Though this film sounds boring, a preacher's life from the time he is called until he nears the end of life's journey, it is actual an exciting, fast-paced, sometimes humorous account of the trials and tribulations of a minister and his family, showing both the good and the bad. Obviously Hollywood's design in releasing this movie in 1941 was to serve as a morale booster as the flames of war began to encircle America. Often World War I was used as a stand-in for World War II to stir up the urge to fight the enemy and fan the fires of patriotism. Yet many of these films, such as "Yankee Doodle Dandy," were exceptional. "One Foot in Heaven" is one such achievement.
Based on the real life experiences of a Methodist minister in Iowa from the perspective of his son, the movie highlights certain rites of passage from the disappointment of his future in-laws when they hear that their future son-in-law has suddenly decided to change from becoming a doctor to being a preacher in a jerkwater town, to his final triumph of using his skills as an organizer and arm twister to have a modern church built to replace the old deteriorated one. There is much joy along with many heart rending decisions that keep the story moving. Director Irving Rapper wisely ignores sermonizing and actual preaching to concentrate on the personal life of the Spence family.
My favorite part is when the minister takes his son to a movie to instruct him why he should not be slipping around to see picture shows. The man of the cloth is surprised when the silent flick, William S. Hart in "The Silent Man" (1917), turns out to be a moralistic tale against evil, so effective that the minister uses it as the subject of his sermon on Sunday. Watching this scene gives the modern film goer a once in a lifetime chance to have a vicarious experience attending an early cinema complete with piano player and a kid attempting to read the subtitles aloud.
The acting is topnotch with most of the faces being familiar to movie buffs, including a walk-on by a young Gig Young. Kudos to makeup artist and innovator Perc Westmore for making Fredric March and Martha Scott appear to actually age from young adults to old adults as the story progresses.
Based on the real life experiences of a Methodist minister in Iowa from the perspective of his son, the movie highlights certain rites of passage from the disappointment of his future in-laws when they hear that their future son-in-law has suddenly decided to change from becoming a doctor to being a preacher in a jerkwater town, to his final triumph of using his skills as an organizer and arm twister to have a modern church built to replace the old deteriorated one. There is much joy along with many heart rending decisions that keep the story moving. Director Irving Rapper wisely ignores sermonizing and actual preaching to concentrate on the personal life of the Spence family.
My favorite part is when the minister takes his son to a movie to instruct him why he should not be slipping around to see picture shows. The man of the cloth is surprised when the silent flick, William S. Hart in "The Silent Man" (1917), turns out to be a moralistic tale against evil, so effective that the minister uses it as the subject of his sermon on Sunday. Watching this scene gives the modern film goer a once in a lifetime chance to have a vicarious experience attending an early cinema complete with piano player and a kid attempting to read the subtitles aloud.
The acting is topnotch with most of the faces being familiar to movie buffs, including a walk-on by a young Gig Young. Kudos to makeup artist and innovator Perc Westmore for making Fredric March and Martha Scott appear to actually age from young adults to old adults as the story progresses.