The Trouble with Angels ** (1966, Rosalind Russell, Hayley Mills, June Harding, Binnie Barnes) – Classic Movie Review 9172

Director Ida Lupino’s 1966 comedy The Trouble with Angels stars Hayley Mills and June Harding as Mary Clancy and Rachel Devery, young students and naughty schoolgirls let loose and running wild in a Pennsylvanian Catholic convent boarding school, the St Francis Academy For Girls, where Mother Superior (Rosalind Russell) tames and civilises them.

The Trouble with Angels is a cosy, icky, maudlin comedy, with a stodgy script by Blanche Hanalis (based on the book Life with Mother Superior by Jane Trahey) that largely defeats the stalwart players. Both star Russell and director Lupino thrive best on tougher, more cynical material. However, there are nevertheless one or two bright spots and amusing moments.

Also in the cast are Mary Wickes, Marge Redmond, Binnie Barnes, Gypsy Rose Lee, Camilla Sparv, Dolores Sutton, Margalo Gillmore, Portia Nelson, Marjorie Eaton, Barbara Bell Wright, Judith Lowry, Barbara Hunter, and Bernadette Withers.

It was popular enough for a sequel: Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows (1968).

The exteriors were filmed at St Mary’s Home for Children orphanage in Ambler, Pennsylvania, and on other locations, while the interiors were filmed in the Columbia studio in California.

RIP versatile actress June Harding, whose film debut in The Trouble with Angels made her a teenage rebel icon, who died on March 22, 2019, aged 81. She retired from filming in 1970 and took up painting.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 9172

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