We're No Angels (1955)

Three Devil's Island escapees hide out in the house of a kindly merchant and repay his kindness by helping him and his family out of several crises.

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Albert Husson (play), Ranald MacDougall

Stars:

Humphrey Bogart, Peter Ustinov, Aldo Ray

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Humphrey Bogart	...	Joseph
Aldo Ray	...	Albert
Peter Ustinov	...	Jules
Joan Bennett	...	Amelie Ducotel
Basil Rathbone	...	Andre Trochard
Leo G. Carroll	...	Felix Ducotel
John Baer	...	Paul Trochard
Gloria Talbott	...	Isabelle Ducotel
Lea Penman	...	Mme. Parole
John Smith	...	Medical Officer Arnaud

Storyline

At Christmas, three prisoners, Joseph (Humphrey Bogart), Albert (Aldo Ray), and Jules (Sir Peter Ustinov) escape from Devil Island to a French small coastal town. They decide to rob a store, to get some money and clothes and travel by ship to another place. They pretend to be there to fix the roof, but pretty soon they realize that the financial condition of the family Ducotel is not good. André Trochard (Basil Rathbone), the selfish and mean owner of the establishment, exploits the Ducotel family. The three convicts spend Christmas night with the Ducotels and are so well treated by the family, that they decide to help them. Their pet will help them to fix the situation.

---

Plot Keywords:

escaped convict | based on play | devil's island | christmas | 19th century | 

---

Taglines:

A strangler... A swindler... A safecracker... Yet you'll love them!

---

Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Romance

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

8 September 1955 (Argentina)

Also Known As:

Angels' Cooking

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,685,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$3,000,000, 31 December 1955

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the second time Humphrey Bogart played an escaped convict from Devil's Island. The first was in Passage to Marseille (1944).

---

Goofs

The movie supposedly plays ON Devil's Island (it's superimposed in the establishing shot at the very beginning) and Ducotel's general store is located in Cayenne (it's mentioned several times), the capital of French Guiana. However, Devil's Island exclusively was a penal colony with no civilian settlement, and Cayenne lies on the mainland coast, approximately 50 miles east of Kourou, the closest mainland town to Devil's Island.

---

Quotes

Albert: What if she knows his handwriting?
Joseph: If you got a beautiful note like this, would you bother comparing signatures?
Albert: No. It'd have to be signed by a girl, though.

---

Connections

Referenced in At the Movies: Family Business/Blaze/We're No Angels/The Wizard/The Rosegarden (1989)

---

Soundtracks

Sentimental Moments
(uncredited)
Music by Friedrich Hollaender
Lyrics by Ralph Freed
Performed by Joan Bennett

User Reviews

We're No Angles, Sure Is Classically Divine

3 convicts escape from a jail on Devils island during Christmas, they make plan to rob a local store, but befriend the shop keeper and his family.

Three great lead characters in Humphrey Bogart, Aldo Ray and Peter Ustinov play the convicts. Bogart plays his character without flaw and surprising to see him in this humorous role, while young Ustinov and Ray also play great characters that assist the shop keep and his family during a difficult Christmas.

This movie wasn't what I was expecting especially after seeing 1989 movie with the same name staring De Niro and Penn, but I guess it was far better because i had a smile on my face throughout the whole movie. This certainly is a feel good sense to this movie.

With great lines in this movie, you'll be sniggering to yourself and cheering on the 3 misfits. One to watch when you need a smile.