Mon père et nous

... that I could watch once a month every month, year in and year out, and of which I would never tire.

The Day family is headed by the authoritarian and often eccentric father, Clarence Day Sr., played brilliantly by William Powell. Powell brings his signature charm and wit to the character, making Clarence Sr. A lovable figure despite his quirks. Irene Dunne portrays his equally strong-willed but supportive wife, Vinnie, with grace and impeccable comedic timing. The chemistry between Powell and Dunne is the film's backbone, with them often being at odds, at least on the surface.

Set in late 19th-century New York City, it captures the charm and idiosyncrasies of this conservative Victorian family in a lighthearted and amusing manner. Clarence Day demands that the family finances be run on a business basis, but his family thwarts him at every turn. However, the main conflict in the film occurs when Vinnie discovers, by Clarence Sr.'s own admission, that he has never been baptized. Being dogmatic about the Protestant religion, she openly fears for his soul, believing that he will not be admitted into heaven without this event occurring, and even wondering if they are really married in the eyes of God. Day finds the whole business ridiculous and refuses to be baptized, since he would feel himself to be a spectacle to be baptized in middle age. Religion is something he tolerates as long as it does not become a bother.

Along the way a haunted suit, a ceramic pug dog, patent medicines prior to the FDA, a revolving door of maids, and the oldest son of the family, Clarence Jr., wondering if Episcopalians and Methodists can peacefully coexist (he wants to court a Methodist girl and he is Episcopalian) create charming situations that make this movie special. Expertly directed by Michael Curtiz who manages to make this play adapted into a movie not appear episodic.

The casting of this film actually turned into a mini "Scarlet O'Hara War" in regards to who would play Mrs. Day. Myrna Loy, Rosalind Russell, Rosemary DeCamp, Jean Arthur, Bette Davis, and Mary Pickford all campaigned for the job but in the end lost out to Irene Dunne. Pickford took the loss especially hard, hoping that this would be her comeback role.

I have always liked this movie.

Clarence Day was the son of Clarence Day Sr. and Vinnie Day. His childhood (with three brothers) was a privileged one, as his father was a successful broker in New York City during the Gilded Age. Day became a humorist and autobiographer, writing three books that remain very entertaining: GOD AND MY FATHER, LIFE WITH FATHER, and LIFE WITH MOTHER. Day died in the 1930s, but a play by Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse was produced from the books entitled LIFE WITH FATHER. It played for nearly a dozen years or so, and for many years had the record of Broadway performances before the coming of the super musical hits from OKLAHOMA onward.

LIFE WITH FATHER is set in 1885 (the historical reference that sets this date is the rant by Mr. Day at the newspaper, where he refers to the then Mayor of New York, "Honest Hugh Grant" and Tammany Boss Richard Croker). The story line is actually quite straightforward - the senior Day (William Powell) faces the daily problems of his household, thinking he is running things but constantly being out-witted by his dearly loved wife Vinnie (Irene Dunne) who insists on having an ugly ceramic pug dog for awhile. Accidentally Mr. Day reveals that his free-thinking parents have never had him baptized, and this horrifies his wife and their local minister (Edmund Gwenn). Being a man in his late forties now, Powell thinks it is absolutely foolish to make him get baptized now. In the meantime his oldest son Clarence (Jimmy Lyden) has met with the first love interest of his life (his mother's cousin, young Elizabeth Taylor). Clarence's brother John, who is interested in science (he has wired up the parlor to cause a bell to go off, that confuses Mr. Day no end), has gotten involved selling a patent medicine. This will have ill-effects on Mrs. Day and Mr. Day, culminating in an oath that Mr. Day will end up regretting. Finally there are some marvelous examples of home economics from Mrs. Day that baffle and confuse Mr. Day no end - watch how she takes back the pug dog (which was charged) and gets a "free suit" for Clarence ("THEY DON"T GIVE AWAY FREE SUITS!", Mr. Day insists.]

