The Bishop's Wife (1947)

An angel in human form enters the life of a bishop in order to help him build a new cathedral and repair his fractured marriage.

Director:

Henry Koster

Writers:

Robert E. Sherwood (screenplay), Leonardo Bercovici (screenplay)

Stars:

Cary Grant, Loretta Young, David Niven

Won 1 Oscar. Another 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Cary Grant	...	Dudley
Loretta Young	...	Julia Brougham
David Niven	...	Henry Brougham
Monty Woolley	...	Professor Wutheridge
James Gleason	...	Sylvester
Gladys Cooper	...	Mrs. Hamilton
Elsa Lanchester	...	Matilda
Sara Haden	...	Mildred Cassaway
Karolyn Grimes	...	Debby Brougham
Tito Vuolo	...	Maggenti
Regis Toomey	...	Mr. Miller
Sarah Edwards	...	Mrs. Duffy
Margaret McWade	...	Miss Trumbull
Anne O'Neal	...	Mrs. Ward (as Ann O'Neal)
Ben Erway	...	Mr. Perry

Storyline

An Episcopal Bishop, Henry Brougham, has been working for months on the plans for an elaborate new cathedral which he hopes will be paid for primarily by a wealthy, stubborn widow. He is losing sight of his family and of why he became a churchman in the first place. Enter Dudley, an angel sent to help him. Dudley does help everyone he meets, but not necessarily in the way they would have preferred. With the exception of Henry, everyone loves him, but Henry begins to believe that Dudley is there to replace him, both at work and in his family's affections, as Christmas approaches.

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Plot Keywords:

bishop | angel | christmas | hope | faith | 

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Taglines:

The Bishop's Wife is one of those really rare pictures that leaves you with a wonderful glow!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

16 February 1948 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Bishop's Wife

Filming Locations:

Samuel Goldwyn Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Samuel Goldwyn Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The "Lost April" song that features in the film had lyrics written for it with the song being recorded by Nat 'King' Cole.

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Goofs

On the first morning, as Dudley is walking back into the study to organize the index cards, there is an editing error. You'll see a very brief exterior shot. It's too quick to see what it is in real-time, but if you pause it, you'll see that it's from the scene of the previous evening with Dudley and the Professor standing in front of the old church building.

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Quotes

Sylvester: The main trouble is there are too many people who don't know where they're going and they want to get there too fast!

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Alternate Versions

Also available in a computer colorized version.

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Connections

Featured in Discovering Christmas Films (2018)

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Soundtracks

Lost April
(uncredited)
Music by Emil Newman and Herbert W. Spencer (as Herbert Spencer)

User Reviews

Choice Role For Cary Grant

Like "Life With Father," also issued in 1947, this is an old-fashioned "nice" film. Cary Grant, Loretta Young and David Niven make up an impressive trio of stars, but Grant has the best role. He makes the best of it, too, with expressions on his face that are funnier than most of the lines he delivers.

One not-so-family oriented thing he does, however, as the "angel," is go out on dates with the bishop's wife (Young). No respectable married woman, especially back then, would ever do that. At least the two of them recognize this fact later. Niven plays the bishop and, as usual in the film world, is portrayed as a weak clergyman.

Nonetheless, it is a charming, feel pretty-good movie that entertains through most of it. There are a few special-effects in here, too, that are good even by today's standards. One example would be the Christmas tree lighting scene.

This would make a good Christmas movie for people looking for suitable films during that holiday.