The Bishop's Wife (1947)

Henry Kosters' The Bishop's Wife is a Christmas movie that brings to the screen all of the stuff that Christmas should be about. David Niven plays Bishop Henry Brougham, a man of the cloth whose single-minded and so far unsuccessful attempt to raise money for a new cathedral has caused him to lose touch with his wife Julia (Loretta Young), his daughter Debby (Karolyn Grimes), and the people he is supposed to be serving. When the bishop prays for guidance, he's immediately visited by Dudley (Cary Grant), a man who claims to be an angel. Once the bishop is convinced of Dudley's heavenly origins, the bishop expects him to solve his troubles with the cathedral. But Dudley has a different mission. He's not the least bit concerned about the building of another church. He's come to save the Bishop's soul before it's too late. He's there to remind Bishop Brougham of the thing that he's forgotten. He's there to remind him that people are more important than buildings, and that his own family is more important than anything else.

Dudley goes about this in a most unusual way. He starts courting Julia. Soon, Julia is spending all of her time with Dudley, and Debby can't wait for him to come and tell her stories. Even the family dog prefers Dudley to Bishop Brougham. And why not? Dudley's handsome and charming and witty, and he knows everything. Bishop Brougham is worried and irritable and way too busy to tell stories or take Julia to dinner or spend time chatting with old friends. But not Dudley. He talks the Brougham's old friend, Professor Wutheridge (Monty Woolley) into finishing his long-promised history of Rome. He even talks the tight-fisted Mrs. Hamilton into giving all of her money to helping the poor. Eventually, the bishop sees that he, through his blind ambition, has almost lost the things he values most. He orders Dudley to leave, telling him that Julia means more to him than his life. Upon hearing that, Dudley departs, but not before telling Henry what a lucky man he is.

The Bishop's Wife is a wonderful, feel-good movie about rediscovering your true purpose in life, as well as what's really important. Cary Grant turns in a marvelous performance as Dudley, the angel. This is one of the first films to feature the post-war Cary Grant, who's performances are more measured and serious than the pre-war Grant. Loretta Young is as beautiful as ever as the titular character, who mourns for the old days when her husband was just a parish priest and they had fun together and friends among the common people. David Niven gives one of the finest performances of his career as the harried bishop who's lost his direction in life. This film was produced shortly after Niven's wife died in a senseless accident, and Niven's anger and guilt show through in his characterization of Bishop Brougham. But to me, the real star of this film is the incomparable Mothy Woolley, who steals every scene that he's in. Watch him as he struggles in vain to figure out how Dudley knows him. Observe his facial expressions in the wonderful scene where Dudley keeps magically refilling the professor's sherry glass. Woolley is priceless, as is James Gleason as the cheerful cabby, Sylvester, who ends up in a skating party with Dudley and Julia. And all of these wonderful actors come together to deliver the marvelous message that people are what Christmas is really all about. It's peace on earth, good will to all. That's a message we could all use a little more of in these times of uncertainty.

The Bishop's Wife is rated G. It's filmed in glorious black-and-white and has a runtime of 109 minutes.