IMDb > All That Heaven Allows (1955)
All That Heaven Allows
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All That Heaven Allows (1955) More at IMDbPro »


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Overview

User Rating:
7.6/10   3,153 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 3% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Peg Fenwick (screenplay)
Edna L. Lee (story) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for All That Heaven Allows on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
9 December 1955 (Denmark) more
Genre:
Tagline:
How much does Heaven Allow a Woman in Love?
Plot:
An upper-class widow falls in love with a much younger, down-to-earth nurseryman, much to the disapproval of her children and criticism of her country club peers. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
1 win more
NewsDesk:
(2 articles)
Monkey Uncaged: The Ten Most “Important” Gay-Related Movies
 (From AfterElton.com. 11 August 2009, 5:45 PM, PDT)

Actress Jane Wyman Dies at 93
 (From IMDb News. 10 September 2007)

User Comments:
Douglas Sirk's Visual Extravaganza more (60 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Jane Wyman ... Cary Scott

Rock Hudson ... Ron Kirby

Agnes Moorehead ... Sara Warren
Conrad Nagel ... Harvey
Virginia Grey ... Alida
Gloria Talbott ... Kay
William Reynolds ... Ned
Charles Drake ... Mick Anderson
Hayden Rorke ... Dr. Hennessy
Jacqueline deWit ... Mona Plash (as Jacqueline de Wit)
Leigh Snowden ... Jo-Ann
Donald Curtis ... Howard Hoffer
Alex Gerry ... George Warren
Nestor Paiva ... Manuel
Forrest Lewis ... Mr. Weeks
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Additional Details

Runtime:
89 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.00 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Recording)
Certification:
South Korea:12 | USA:Approved (MPAA rating: certificate #17469) | UK:U | Australia:PG | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
This film seems to borrow its title from the last line of the poem 'love and life' by Jhn Wilmot, Second Earl of Rochester: " All my past Life is mine no more, The flying Hours are gone: Like Transitory Dreams giv'n o'er, Whose Images are kept in store By Memory alone. The Time that is to come is not; How can it then be mine The present Moment's all my Lot; And that, as fast as it is got, Phillis, is only thine. Then talk not of Inconstancy, False Hearts, and broken Vows; If I, by Miracle, can be This live-long Minute true to thee, 'Tis all that Heav'n allows. " more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: Cary reads two quotations from the same page in Walden: "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation" and "If a man does not keep pace with his companions..." Those two quotations are from opposite ends of the book, the first and last chapters, respectively. more
Quotes:
[Howard passionately but forcefully kisses Cary, she pushes him away]
Howard Hoffer: I'm sorry Cary. I don't know what got into me. I know you're not like that. I apologize for what I said.
Cary Scott: That's all right, Howard.
Howard Hoffer: But I don't apologize for wanting you.
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Rock Hudson's Home Movies (1992) more
Soundtrack:
Consolation No.3 in D flat major more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
28 out of 35 people found the following comment useful.
Douglas Sirk's Visual Extravaganza, 11 July 2005
9/10
Author: Michael Bragg (Michael27@aol.com) from Foster City, CA

At times, the aesthetic appeal of a film is so overwhelming, it surpasses the draw of the big-name stars and plot. And "All That Heaven Allows" is one of those rare examples. Anyone familiar with Douglas Sirk-directed projects knows his grandiose style. And this 1955 masterpiece sums up the best of Sirk drama, with the surface sheen, thundering music, noted stars and biting social commentary. This film, in fact, is so beautiful, that it requires repeated viewings just to be able to take it all in.

Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson re-team from Sirk's inferior "Magnificent Obsession" that was such a hit the year before. In this story, Wyman plays a wealthy widow bound to the claustrophobic confines of her uppity New England town. Her friends and two grown children do their best to convince her to marry Harvey, a stuffy and older neighborhood bachelor. But Wyman wants more. She ends up falling for her younger gardener, played by Hudson. After bonding over the virtues of the silver-tipped spruce, they embark on a love affair which is rejected by the community and Wyman's own children. They feel she is far too upstanding to be with a gardener. The reluctance of those around her to accept this relationship cause Wyman to have to choose between love or respect from her town.

Sirk takes what is a sappy, predictable tale and turns it into a visual feast. This is true eye candy for film buffs. Sirk sets the stage for this story against a heightened background of the reds, golds and yellows of a New England autumn. Every detail from Agnes Moorehead's red hair to sunsets to Wyman's lipstick and even the cars is given the Technicolor treatment to the max. Sirk's knack for visual irony is also heavily present throughout. The film opens with a shot of the town's clocktower with pigeons roosting. The pigeons are divided into two groups - a gaggle of black pigeons representing the townspeople on one end, and on the other are two white pigeons nuzzling, representing Wyman and Hudson and the division they face in this community. This is just for starters. Other stunning examples are when Sirk uses shades of blues and greys and reds to convey character's feelings of sadness or anger. And of course there is the famous television set scene. And through all of this emotion and cotton candy extravaganza is Frank Skinner's lush score that soars in all the right places. "All That Heaven Allows" is a first-rate classic that is a must for fans of Sirk or anyone who are devotees of lush melodramas from the studio heyday.

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Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for All That Heaven Allows (1955)
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Unconvincing romance archer1267
Agnes Moorhead deadpan_diva
Ages of Cary and Ron? malin1248
Great moments of unintentional comedy drn5
Age difference Yann Villain
discussion - Cary's relationship with sarah bebebisous
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