158 HEAVEN KNOWS, MR. ALLISON
then film was shot in Trinidad and Tobago, and there were no Japa nese inhabit-
ants. The filmmakers located six people who spoke Japa nese in an emigrant neigh-
borhood in Brazil and hired them to play the Japa nese officers in the film. Fifty or
so Chinese blue- collar workers living on the island were hired to play the remain-
ing Japa nese troops, which angered the locals because their ser vice industry was
disrupted as a result. Actual filming occurred between September and November.Plot Summary
In the South Pacific in 1944, U.S. Marine Corporal Allison (Robert Mitchum)
and his recon party are disembarking from a U.S. Navy submarine when they are
spotted and fired upon by the Japa nese. The submarine goes into a dive, aban-
doning the scouts. Allison drifts across the ocean in a raft for days on end and
fi nally comes ashore upon an island. He comes across a desolate chapel, empty
save for a single occupant: Sister Angela (Deborah Kerr), a new nun who has not
taken her vows. Sister Angela arrived with a priest four days prior to Allison, with
the aim of rescuing a fellow clergyman. However, they found the Japa nese inhab-
iting the island, and the natives abandoned Sister Angela and her priest compan-
ion, who soon died. Marine and nun spend time alone in their spot on the island,
but Japa nese troops arrive to set up a camp, and the two newer inhabitants flee to
a nearby cave. As night falls, Sister Angela and Allison witness the flashes of naval
gunfire at sea. A smitten Mr. Allison declares his love for Sister Angela. Overcome,
she goes out into a heavy rainstorm and becomes sick. Allison carries her back to
the cave to recover, just as the Japa nese soldiers return to the island. As he is
retrieving blankets from the Japa nese camp to warm Sister Angela, Allison is dis-
covered and pursued by a Japa nese soldier. The soldier finds the cave that Allison
and Sister Angela have been hiding in and forces the pair to decide between sur-
render or death by grenade. Just as they are trying to find a way out of their pre-
dicament, Americans begin to bomb the island in preparation to land. Allison
decides to do what he can to assist the American troops by disabling the Japa nese
artillery while the soldiers lie in wait in their bunkers. He successfully sabotages
the Japa nese weaponry and saves a number of American soldiers as a result. As the
pair are rescued, Allison and Sister Angela bid each other farewell. Allison lets his
love go, recognizing Sister Angela’s dedication to her faith.Reception
Released on 13 March 1957, Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison made $4.2 million at the
box office; bud geted at $2.9 million, it was a modest financial success. Deborah
Kerr’s per for mance as Sister Angela drew Oscar and Golden Globe nominations
and won her the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress. Robert Mit-
chum received a BAFTA nomination for Best Foreign Actor. The screenplay by John
Lee Mahin and John Huston garnered Oscar and WGA Award nominations, and
Huston also earned a Directors Guild Award. Reviews were good. Bosley Crowther
pronounced Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison “a film that is stirring and entertaining,”
called the Tobago location “exciting” and “drenched with atmosphere,” and noted
that the cast “while small, [is] excellent” (Crowther, 1957).