Heavens Above!

Cast

Peter Sellers
as Rev. John Smallwood

Cecil Parker
as Archdeacon Aspinall

Isabel Jeans
as Lady Despard

Eric Sykes
as Harry Smith

Bernard Miles
as Simpson

Brock Peters
as Matthew

Ian Carmichael
as The Other Smallwood

Irene Handl
as Rene Smith

Miriam Karlin
as Winnie Smith

Joan Miller
as Mrs. Smith-Gould

Eric Barker
as Bank Manager

Roy Kinnear
as Fred Smith

Kenneth Griffith
as Rev. Owen Smith

Miles Malleson
as Rockerby

William Hartnell
as Maj. Fowler

Joan Hickson
as Garrulous Housewife

Harry Locke
as Shop Steward

Nicholas Phipps
as Director General

Thorley Walters
as Tranquilax Executive

George Woodbridge
as Bishop

Basil Dignam
as Prisoner Governor

Colin Gordon
as Prime Minister

Joan Heal
as Disgruntled Housewife

Malcolm Muggeridge
as Cleric

Conrad Phillips
as P.R.O.

Cardew Robinson
as Tramp

Billy Milton
as Fellowes

Howard Pays
as Astronaut

Mark Eden
as Sir Geoffrey Despard

John Comer
as Butcher

Franklyn Engelmann
as TV Commentator

Tim Brinton
as TV Commentator

Geoffrey Hibbert
as Council Official

Marjie Lawrence
as Quarreling Housewive

Olive Sloane
as Quarreling Housewive

Henry Longhurst
as Deaf Gentleman

Elsie Wagstaffe
as Lady on Parish Church Council

Ian Wilson
as Salvation Army Major

Marianne Stone
as Miss Palmer

Josephine Woodford
as Doris Smith

Drewe Henley
as Doris' Boy Friend

John Harvey
as Prison Officer

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Critic Reviews for Heavens Above!

Audience Reviews for Heavens Above!

• May 07, 2010

  another great peter sellers performance, here playing a parish priest appointed to a small town church by mistake, when he starts his unauthordox ways change most of the town, and upset the church snobbish ways, his good will and surmens connecting, but also, giving free products ripple effect, causing outrage in town, sellers here with a i believe brumney accent, is on form, and the film has stuff to say, about religion, peoples lack of faith even in the 1950s, a slice of live worth seeing
  scott g Super Reviewer
• Sep 16, 2008

  Unjustly obscure, "Heavens Above!" is among Peter Sellers' essential movies. But beware, fans of droll British satire: You'll have to forgive an absurd ending which taints the entire film. Sellers plays Rev. John Smallwood, a guileless prison chaplain who, by mistake, is summoned to the small community of Orbiston Parva. The town's revenue depends on a factory that produces Tranquilax, a dubious remedy that is a sedative, stimulant and laxative all at once. A perverse comparison is drawn between this "three in one" panacea and the Holy Trinity. It's unclear whether Smallwood is a righteous thinker or just a simpleton who lucked into a virtuous path (shades of "Being There"'s Chance Gardener). But his gentle admonitions shock a hypocritical population accustomed to lazy, unearned feelings of godliness. Most residents are furious and call for his dismissal, but he does reach the matriarch of the town's wealthy, dominant family. Fearing damnation, she begins an extravagant charity program that frustrates shopkeepers and quickly unbalances the local economy. Meanwhile, passing comments from Smallwood's sermons hurt Tranquilax's credibility and cut into its profits. Can Orbiston Parva survive this disastrous dose of spirituality? "Heavens Above!" takes shots at quite a few targets, from religion to capitalism to class divisions. It's a notably bleak portrait of humanity -- even the poor people are corrupt and ungrateful. There are some nice supporting performances, particularly Brock Peters' turn as a good-hearted garbageman, but Sellers carries the film with a brilliantly understated characterization. Beyond one pratfall into an open grave, he scarcely does anything "funny" in the film and yet "Heavens Above!" is indeed a comedy. It's just too bad that a farcical conclusion wholly violates the film's established, low-key tone.
  

  Eric B Super Reviewer
• Sep 08, 2008

  classic charming british satirical comedy with peter sellers as a young vicar trying to bring christian charity to an uptight parish. it makes me smile :)
  Stella D Super Reviewer

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