This one has philosophies of heaven and hell that won't appeal to some, but its sincerity does work to overcome that. If I saw such a film today, made in the last 50 years, seeming to coopt Christian philosophies and mix them with common superstitions and even Hinduism, I would wonder if it was made by some cultish outfit like the Moonies, but these were simpler times, so I doubt that.
Charles Winninger (Michael), C. Aubrey Smith (Allan) and Harry Carrey (George) play three well off mining engineers in New York finishing up a big project on Christmas eve and expecting guests for dinner. When the guests cancel, the trio decide to throw three wallets out of their front window, each with their card and ten dollars, to the busy sidewalk below to see if anybody returns them. Whoever brings the wallet(s) back they'll invite for Christmas dinner. George's wallet is taken, but the other two are returned, one by a young woman working at a children's hospital (Jean Parker as Jean), and the other by a visiting Texan (Richard Carlson as James).
The five become good friends, and Jean and James fall in love and plan to marry, but just as they plan to tell their three new older friends the news, they hear that the trio have died in a plane crash on their way to a work site. At this point the three become ghosts, returning to their home, but with no real instructions as to what they are doing here. Complications ensue.
There is just lots of weirdness going on with the plot, and I've heard that some scenes are missing as the film long ago fell into the public domain thus the elements are shaggy. George is the grump of the group - He's not unkind just cynical. The three old engineers go off to heaven or hell one by one, in time. George is the first to go, and it is implied he's going to hell or purgatory because he's a grump. Yet he's been right at every turn - His tossed wallet WAS stolen rather than returned during the trio's experiment and James DOES fall for a bad woman. Michael says George will be forgiven if only he'll say he was sorry. Sorry for what - being right???
Helen Vinson plays the female temptress and singer who leads James' attention away from Jean. She does it sneakily, under the guise of helping James' singing career (and you have not lived until you've heard Richard Carlson talking like a member of the cast of Giant and singing - obviously dubbed - like he's the Great Caruso, but I digress). But strangely she is also the person who finds and keeps George's wallet earlier in the film when the three are performing their experiment. What is she doing, parked there, in front of the trio's house? And in the world of Beyond Tomorrow it is apparently possible to be blind drunk and yet follow a car that is as far as a mile ahead, in total darkness, then later fire a small caliber weapon from across a large room with deadly accuracy.
I'd mildly recommend this as a Christmas curiosity rather than a classic.
Charles Winninger (Michael), C. Aubrey Smith (Allan) and Harry Carrey (George) play three well off mining engineers in New York finishing up a big project on Christmas eve and expecting guests for dinner. When the guests cancel, the trio decide to throw three wallets out of their front window, each with their card and ten dollars, to the busy sidewalk below to see if anybody returns them. Whoever brings the wallet(s) back they'll invite for Christmas dinner. George's wallet is taken, but the other two are returned, one by a young woman working at a children's hospital (Jean Parker as Jean), and the other by a visiting Texan (Richard Carlson as James).
The five become good friends, and Jean and James fall in love and plan to marry, but just as they plan to tell their three new older friends the news, they hear that the trio have died in a plane crash on their way to a work site. At this point the three become ghosts, returning to their home, but with no real instructions as to what they are doing here. Complications ensue.
There is just lots of weirdness going on with the plot, and I've heard that some scenes are missing as the film long ago fell into the public domain thus the elements are shaggy. George is the grump of the group - He's not unkind just cynical. The three old engineers go off to heaven or hell one by one, in time. George is the first to go, and it is implied he's going to hell or purgatory because he's a grump. Yet he's been right at every turn - His tossed wallet WAS stolen rather than returned during the trio's experiment and James DOES fall for a bad woman. Michael says George will be forgiven if only he'll say he was sorry. Sorry for what - being right???
Helen Vinson plays the female temptress and singer who leads James' attention away from Jean. She does it sneakily, under the guise of helping James' singing career (and you have not lived until you've heard Richard Carlson talking like a member of the cast of Giant and singing - obviously dubbed - like he's the Great Caruso, but I digress). But strangely she is also the person who finds and keeps George's wallet earlier in the film when the three are performing their experiment. What is she doing, parked there, in front of the trio's house? And in the world of Beyond Tomorrow it is apparently possible to be blind drunk and yet follow a car that is as far as a mile ahead, in total darkness, then later fire a small caliber weapon from across a large room with deadly accuracy.
I'd mildly recommend this as a Christmas curiosity rather than a classic.