moonspinner55 Review of The Miracle of the Bells

The Miracle of the Bells (1948)

Oh baby, baby...it's a religious fiasco for MacMurray and Sinatra

[1/10 · 31 December 2015]

Hollywood press agent escorts the deceased body of an actress--a girl he mentored and fell in love with--back to her hometown for burial. Flashback-heavy bummer from RKO has not a shred of show business savvy; it's a mock-up of Hollywood lives, ladled with unconvincing sentiment that might have worked had the filmmakers been a little shrewd. Instead, it's too square, with Alida Valli practically fogging up the camera portraying the Polish-American actress practically born to play Joan of Arc (!). Fred MacMurray, his pained, hangdog face constantly foisted upon us in close-up, is colorless, but thank the heavens we have Father Frank Sinatra around for a little sidewise humor. One can almost detect the wink in Sinatra's portrayal of Father Paul, but MacMurray doesn't have the good sense to lighten the load with a shrug--he's too determined to be a typical movie star clod, one with glycerine in his eyes. NO STARS from ****