Heaven Can Wait

　　Henry Van Cleve presents himself at the gates of Hell only to find he is closely vetted on his qualifications for entry. Surprised there is any question on his suitability, he recounts his lively life and the women he has known from his mother onwards, but mainly concentrating on his happy but sometimes difficult twenty-five years of marriage to Martha.
　　
　　劉別謙首部彩色片，亦是唯一的一部。聰明的他不像其時導演般大潑七色，收歛的色彩恰如其份散發着影片應有情調。一個倒敘的故事。七十病歿的男主角自覺一生荒唐，自行到地獄報到，判官要聞其詳，他便數說他的女人。碰巧都是生日：十五歲和法國女傭曖昧；二十一歲搶走表親的未婚妻；三十一歲妻子發現他不忠離家出走……死時美麗護士在旁，但覺無憾。開鏡前劉別謙心臟病發闖過鬼門關，影片面對死亡的輕盈灑脫更顯其本色，現代化地獄與斯文判官教人絕倒。敘事技巧有條不紊，娓娓道來倒敘再倒敘的故事，笑中有淚。此時此刻，看電影絕對是享受。
　　
　　Lubitsch's first colour film shows he instantly grasped the essence of the medium. Opening with an imposing set designed by Sam Basevi and Leland Fuller that resembles an exclusive gentleman's club, it transpires that it's actually Hell, and knocking on its oak-paneled doors is Henry Van Cleef, an urbane rake. Reviewing his eligibility, the Devil, who has the savoir faire of a diplomat, asks him to recount the story of his life. He gives a typically Lubitsch answer: "let begin [with]... the women in my life..." and we are treated to the delightful tale of a bon vivant who can resist anything but temptation and eloped with his wife not once, but twice!

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