Poster for The Bishop's Wife

The Bishop's Wife

1947, Holiday/Fantasy, 1h 49m

26 Reviews 5,000+ Ratings

What to know

critics consensus

The Bishop's Wife succeeds thanks to the strength of winning performances from a stellar cast, which includes Cary Grant and Loretta Young. Read critic reviews

You might also like

See More
That Touch of Mink poster image
That Touch of Mink
Oklahoma! poster image
Oklahoma!
Since You Went Away poster image
Since You Went Away
Evita poster image
Evita
Anchors Aweigh poster image
Anchors Aweigh

Where to watch

Rent/buy Rent/buy Rent/buy

Rate And Review

User image

Verified

  • User image

    Super Reviewer

    Rate this movie

    Oof, that was Rotten.

    Meh, it passed the time.

    It’s good – I’d recommend it.

    Awesome!

    So Fresh: Absolute Must See!

    What did you think of the movie? (optional)

  • You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.

  • User image

    Super Reviewer

    Step 2 of 2

    How did you buy your ticket?

    Let's get your review verified.

    • Fandango

    • AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew

    • Cinemark Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Regal Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Theater box office or somewhere else

    By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.

    You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.

  • User image

    Super Reviewer

    Rate this movie

    Oof, that was Rotten.

    Meh, it passed the time.

    It’s good – I’d recommend it.

    Awesome!

    So Fresh: Absolute Must See!

    What did you think of the movie? (optional)

  • How did you buy your ticket?

    • Fandango

    • AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew

    • Cinemark Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Regal Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Theater box office or somewhere else

    By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.

The Bishop's Wife Photos

View All Photos

Movie Info

Dejected by his efforts to raise money to build a cathedral, Bishop Henry Brougham (David Niven) beseeches heaven for guidance, and is visited immediately by Dudley (Cary Grant), who claims to be an angel. Henry is skeptical, then annoyed when Dudley ingratiates himself into the household as his assistant -- and worse, wins the attentions of Henry's long-suffering and kindly wife (Loretta Young). When Dudley continues to intervene in Henry's struggles, the bishop decides to challenge heaven.
  • Genre:
    Holiday, Fantasy
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Henry Koster
  • Producer:
    Samuel Goldwyn
  • Writer:
    Leonardo Bercovici, Robert Nathan, Robert E. Sherwood
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     wide
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Runtime:
  • Distributor:
    Home Box Office (HBO) [us], Pioneer Entertainment, Embassy Pictures, RKO Radio Pictures, Nelson Entertainment [us], MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
  • Sound Mix:
    Mono

Cast & Crew

Cary Grant
Cary Grant
Dudley
Loretta Young
Loretta Young
Julia Brougham
David Niven
David Niven
Henry Brougham
Monty Woolley
Monty Woolley
Prof. Wutheridge
James Gleason
James Gleason
Sylvester
Gladys Cooper
Gladys Cooper
Mrs. Hamilton
Elsa Lanchester
Elsa Lanchester
Matilda
Sara Haden
Sara Haden
Mildred Cassaway
Karolyn Grimes
Karolyn Grimes
Debby Brougham
Tito Vuolo
Tito Vuolo
Maggenti
Regis Toomey
Regis Toomey
Mr. Miller
Sarah Edwards
Sarah Edwards
Mrs. Duffy
Margaret McWade
Margaret McWade
Miss Trumbull
Henry Koster
Henry Koster
Director
Leonardo Bercovici
Leonardo Bercovici
Writer
Robert Nathan
Robert Nathan
Writer
Robert E. Sherwood
Robert E. Sherwood
Writer
Samuel Goldwyn
Samuel Goldwyn
Producer
Hugo Friedhofer
Hugo Friedhofer
Original Music
Gregg Toland
Gregg Toland
Cinematographer
Monica Collingwood
Monica Collingwood
Film Editing
Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for The Bishop's Wife

All Critics (26) | Top Critics (9) | Fresh (22) | Rotten (4)
Full Review… Peter Bradshaw Guardian Full Review… Walter Goodman New York Times Full Review… Caren Weiner Campbell Entertainment Weekly Full Review… James Agee TIME Magazine Full Review… Dave Kehr Chicago Reader Full Review… Variety Staff Variety Full Review… Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com Full Review… Brian Viner Daily Mail (UK) Full Review… David Parkinson Radio Times Full Review… Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Full Review… Susan Granger www.susangranger.com Full Review… Christopher Null Filmcritic.com
View All Critic Reviews (26)

Audience Reviews for The Bishop's Wife

  • Dec 21, 2014
    The Cary Grant classic The Bishop's Wife is a delightful film that's full of Christmas cheer. A struggling bishop who's working to build a new cathedral gets the surprise of his life when he receives a visitation by an angel. Co-starring Loretta Young and David Niven, the casting's pretty good and so are the performances. However, some of the character development is poorly done; particularly the bishop, whose redemption arch is underserved. Yet Grant lights up the screen, giving the material a charm that overcomes the weaknesses in the script. The Bishop's Wife may be a little too lighthearted, but for a holiday film it works.
    Dann M Super Reviewer
  • Nov 23, 2010
    Number 9 in the quest for 30, though netflix is making it harder by raising there rates. A lost and forgotten movie from long ago with an all star cast of Cary Grant, Loretta Young and David Niven. Cary Grant plays the angel Dudley who has come to earth to help a bishop in his dream of a church, along the way the bishop's wife played by Loretta Young falls in love with the angel. This is an excellent Christmas Film once again removed from TV play for its Christian Influence that was at one time instilled in all homes especially at Christmas. 5 Stars
    Super Reviewer
  • Sep 05, 2010
    Grant is an angel, now both literally and in this movie. How could you not like this movie? It's precious, I love it.
    Super Reviewer
  • Dec 20, 2009
    I liked the first hour or so of this, but it got a little boring after that.
    Erin C Super Reviewer
See All Audience reviews

Movie & TV guides

View All