Well, dear readers, I must tell you that every couple of years I pull out a motion picture to watch because I love it dearly. I pulled it out recently and watched it again last night and I have to say it never fails to make me guffaw and it never fails to have me blubbering like a baby. And yet, this film, made in the astonishing decade that was the 1970s, is rarely talked about and I think even rarely remembered today. It was a big hit film, with a major star and a cast to die for. It has brilliant writing, and is wonderfully directed. So, where Chinatown or The Godfather films, or any number of other 70s greats are spoken about often and vociferously, where is the love for Heaven Can Wait?
I saw the film the day it opened (well, the evening show), and I can only tell you the laughs were so loud and so long you could barely hear portions of the film. And the sniffles at the end were also just as loud as the laughs. For me, it is Warren Beatty’s finest hour in every department – his performance, which is fantastic, his co-direction, which gets everything right (with Buck Henry), the screenplay (with Elaine May) and all his choices behind the camera. Elaine May’s quirky humor is all over the film and I’m sure all of the Charles Grodin/Dyan Cannon stuff is from her. The pace is brisk and the film, for me, really only has one minor nitpick and it’s a nitpick I’ve had since the first time I saw it, but it goes by fast and it doesn’t really hurt anything. The nitpick is the scene with Vincent Gardenia as a police detective questioning everyone at the house. We suddenly go into theater of the absurd there for about five minutes, and I’m sure that is Elaine May, too, but it’s so not what the film is and especially what the film needs then. It’s not Mr. Gardenia’s fault – he’s a wonderful actor and he’s just doing what he’s given. But it’s a minor misstep and I’m equally sure it doesn’t bother some folks. But everything else is perfection. Even thought it doesn’t seem that long ago, it’s thirty-five years now, but they simply would not know how to make this movie today.
The film, a remake of Here Comes Mr. Jordan, wears its emotions on its sleeve, but they are so real and so universal, that I can’t imagine anyone not being charmed by it, but then again, these days nothing surprises me. And the cast – there aren’t actors of this quality anymore – there, I’ve said it and I’m glad. Charles Grodin and Dyan Cannon are amazing in their timing. Jack Warden is perfection. Joseph Maher, wonderful. Beatty’s original idea for Mr. Jordan was Cary Grant, who he apparently wooed for a long time. But James Mason is a wonderful choice and especially watching it now, his is a beautiful performance. Julie Christie is so subtle and so beautiful – the camera just adores her, and her scenes with Beatty are magical. The ending of the film never fails to open Ye Olde Tear Ducts. The score is one of Dave Grusin’s best – there isn’t much of it, maybe twenty minutes or so, but what there is is brilliant – the main theme, the beautiful variations on it, but never overplaying its hand. It’s one of the great crimes that the score has never been released, but all I’m going to tell you is that situation is about to be rectified at some point this year. If you have never seen Heaven Can Wait, I cannot recommend it highly enough – it’s just good for what ails you and, for me, works in the same way as It’s a Wonderful Life. It’s time to give this lovely film its due.
Prior to watching Heaven Can Wait, I’d slept till eleven because I hadn’t really gotten to bed until two-thirty. Then Barry Pearl came over to pick up one of my vintage radios – the one his prop person got was all wrong, so he was happy to have something from the period. I then immediately did a three-mile jog, and then the Staitman clan and I met at Jerry’s Deli. I had a tiny grilled cheese sandwich with bacon, and no fries of onion rings. We had a fun time and we talked about the number they’ll be doing in the next Kritzerland show.
After that, I picked up one package, and then visited Mystery and Imagination Books, which I always enjoy. We talked about the date for my signing and it will be hopefully in early June, if we get the book in this week. Then I came home, did some work on the computer, and got the audio samples for our upcoming two releases to the web guy, so everything is ready to go to announce on Monday morning. Then I sat on my couch like so much fish and watched Heaven Can Wait.
After that, I did more work on the computer, and am getting ready to listen to yet another batch of tracks for an upcoming release. I’ve had the raw tracks for almost six months now and it took me a really long time to figure out how the album should play – it’s a very difficult score to sequence for a whole slew of reasons, but the guy restoring the audio said it worked very well indeed. Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I do need a good night’s beauty sleep whenever I finish listening to the new tracks.
Today, I will jog, but then the rest of the day will be spent mostly listening to music, making some more song choices for the Kritzerland show, hopefully we’ll finish casting it, and then I’ll just try to relax.
Tomorrow, I’m up at six to announce the two new Kritzerland releases, which are really good. The rest of the week is meetings and meals and gathering sheet music and getting stuff to singers. Also a couple of shows to see, I think.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do a jog, listen to music, make choices, cast, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s free-for-all day, the day in which you dear readers get to make with the topics and we all get to post about them. So, let’s have loads of lovely topics and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland basking in the glow of Heaven Can Wait.