Heaven Can Wait

Heaven Can Wait, based on the Harry Segall play from 1938, is the second of three adaptations and the second to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards despite there being another, unrelated  film with the same title in 1943 that was also nominated. The first adaptation, Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), was a popular film at the time but ultimately fell to How Green Was My Valley, the John Ford drama about coal miners in Wales. While the basic plot for Heaven Can Wait hasn’t been changed much when bringing it up to date for 70s audiences, the setting and the character of Joe Pendleton has been altered quite a bit. This would be further altered in the third version, Down to Earth, starring Chris Rock playing a stand-up comedian. This film took its title from the sequel to Here Comes Mr. Jordan, also titled Down to Earth. 

All of this is to point out that this concept has been a popular one; one that seems to strike a chord with viewers and critics alike propelling it to multiple Academy Award nominations for a film that is basically just a romantic comedy with a supernatural, spiritual element thrown in. It’s a well made film all around, but there really isn’t anything new it brings to the table that the original didn’t already do. The updated setting is nice and all, tapping into American audiences’ love for football, but the experience of watching this version isn’t otherwise different than just watching the original. 

Joe Pendleton (Warren Beatty) is a backup quarterback for the NFL Los Angeles Rams. On the day he is informed that he will be made head quarterback and can lead the team to the Super Bowl, Joe is struck by a vehicle while riding his bike and finds himself in a barren, cloud coated, landscape being guided by an overzealous guardian angel Escort (Buck Henry) on his first assignment and intent on getting Joe on the plane to heaven. But Joe refuses to accept that he is dead, prompting his Escort’s supervisor, Mr. Jordan (James Mason) to get involved. When it is discovered that Joe was supposed to survive the crash, Escort is ordered to take him back to Earth and put him back in his body. Unfortunately, when they arrive the body has already been cremated. This leaves them with only one other option: find a suitable replacement body for him, one that is just about to die that he can take over.

The best choice, at least temporarily, is that of multimillionaire, Leo Farnsworth, who has just been drugged and drowned in his bathtub by his cheating gold digger wife Julia (Dyan Cannon) and her lover Tony Abbott (Charles Grodin), Leo’s personal secretary. Joe accepts this body as a temporary solution until Mr. Jordan can find a more suitable body, preferably someone he can take as the lead quarterback to the Super Bowl. But leading Leo’s life brings with it some challenges. For one, Leo was in the process of displacing communities to build power stations. On top of that, there are several other ventures that Joe finds despicable, leading him to change the business strategy of his companies, costing the stockholders millions. He also meets Betty Logan (Julie Christie), a teacher who is trying to get through to Leo just what damage to the community his projects are causing. Joe is falling in love with her and, through his changes to the company, she is falling for him, too. When Mr. Jordan returns with news that a fitting new body has been secured, Joe no longer wants to leave again. But he is told he does not have a choice in the matter.

I have always strongly felt that if a film has nothing new to offer then it shouldn’t be made. This is especially the case with remakes. This was a passion project of Beatty’s and there is no doubt he is having fun playing in it, but so little was done beyond changing Joe’s occupation. For someone like me, who is the rare exception who doesn’t give a darn about football, this didn’t help endear the film to me. Instead, it made those moments all the more dull. On top of that, the film has a player get killed on the field during the Super Bowl. I doubt any player has ever been killed on the field during a game, let alone the biggest game of the year but I would like to think that it it had happened, more respect would be given than just hauling him off the field while the game goes on as if he just has a bad case of leg cramps. This is supposed to be a plot convenience to give Joe everything he ever wanted in the end and it just feels mean-spirited. 

This is supposed to be a screwball comedy, a throwback to those kinds of films made back in the 1940s. Most of the time that works well for it. This is in large part due to the people Beatty has surrounding him in the cast. The film is co-directed by Warren Beatty and Buck Henry and both actors also star in the film. People forget these days but Buck Henry used to be a big deal, not just some random guy that kept being brought back to host episodes of Saturday Night Live in the 70s. He was a comedy writer who co-created Get Smart with Mel Brooks and has a long and impressive list of credits spanning more than six decades in Hollywood. While he isn’t credited for the screenplay, many of the best lines readings he gives as the Escort feel like they either are written by him or heavily tailored to his style of comedy. It’s a very laid back, dry comedy much like Bob Newhart’s, but it is often very funny. 

In contrast is James Mason who brings a degree of seriousness to the role in a way that only he can. James Mason was getting towards the end of his career at this time; he would pass away about six years later. Whether he was playing the troubled alcoholic actor Norman Maine in A Star is Born, Captan Nemo in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, or the vampire’s assistant in ‘Salem’s Lot on television, he was always a solid presence on screen. Here he is playing the straight man, giving gravitas to a screwy concept and making it feel like Shakespeare. Such is the power of James Mason. This could almost come across as a deadpan performance right up until the scene when he arrives to inform Joe that he can no longer stay in Leo’s body. In that moment you can see just a hint of emotion behind his façade. 

Warren Beatty is a likable enough presence here. This is the height of Beatty’s Lothario period where his behavior off screen was even more interesting than his characters on screen. It’s difficult to separate that image from the one we are meant to be seeing on camera. When he is playing someone like Clyde in Bonnie and Clyde that can work to his advantage. But when he is supposed to be a genuinely good guy falling in love with a humble school teacher it starts to butt up against his reputation. This obviously wasn’t a problem with audiences at the time as they flocked to the theater to see this in 1978. Warren was nominated three times for this film alone in the production, directing and acting categories. He would come away from this one empty handed. 

Had I not already seen Here Comes Mr. Jordan, I would have probably liked this film more. As it stands, though, I found it just slightly above average. It just never goes anywhere unique and has nothing new to say on the subject of life and death. Instead, it relies on a premise that we’ve seen before and expects that to be good enough. For most people that would be good enough. For me, though, it just doesn’t get there. I never quite believe Joe’s character as being such a goody goody nor do I find either Julia or Tony to be compelling villains. Their plot is so ill conceived that all I could do was sigh in exasperation as they tried to carry it out. The best stuff came between Joe and his coach, Max (Jack Warden) but their on-screen time was limited. This is a perfectly fine diversion film, I just expect more than that when it comes to an Academy Award nominated Best Picture.

Academy Award Nominations:

Best Picture: Warren Beatty

Best Director: Warren Beatty and Buck Henry

Best Actor: Warren Beatty

Best Supporting Actor: Jack Warden

Best Supporting Actress: Dyan Cannon

Best Screenplay - Based on Material from Another Medium: Elaine May and Warren Beatty

Best Art Direction: Paul Sylbert, Edwin O’Donovan, and George Gaines (won)

Best Cinematography: William A. Fraker

Best Original Score: Dave Grusin

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Release Date: June 28, 1978

Running Time: 101 Minutes

Rated PG

Starring: Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, James Mason, Charles Grodin, Dyan Cannon, Buck Henry, Vincent Gardenia, and Jack Warden

Directed by: Warren Beatty and Buck Henry