Come to the Stable (1949)

Come to the Stable (Dir: Henry Koster, 1949).

It’s a case of ‘And Then There Were Nuns’ as a superfluity of sisters descend upon the small town of Bethlehem, New England in this lightly comic drama from 20th Century Fox. 

Hailing from France, the nuns, lead by Sister Margaret (Loretta Young) and Sister Scholastica  (Celeste Holm) arrive in the USA intent on building a children’s hospital. But without the land or the cash it proves an uphill battle. Through dogged determination, luck and perhaps a little divine intervention, they slowly begin to realise their dream… 

An appealing cast heads Come to the Stable with Young and Holm registering strong performances in the leads. Stand outs in support are the wonderful Elsa Lanchester as the kooky artist who provides shelter for the sisters and Dooley Wilson, always a treat, here as a sort of porter cum oddjobs man.  

Faith movies were something of a specialty of director Henry Koster, with The Bishop's Wife (H. Koster, 1947), The Robe (H. Koster, 1953), The Story of Ruth (H. Koster, 1960) and The Singing Nun (H. Koster, 1966) among his more notable features films. While Come to the Stable doesn't hit the heavenly highs of Christmas classic The Bishop's Wife, it is more entertaining than the reverential, yet slightly dull spectacle of The Robe. Happily, the schmaltz is largely kept at bay in what is a potentially stickily sweet subject. That is until the climax, when a detractor to the sisters’ plan is struck with a sudden attack of piety! 

Astonishingly, Come to the Stable was nominated for 7 Academy Awards. Whilst it didn’t find itself on the winner’s podium, it is still a remarkable achievement. There is a good deal of whimsy to wallow through but, if I’m honest with you, it was a far more entertaining movie than I expected. A highly contrived confection for which a strong constitution is needed for the finale. Still, if nuns are your thing you will love it!