinson (writer)

Release Date:

1 November 1941 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Plot:

Episodic look at the life of a minister and his family as they move from one parish to another. |

Plot Keywords:

Minister | Religion | Chauffeur | Denver Colorado | William Spence

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Fredric March	...	William Spence
Martha Scott	...	Hope Morris Spence
Beulah Bondi	...	Mrs. Lydia Sandow
Gene Lockhart	...	Preston Thurston
Elisabeth Fraser	...	Eileen Spence at Age 17
Harry Davenport	...	Elias Samson
Laura Hope Crews	...	Mrs. Preston Thurston
Grant Mitchell	...	Clayton Potter
Moroni Olsen	...	Dr. John Romer
Frankie Thomas	...	Hartzell Spence at Age 18
Jerome Cowan	...	Dr. Horrigan
Ernest Cossart	...	Mr. John E. Morris
Nana Bryant	...	Mrs. Morris
Carlotta Jelm	...	Eileen Spence at Age 11
Peter Caldwell	...	Hartzell Spence at Age 10

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved (PCA #7504)

Filming Locations:

First United Methodist Church - 6817 Franklin Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Olivia de Havilland was slated to co-star with Fredric March but was reassigned to They Died with Their Boots On (1941).

Movie Connections:

Featured in Happy Times and Jolly Moments (1943)

Soundtrack:

The Church's One Foundation

A World That Is Gone Forever.

"One Foot in Heaven" is quite simply one of the most beautiful films that I have encountered. A mainstream film of this sort would NEVER even be considered today; it seems even a bit tame for 1940.

And yet, the world was vastly different then, and the gentle,loving tone of this film reflects a sort of "old-time" morality that seems hopelessly lost today.

This was a major Warner Brothers release and, with Hal Wallis as producer, one expects and gets a very high quality film which lovingly recreates scenes from the life of an ordinary Methodist minister during the first 40 years of the 20th century. No earth-shaking events here--just the day-to-day trials and tribulations, the simple joys and heartaches, the small-town politics and frustrations that reveal humanity in all of its imperfections.

I am amazed that Frederic March is sometimes regarded as a dull actor; he was the epitome of subtle, honest realism, and he carries the narrative of this film in an amazing way, tender, gracious, humorous, a bit stodgy--but always willing to "bend" when necessary, resourceful, loving, and above all, very human.

The movie is filled with an array of Hollywood's best character actors, and the extremely detailed sets, costumes, etc really serve as a "window" to another time and place in our American past.

Max Steiner's extremely pious score is almost a bit much at times, but it nonetheless adds a reverent strength to the proceedings.

And then, there is the final scene, one of the most moving and unique in any film that I know. Once again, the ultimate destination of the plot is nothing earth-shaking---but the concept and staging of the last scene is really remarkable. A simple, old-time street on a gorgeous spring day, the townspeople who have come to know and love their minister all stopping their work and joining the procession through the street as they follow the sounds of the carillon from the new church. Martha Scott, Frankie Thomas, Gene Lockhart, Beulah Bondi, Harry Davenport, Laura Hope Crews--many of whom have locked horns with Mr. March during the course of the film, now join together in the dappled sunlit street, finally arriving at the church where they all lift their voices together in the moving hymn "The Church's One Salvation"... as we see Mr. March himself seated at the carillon, struggling to continue playing it through the tears streaming down his face....

I think Turner Classics has a print of this film (I saw and taped it off of Chicago's PBS station some years ago). Try to see it; like the world it represents, this beautiful film may also disappear forever.