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One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Blistering performances.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

There is a very rich wealth of comedic talent involved throughout this film. Sadly, the majority are wasted in shallow stereotypical caricatures which en-masse, eventually drag the fairly simple premise (answered very pointedly by the film's title) away from the pleasing light-heartedness of films like "Two Way Stretch" or the benchmark satire of "I'm All Right Jack" to something that ends up leaving a bit of a nasty taste in the mouth. The only reason to watch this film is to enjoy the work of Peter Sellers. The meek sincerity of his Rev. John Smallwood is unblemished throughout, but what should be the pointed nature of his eventual salvation at the end of the film jars badly. We witness that both the church and the odious parish emerge relatively unscathed, but Smallwood's deliverance doesn't gel and appears as though it were tacked on regardless when the film-makers couldn't think of anything else to end the film. Alongside Sellers, only George Woodbridge is particularly notable, playing very much against type as a fairly shrewd Bishop.

Everybody is skewered in this potentially really good film, which falters as noted, no one comes out looking great, Christian, non- Christian, charity cases, welfare cheats, oblivious do-gooders, selfish non-do-gooders alike, with great insight offered on all of the above throughout. The primary comment seems to be that modern times has gotten Christianity right, that its message is obsolete, that the govt has filled in for dwindling public charity because society has moved from giving to being provided for---to the extent that the tattered welfare state is continuing. The oft-castigated ending was aqdded to continue in this vein the idea that Christianity, which doesn't work on Earth any more, may work better in its only alternative left, outer space, by sending broadcasts down from the heavens. At least that's the message the Boultings seemed to have wanted us to get, tho few on this site have. Like those few films that try to deliver important stories but don't quite work, the effort was worth it. Sellers plays his character perfectly, the entire cast is very good, the script is excellent for what it's trying to accomplish, and the ending, which does seem tacked on and out of place, is actually the logical extension to the quandary of Christianity in modern times that's displayed through the film.

Roy and John Boulting had previously guyed the British army in 'Private's Progress', diplomacy in 'Carlton-Browne Of The F.O.', industrial relations in 'I'm All Right Jack', and the legal profession in 'Brothers In Law'. For 'Heavens Above!' they turned their attentions to the church. Or did they? According to the credits, the script by Frank Harvey and John Boulting was based on an idea by Malcolm Muggeridge, who called 'Monty Python's Life Of Brian' a squalid little film on its original release in 1979. It comes as no surprise then that 'Above!' is deeply respectful towards religion; its main targets are the people who go to church each Sunday in their nice hats and sing their hearts out whilst being generally horrible the rest of the week, those who take from the Bible what they want and ignore everything else. And if you can make a few bob out of it too, good luck mate.Peter Sellers adopts a Birmingham accent to play the Rev. John Smallwood, a well meaning prison chaplain appointed in error to a parish in the small industrial town of Orbiston Parva, whose main industry is Tranquillax, a pep pill cum laxative. Right away he upsets the snobbish locals by appointing a black bin man ( Brock Peters ) called Matthew as his new Churchwarden. Then he gives a home to a pack of scurrilous gypsies led by Harry ( Eric Sykes ) and Rene Smith ( Irene Handl ) who proceed to rob him blind. The last straw for the community comes when he persuades local rich woman Lady Despard ( Isabel Jeans ) to use her wealth to start a new charity called the 'Good Neighbour Fellowship', which involves giving free food to anyone who wants it. The charity is popular at first, but leads to shop closures on a massive scale. When Lady Despard's son ( Mark Eden ) puts a stop to the scheme, the angry townspeople rounds on Smallwood...The 'G.N.F.' is basically a thickly-disguised sneer at the Welfare State. The Boultings seem to be saying that the N.H.S. will collapse eventually due to over-demand. Well, we're in 2010 now and it is still here, having saved thousands of lives over the years. While objecting to the analogy, I still find this to be a marvellous film. The attacks on the Vicar's 'socialist' leanings are augmented by some rather obvious comedy touches such as him accidentally eating dog biscuits and Lady Despard's Peckinese peeing on his boot. Sellers again turns in a magnificent performance, drawing praise years later from his 'Goon Show' co-star Spike Milligan: "That character ( Smallwood ) is brilliantly sustained from beginning to end.".What about that supporting cast, eh? Let me drop a few names - Kenneth Griffith, William Hartnell, Cecil Parker, George Woodbridge, Bernard Miles, Cardew Robinson, Roy Kinnear, Miles Malleson - amongst others. Troopers all. One surprising thing though is the relegation of dear Ian Carmichael ( whom we lost earlier this year ) to a minor role as 'the other Smallwood'. He'd starred in almost all of the Boultings' earlier comedies, with the exception's of 'Carlton-Browne' and 'A French Mistress'.What lets the film down slightly is the ending in which Smallwood is moved by the Church to safer pastures by becoming the first Bishop of Outer Space. It belongs in a different film entirely. As he flies off into the heavens in a rocket, singing hymns, you cannot help but feel sorry for him. Hope he made it back to Earth eventually.

This film is great fun, well written and well acted. While the ending is unexpected, if you haven't seen it before, it is difficult to know how all the issues could've been resolved in any other way except as unresolved as it is here! They did the same thing to John Steed in the very last episode of The Avengers, appropriately titled "Bizarre", some six years later! That episode featured Roy Kinnear as the marvellously named Bagpipes Happychap who also features here amongst a wealth of famous faces including the original Doctor Who, William Hartnell, in the year that he took that role. Again, considering the ending, that too seems appropriate now and brought a wry smile to this viewer's face especially as another of the film's cast, Mark Eden, also appeared, in the title role of "Marco Polo", opposite Hartnell in that series!!! Peter Sellars is on fine form as the hopelessly idealistic new vicar as is Eric Sykes as a chain smoking butcher! Best of all is the plethora of verbal and visual irony which should be enough to keep any discerning viewer entertained!!!