Fifty Years of Film in 50 Weeks, #35: We're No Angels, 1955

"I'll say one thing for crooks - they'll give you an honest days' work."

We're No Angels, 1955

Director: Michael Curtiz
Writers: Ranald MacDougall from a play by Albert Husson
Cinematographer: Loyal Griggs
Producer: Pat Duggan for Paramount Pictures
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Aldo Ray, Peter Ustinov, Joan Bennett, Basil Rathbone, Leo G. Carroll, Gloria Talbott

Why I chose it
This film was squarely at the center of the Venn diagram of Christmas movies, films from 1955, and movies I've not yet seen. It was an easy choice!

'No-spoiler' plot overview 
Joseph, Albert, and Jules are prisoners who escaped their cells on Devil's Island, and stowed away on a boat to the mainland (French Guiana in South America). The coastal town where they alight on Christmas Eve gives them little notice, as it seems to be populated with all kinds of former convicts(!) Looking to abscond with enough funds to further their journey, the three get hired by a local shopkeeper, Ducotel, to fix his leaky roof. While on the roof, they observe the goings-on in the house and can't help but insert themselves into the family, finding ways to both help them celebrate Christmas, "fix" the financial problems, and get rid of the family tyrant, all while planning to rob and murder them. Of course, as this is a Christmas movie, it's not a spoiler to say things work out in the end. Well...sort of!

Instead of working, the three escaped convicts eavesdrop 
from the roof on all the goings-on in the Ducotel family.
(l-r: Bogart, Ustinov, Ray).

Mr. and Mrs. Ducotel (Joan Bennett and Leo G. Carroll)
debate how to address their financial troubles.

Production Background
Michael Curtiz was on a Christmas movie roll when he made this one, just having completed White Christmas with Bing Crosby. (Of course, We're No Angels as a black comedy bears little resemblance to the earlier beloved classic.) He worked for Paramount, who bought the rights to the French play (La Cuisine des Anges) by Albert Husson. The play was also adapted for a Broadway show in 1953 called My 3 Angels; the producers of that version sued Paramount unsuccessfully, having wrongly assumed the movie ripped them off. 

The film was also the screen comeback for Joan Bennett, a 30s and 40s leading lady whose career suffered after her husband Walter Wanger in 1951 shot Bennett's agent believing them to be having an affair. Bogart wanted Bennett in the part and stood up for her when Paramount equivocated. Bennett said about Bogart "He made the stand to show what he thought of the underground movement to stamp out Joan Bennett...I'll never forget (his) kindness and warmth."

(The above info. from Christmas in the Movie: 30 Classics to Celebrate the Season, by Jeremy Arnold, copyright 2018 by Turner Classic Movies, Inc.)

From the opening credits.

Some other notable film-related events in 1955 (from Filmsite.org):

• James Dean was featured in his first major role and film, director Elia Kazan's East of Eden (1955), an updated re-telling of the Biblical story of rival brothers - Cain and Abel and a paradise lost. Tragically, Dean -- the prototype of a rebellious adolescent -- was killed in a car accident at age 24, driving his new 550 Porsche Spyder. 

• Blackboard Jungle (1955) was the first film to feature a rock-'n'-roll song in its soundtrack, "Rock-Around-The-Clock." (sung by Bill Haley and His Comets during the opening credits). It was the first major Hollywood film to use R&R on its soundtrack, and it inspired the next year's popular R&R film, Rock Around the Clock (1956).

• The iconic 52-foot high The Seven Year Itch (1955) cut-out shot of Marilyn Monroe's white skirt billowing up as she stood over a sidewalk subway grating was located in front of Loew's State Theater in Times Square (NYC), for the film's premiere. Because of complaints of indecency, the original image was replaced with a less provocative one.
  
  
• Andrzej Wajda's first major feature film, A Generation (1955) (aka Pokolenie), was about wartime resistance by young Polish men (in an underground movement) against the German invasion of Poland. It was the first in a trilogy of war films that also included Kanal (1957, Pol.) and Ashes and Diamonds (1958, Pol.). The film marked the renaissance of Polish cinema in the mid-1950s.

My Random Observations

• One of the joys of the film is watching the interaction between Bogart (Joseph), Ray (Albert), and Ustinov (Jules). Bogart is the father figure of the three, nearing the end of his career, while Ray and Ustinov were in their primes. All three played variations of their usual personas: Bogart the gruff brains of the bunch, Ray the jolly hunk, and Ustinov the sophisticated scoundrel.  Additionally, Curtiz choreographed the scenes with the three such that their movements were as smooth and synchronized as a juggling act. 
  

  

  The convicts reveal the Christmas turkey to the Ducotels
  (gif file from oldhollywoodpage.tumblr.com)

• I was initially a bit put off by the casual references to murder in the dialogue, but as the movie progressed I accepted them as part of the ruse. 
  "We came here to rob them and that's what we're gonna do - beat their heads in, gouge their eyes out, slash their throats. Soon as we wash the dishes."

• Aldo Ray was a revelation for me. Maybe because I've not seen much of him, but primarily because his looks and movements seemed so modern - he could have walked right out of a current episode of The Young and the Restless!

  

  Ray (Albert) comes to the aid of Isabelle Ducotel (Gloria Talbott) when she 
  faints; here she just comes to and sees the face of the handsome stranger.

• The cinematography was rich in saturated color, and there were some lovely long shots with gorgeous scenery. It didn't surprise me that the cinematographer, Loyal Griggs, was also responsible for the stunning mountain vistas in Shane.

The roof of the Ducotel property with lovely distant vistas.

• I would love to have a group of beneficent crooks decorate my place and cook my Christmas dinner the way these guys managed it for the Ducotel family!

  

  Joseph (Bogart) dons a pink apron and wields a knife (!) as he and 
  Jules (Ustinov) prepare Christmas Eve dinner.
  

Maybe these guys are angels, after all.

Where to Watch
Tune in to TCM on Monday, December 20th at 8PM to see the film. It's also currently available to Kanopy subscribers and can be rented on many other streaming services or viewed from the DVD or Blu-Ray.

Further Reading
For a fun review of the film with a special emphasis on Bogart, read here. The expectedly excellent TCM article with production details is here.