The Movie

The film tells the story of a man who has to prove he belongs in Hell by telling his life story.

An aged Henry van Cleve enters the opulent reception area of Hell, to be personally greeted by "His Excellency". Henry petitions to be admitted (fully aware of the kind of life he had led), but there is some doubt as to his qualifications. To prove his worthiness (or rather unworthiness), he begins to tell the story of his dissolute life.

In late nineteenth century Manhattan, Henry is the spoiled only child of stuffy, clueless, wealthy parents Randolph and Bertha. His paternal grandmother is also doting and naive, although his down-to-earth grandfather Hugo van Cleve, a self-made millionaire understands Henry quite well. Henry grows up an idle young man, with a taste for attractive showgirls. One day, Henry overhears a beautiful woman lying to her mother on a public telephone. Intrigued, he follows her into a bookstore and pretends to be an employee to get to know her better. Despite learning that she is engaged, he begins making advances, finally confessing he doesn't work there, whereupon she hastily departs.

Later, obnoxious cousin Albert introduces the family to his fiancee, Martha and her feuding parents, the Strabels. Henry is shocked to find that his mystery woman and Martha are one and the same. It turns out that Albert was the first suitor of whom both her parents approved. Fearful of spending the rest of her life as a spinster in Kansas City, Martha agreed to marry him. Henry convinces her to elope with him instead. Everyone (except Grandpa van Cleve) is scandalized. Eventually, they are received back into the family. They have a son, but on the eve of their tenth anniversary, Martha finds out about Henry's dalliance with another woman and goes back to her parents. Henry and Grandpa follow her there. Henry begs her forgiveness and talks her into "eloping" a second time, much to Grandpa's delight.

Their marriage is blissful thereafter and Martha passes away shortly after their twenty-fifth anniversary. Henry lives to a ripe old age, then dies under the care of a beautiful nurse after portending her coming in a dream. After hearing Henry's story, His Excellency denies him entry and suggests he try the "other place", where Martha is waiting for him, hinting that there might be "a small room vacant in the annex".