---
title: "All That Heaven Allows: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/all-that-heaven-allows/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/all-that-heaven-allows"
critics_score: 78
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# All That Heaven Allows (1955): what the critics said

Critics' score 78 from 7 reviews: 5 positive, 2 mixed, 0 negative.

Most critics respond warmly to All That Heaven Allows, with praise clustering around Sirk’s expressive use of colour and composition. The melodrama is widely valued for taking ordinary emotional lives seriously, while several reviews find a perceptive challenge to social repression beneath the romance. The strongest notices see its emotional directness as a strength, rather than something that needs to be excused by looking for subtext.

Reservations concern the performances and the story’s persuasiveness, with a substantial spread between enthusiasm and qualified responses. Radio Times particularly praises Rock Hudson, while The AV Club finds his performance problematic. Variety is less moved by the story and finds Wyman’s character difficult to sympathise with, though it singles out Gloria Talbott for praise. Eye for Film admires the film but questions the ending’s reliance on coincidence. The unavailable Time Out text limits what can be said about its reservations.

## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo

Rating A-. 11 June 2014. 

D’Angelo says the film works magnificently as melodrama, even without reading it for subtext. He especially praises Sirk’s saturated colors and geometrical compositions, while finding Hudson’s performance more problematic.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/subtext-or-not-all-that-heaven-allows-works-great-as-s-1798180859)

## The New Yorker — Richard Brody

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 4 April 2011. 

Brody regards the film as one of Sirk’s great works and celebrates its democratic power. He singles out how its melodrama makes ordinary emotional life feel grand while risking—and triumphing over—ridicule.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/dvd-of-the-week-all-that-heaven-allows)

## Empire — David Parkinson

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 24 March 2006. 

Parkinson finds the film enthralling and far more than a romance novel. He praises Sirk’s expressive visual style and its perceptive critique of bourgeois society.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/heaven-allows-review/)

## Radio Times — Lucy Barrick

Rating 4/5. 

Barrick calls the film an exquisite melodrama. She praises the leads, especially Rock Hudson, and its sumptuous visual design.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-4prf33/all-that-heaven-allows/)

## Time Out — GA

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 

The available metadata describes the film as a glossy tearjerker centered on a troubled romance. The review text is unavailable, so its verdict and specific praise or complaint cannot be established.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/all-that-heaven-allows)

## Variety — Variety Staff

Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1954. 

The review finds the story mildly offbeat but says it is not especially stirring, and Wyman’s character becomes difficult to sympathize with. It singles out Gloria Talbott as the standout performer.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/1954/film/reviews/all-that-heaven-allows-1200417942/)

## Eye for Film — Chris

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 31 January 2008. 

The critic praises Sirk’s film as a major work that challenges social repression, though its ending feels too dependent on coincidence. The vivid expressionist visuals and sincere performances help make its ideals convincing.

[Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/all-that-heaven-allows-film-review-by-chris)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/all-that-heaven-allows.md