Review of The Bishop's Wife (1947) by Michael M — 09 Dec 2017

There are things in this movie I liked, things that quite simply charmed the hell out of me. For one, Cary Grant, who is just a freaking delight. He's probably my favorite actor of the classical Hollywood age, and it's performances like this that are why. He's suave, charming, and just fun to spend time with. The movie also has a lot of the things that make classic Hollywood movies fun. The ice skating rink scene oozes that old school Hollywood charm, and it's hard not to smile for the duration of it.

The problem with the movie is in the story. It starts off with an interesting enough premise (angel comes to help a bishop, but not exactly in the way the bishop expects) but it spends a lot of time meandering around in pointless scenes that start nowhere and go nowhere. Worst of all, slowly but surely, a love triangle between the bishop, bishop's wife, and the angel starts to develop. It's creepy and weird and there's really no one to root for in it. But much like every other plot point, this goes nowhere, and ends abruptly. The ending of the film is particularly unsatisfying, since nothing is really resolved. There's some development from the bishop, but not much, not enough to feel as satisfied as the movie clearly wants you to be.

Movie, I'm not mad, just dissapointed. You had some good ideas and a strong cast, but nothing really came from any of it. In the end it's a slow ride to nowhere with a few charming moments thrown in. For some people those moments will be enough to elevate the experience, but they just weren't for me.