I doubt, unfortunately, that a book, play, or movie like LIFE WITH FATHER would last today. And I think we are the poorer for that. It is of a long dead world, with a fierce devotion to order and stratified social life in our homes and in our cities and nation. But it was not without it's charms. Catch the sweetest moment in this wonderful movie, when Mr. Day and Vinnie are singing "Sweet Marie" together in their parlor, on a summer afternoon.

I have been a tremendous fan of this movie for many years. I discovered the movie version after I had seen a local stage production and it was an excellent transfer of the play to the screen. Until recently I had only seen it on TV first in black and white years ago and then in color on TCM. I like it so well I bought two of the DVD versions (I won't mention which) and as other reviewers have said they were horrible with washed out color, grainy images and sound that was not synchronized and barely understandable. I guess this is all you can reasonably expect for a movie that has some how slipped into the public domain and for which there is not much demand. However, while searching on Amazon I discovered a review for a new digitally remastered DVD that supposedly fixed all those problems. I ordered a copy and the review was correct. There is now an excellent DVD available from DigiComTV BarCode # 885444062681.

Life With Father is one of my favorite movies. How could you possibly go wrong with two legends of the Silver Screen, William Powell and Irene Dunn, and the wonderful ZaSu Pitts! I love everything about this movie...the time period of the early 1900's New York, the sets and costumes, the interweaving story lines, the acting, the charm and sweetness...I wish this movie could have had a sequel...William Powell and Irene Dunn are absolutely brilliant in this movie. Thank you Clarence Day, Jr. for sharing this wonderful story...

As an adult, Clarence Day Jr. (1874-1935) joined his well-known father on Wall Street--but developed a form of arthritis that left him a semi-invalid. Shortly before his death he published LIFE WITH FATHER, a humorous memoir of his Victorian childhood; sadly, he did not live to see its great success. A best seller, the novel was adapted to the stage in 1939 by Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse. Warner Bro.s bought the film rights, agreeing to wait until the show finished its Broadway run; as it happened the studio had a long wait, for the play went on to become one of Broadway's longest running shows, playing almost eight years.

In acquiring the rights, Warner Bro.s also gave Clarence Day's widow and playwrights Lindsay and Crouse substantial power over the film version. Censorship issues of the day prevented an absolute translation of the script to the screen, but on the whole the script survived the transformation extremely well, and fueled by a host of flawless performances and remarkably fine production values LIFE WITH FATHER became as memorable on screen as it was on stage.

Clarence Day is an eccentric man, absolutely certain that he alone is correct in all decisions, and eternally running afoul of wife Vinnie's scatterbrained logic, his four sons, visiting relatives, and terrified servants. When a conversation reveals that he has never been baptized, Mr. Day laughs the matter off--but Vinnie is determined that he will be baptized whether he likes it or not. Comic battle-lines are drawn, and the result is a hilariously amusing portrait of Victorian manners and attitudes about everything from religion to the place of women in the world.

The performances are superlative. This would prove to be among the last great roles for both William Powell and Irene Dunne, who play Clarence and Vinnie Day, and to describe their work as flawless is actually an understatement: we completely believe in them from start to finish. The same is true of the cast in general, which includes a remarkably beautiful Elizabeth Taylor; legendary comic ZaSu Pitt; and even a very young Martin Milner. The costuming and sets also capture the look and feel of the era in remarkable fashion. The film is perfectly executed from start to finish.

But you might as well throw your money away than buy any of the releases presently available on VHS and DVD. There is not a one of them worth a dime: the color is atrocious, the sound is horrific, and the picture so blurry that the only thing you'll get for your money is a headache--and this has been true of every factory release I've seen to date.

It is a terrible shame that such a fine, indeed such a great film has been so incredibly neglected. Fortunately for all concerned, LIFE WITH FATHER continues to turn up on television fairly often. Until there is a restored release, don't buy a VHS or a DVD: tape it from television instead, for I can almost guarantee that the version you find there will be superior.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer