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Summary: Funny and Very Charming Film For The Entire Family
Review: Smartly paced direction and sparkling performances highlight this extremely funny and ultimately touching story of two prankster teenage girls who run riot through a Catholic boarding school--and who, almost in spite of themselves, develop in maturity and spirituality in sometimes unexpected ways.Ida Lupino is generally best remembered as a noir-ish actress of the 1940s and 1950s--but she was an accomplished director as well, and THE TROUBLE WITH ANGELS possesses a remarkably stable feel that bespeaks Lupino's talents. The script is funny without being frantic and spiritual without being sentimental and the cinematography is simple yet often elegant. But the real sparkle of the film comes from the extremely enjoyable performances offered by an ensemble cast led by Rosalind Russell as the formidable Reverend Mother and Haley Mills and June Harding as her problem students. Russell gives one her best performances here, Haley Mills is her equal every step of the way, and June Harding is equally enjoyable; the truly memorable supporting cast includes the likes of Binnie Barnes and Gypsy Rose Lee. A truly fun and sometimes touching film to which you will likely return again and again, well worth the investment. Recommended.
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Summary: "The Sixties at it's Sweetest!"
Review: "The Trouble with Angels" is a good basic movie that everyone can watch. Not a new story, but the cast dose make it very funny.
Children who watch it will no doubt remember then 18 years old Hayley Mills from much of her Disney movies.
Mills (along with new comer, June Harding) are determand to turn St. Frances up side down with their silly pranks. Most of which are targeted at Mother Superior played by the legendary Roz Russell. (whom is very good in the role. Particularly after years of her very Auntie Mameish and buisness women characters. And a good movie to get your little one's exposed to Miss Russell. I was a sceptic at first, but she pulled it off. But the again, was there any doubt?) Also in the cast is very funny Mary Wicks, Binnie Barns and one great scence with Gypsy Rose Lee. (Strangely enough, Rosalind Russell played her mother four years before in the movie musical, "Gypsy.") With the fine direction of Ida Lupino, the great Jerry Goldsmith adds a nice touch with his conducting of the very sweet music . A nice movie for the whole family.
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Summary: 35 years later.....
Review: This evening, I turned on the Christmas tree lights, sat back in my easy chair, and once again watched The Trouble With Angels. While most of the country is watching It's A Wonderful Life, it is TTWA that puts me in the Christmas spirit. Watching Mary Clancy grow from a prankish girl into a mature woman is truly inspiring. This is one of my favorite movies of all time because of all the emotions that are present: love, fear, happiness, sorrow, and best of all - the joy of discovering oneself. 35 years after the initial release of The Trouble With Angels, I am STILL in love with Hayley Mills! When is this movie going to be released in DVD format?
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Summary: Marvellous Roz
Review: This would be just an enjoyable, somewhat silly little movie, if it wasn't for Rosalind Russell's magnificent performance as the Mother Superior. Projecting dignity, warmth, and a great sense of interior faith and calm, she single-handedly pulls this movie onto a completely different plane, making certain scenes extremely moving. Roz herself was a very devout Catholic, and it shows. I have always had the feeling (seconded by one of her relatives) that of all the roles she played, this was the closest to her own personality; strong, lethally witty, somewhat domineering, with that great interior dignity, faith and calm that I mentioned already. Hayley Mills and June Harding (whatever happened to her?) are however certainly worth watching as well.
I'm sorry Roz wasn't still alive to play the Mother Superior in "Sister Act"!
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Summary: "That's a blast...."
Review: "The Trouble with Angels" is a cute, innocuous movie whose humor, unfortunately, doesn't always translate well from the 1960s to the new century. Mary Clancy (Hayley Mills) and Rachel Devery (June Harding) are thrown together at St. Francis Academy, a Catholic girls' school run by nuns and administered by Mother Superior (Rosalind Russell). The two girls chafe at the rigidity of the routine at the school and end up pulling a series of juvenile pranks based on Mary's "scathingly brilliant ideas" (which, it needn't be said, are only marginally clever at best). This, of course, displeases Mother Superior and gets the girls in trouble on a regular basis. However, the school gradually has a profound effect on Mary, giving rise to a surprise ending. The film must likewise have had an effect on me, as I named my daughter Devery after the June Harding character.
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Summary: One of the funniest Hayley Mills films
Review: Hayley Mills made this picture after she was grown up and on her own. This is a story of 2 teenagers going to a Catholic boarding school. Their behavior will have you howling with laughter. Rosalind Russell plays the poor Mother Superior who must deal with these young women. Ida Lupino directed this film.
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Summary: "I'm not a child, Madame - I'm a midget with bad habits!"
Review: What a fun movie! It has been a favorite of mine for many years. Rosalind Russell is superb, as is Hayley Mills. As a child, I loved watching Mills' performances in Disney films, but this non-Disney film remains my favorite. Mary (Mills) and Rachel, her easily-influenced sidekick, seem determined to drive Mother Superior (Russell) insane. The two have a positive GENIUS for trouble, and we see them bluster their way through dance class, marching band, clandestine cigarette smoking, gym class, bra-buying trips, and, consequently, frequent pot-scrubbing assignments. Perhaps the nicest part of the movie is how Mary gains maturity and insight as she learns to appreciate Mother Superior and the other nuns. A truly funny, sweet movie, suitable for the entire family.
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Summary: Surely an aberration - a truly feminist film from Hollywood?
Review: In 1966, for some reason, Hollywood offered two films about Catholic convents and female collectives. The first, directed by a man (Sidney Lumet's 'The Group'), predictably defined its women by men, sex and neurosis. It isn't very good. This wonderful film, written and directed by women, and in which men are inefffectual or caricatured, is truly feminist, and explores less cliched issues like friendship, loyalty, community, creativity, faith. Clothes are a crucial motif here, literally and symbolically, visualising the way characters have to negotiate their genders, societies, personalities, and future. The film is emotionally generous too, using point of view to highlight the limitations of each chracter and their growing awareness.
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Summary: "Hayley's Scathingly Brilliant Idea Ever!"
Review: 19-year-old Hayley Mills was now on her way to getting the roles she wanted. In "The Trouble With Angels",Hayley plays Mary Clancy,a rambuncious 18-year old who drinks,swears,and smokes. When she meets Rachel Devry(played by June Harding),she says a famous line that will go down in history: "I got the most scathingly,brilliant idea!" With that,Mary and Rachel cause a lot of trouble at St. Francis. Mother Superior(Rosalind Rusell) puts a stop to Mary's shenanigans,but Mary does what she wants to. My favorite scene is when Rachel says good-bye to Mary after graduation. Hayley could've gotten a Dramatic Award for her performance. "The Trouble With Angels" also made its way for a sequel in 1968:"When Angels Go,Trouble Follows". Hayley was absent in that one,but the original cast welcomed Stella Stevens as Mary Clancy.
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Summary: A movie that grows on you.
Review: I first bought this movie for my children. At first I just viewed it as a lighthearted film with a nice end message. I now view it as a deep movie with an important message that builds throughout. This message is especially good for Children even young children (I can't understand the PG rating) but also for adults as well. I now use this video as a teaching aid. When you view the film note the reactions of Mary to being in the old folks home at Christmas. She puts up a front of anger against her already melting heart. She went from a brat to a feeling young woman, but it took a great deal of time for this to occur. A remarkable film. Buy it for someone young and help them to understand the complete movie and not just the pranks of the children, which is what most kids find the most entertaining part about the film, at least at first anyway.
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