The Trouble with Angels (1966)

Two high-spirited young students at St. Francis Academy For Girls keep things hopping for the challenged Mother Superior and her staff of bewildered Sisters.

Director:

Ida Lupino

Writers:

Blanche Hanalis (screenplay), Jane Trahey (based on a novel by)

Stars:

Rosalind Russell, Binnie Barnes, Camilla Sparv

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rosalind Russell	...	Mother Superior
Binnie Barnes	...	Sister Celestine
Camilla Sparv	...	Sister Constance
Mary Wickes	...	Sister Clarissa
Marge Redmond	...	Sister Liguori
Dolores Sutton	...	Sister Rose Marie
Margalo Gillmore	...	Sister Barbara
Portia Nelson	...	Sister Elizabeth
Marjorie Eaton	...	Sister Ursula
Barbara Bell Wright	...	Sister Margaret
Judith Lowry	...	Sister Prudence
Hayley Mills	...	Mary Clancy
June Harding	...	Rachel / Rachel Devery
Barbara Hunter	...	Marvel-Ann
Bernadette Withers	...	Valerie

Storyline

Coming of age story for two girls, Mary Clancy and Rachel Devery, who find themselves as students at the St. Francis Academy, a catholic boarding school for girls. The story spans three years and follows the girls and their many pranks including setting off fire alarms, smoking cigars in the basement and putting bubble baths in the nuns' sugar bowls. As the girls mature, they gain a greater respect for their teachers and the commitment and devotion required to be a nun, leading one of them to make a life changing decision.

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Plot Keywords:

mother superior | school | student | nun | uncle | 

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Taglines:

It's the habit forming comedy the whole family can enjoy!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild thematic elements

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 March 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Life with Mother Superior

Filming Locations:

Eaves Movie Ranch - 105 Rancho Alegre Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, William Frye Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The first feature film to be directed by Ida Lupino since The Hitch-Hiker and The Bigamist over a decade earlier.

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Goofs

When Rachel and Mary meet on the train, Rachel starts to introduce herself as June.

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Quotes

Mother Superior: [to Mary] One of us may have to go. But I guarantee you, it won't be me!

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Crazy Credits

A halo appears over the A when the Columbia name appears on the torch lady logo. Then, Hayley Mills' "Angel" cartoon appears from behind the A, flies around the screen a bit, then blows out the Columbia torch.

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Connections

References The Teahouse of the August Moon (1956)

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Soundtracks

"The Trouble With Angels"
(reprise)
Music by Jerry Goldsmith
Lyrics by Ernie Sheldon
Arranged and Orchestrated by Harry Betts
Vocals by The Devils

User Reviews

"The Devil's Agents"

"The Trouble With Angels" is truly a gem. Ostensibly a comedy about the efforts of two slightly disgruntled, high spirited teenage girls (Hayley Mills and June Harding) to turn a convent school upside down, it combines lighthearted pranks with dry humor, most of the latter supplied by the splendid Rosalind Russell. As the worldly and wise Mother Superior, Rosalind is both amused and unsettled at the stunts her two incorrigible charges pull. The supporting cast is well chosen, with Mary Wickes ("Sister Act") and Marge Redmond ("The Flying Nun") standing out among the faculty nuns. Despite the unexpected appearance of legendary stripper Gypsy Rose Lee, cast as (what else?) a teacher of interpretive dance, both nuns and students are believable. Mills sparkles in her role as devilish Mary Clancy, as does June Harding as Rachel Devery, her neophyte partner in crime. Aided tremendously by a truly beautiful score by the great Jerry Goldsmith, (which has the remarkable ability to blend in with the film AND stand alone as a pleasurable listening experience) and directed with a sure hand by actress/director Ida Lupino, "The Trouble With Angels" is both funny and moving, one of the best family films ever made. Strangely enough, reviews were decidedly mixed (when not downright negative) back when the movie was released in 1966. But it was a sizable hit, and spawned an agreeable sequel ("Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows") two years later. Today, it remains as fresh as ever, and head and shoulders above most of the contemporary family films which followed it.