Les astuces de la veuve

"A Ticklish Affair" begins with Navy Commander Key Weedon (Gig Young) arriving at the Martin household. It seems the youngest, Grover, was sending Morse code distress signals from their house in San Diego! And, the US Navy noticed it and went on alert! This was the kooky meet cute in the film....and soon Amy Martin (Shirley Jones) and the Commander begin dating and fall in love. But there's a major hitch here. The widow lost a husband in the Navy AND if she marries the Commander, she'll have to move with her three small boys to Italy! This is too much for her...and you certainly can understand her rejecting the Commander's offer. And, it's a shame as the boys really love the guy and want their mother to marry him.

This first 3/4 of the film was great...and the dilemma was real and you could understand Amy. But what follows was just stupid....and it really made a great romance an okay one in the end. It seems that Grover 'accidentally' flies away on a cluster of giant balloons and soon the fire department, police AND Navy are all scrambling to save this dopey 6 year-old. Talk about contrived!!! It really, really was a bad decision...as before this ridiculous portion, the film was amazingly good....and Jones was simply radiant.

The Navy led by Commander Key Weedon (Gig Young) rushes to investigate an SOS signal coming from land. They find Navy widower Amy Martin (Shirley Jones) with three kids. The youngest one had send the signal with his imaginary friend. There is also the family's Uncle Simon Shelley (Red Buttons).

There is no romantic chemistry in this rom-com. The meet-cute is only cute for Shirley Jones and her kids. I wouldn't mind having a family-friendly misadventure with those four characters plus Red Buttons if they could have better writing. Instead, we're stuck with a stiff officer and Shirley Jones demurring into a girlie girl. It loses any hope for intensity or romantic heat. This is bland. At least the balloon ride seems fun. My one suggest for that is getting brighter colored balloons. This is desperately trying to be a family-friendly romance. Obviously, this has a lot of Navy involvement. I hope it didn't extend into the writing but I fear that's probably the case.

What can only be described as a sweet film, this family comedy is bright and sunny even when the situation takes a turn for the perilous.

Full of sprightly performances this is the kind of film that rarely gets made anymore and when it does is drowned in sugary sentiment.

The Jones girls, Shirley and Carolyn are both most engaging, play well off each other and look great. In Carolyn's case this might be the most attractive she ever was on screen.

As the men in their lives Gig Young get a rare chance to be the romantic lead who doesn't lose the girl in the end performing with his customary charming agility. Red Buttons provides comic relief but his character is more than that and he does it well, he and Carolyn are a surprisingly compatible couple.

A film that will leave you charmed at the conclusion this should really be more widely known.

This is one of those early 1960's movies where you have to suspend disbelief for ninety minutes, but it's well worth it. Shirley Jones is the widowed mother of three rowdy little boys and Gig Young is the naval commander that she falls in love with and vice versa. Red Buttons and Carolyn Jones are very good in their supporting roles. The ending is appropriately wacky (weather balloons!), fun and heartwarming with a little drama thrown in for good measure. 'A Ticklish Affair' is not a movie that a jaded cynic will enjoy, but if you like 60's romantic family comedies then I highly recommend this one. I happened to catch this one on Turner Classic Movies by accident and I'm so happy I taped it. I was smiling like crazy by the end. Great movie.

This is one of the very few movies where Gig Young gets the girl. The casting for this movie was excellent with Carolyn Jones and Red Buttons, along with Edgar Buchanan. Shirley Jones is beautiful, as always. It is rarely shown on tv now, but if you happen to see it appear, be sure to tape it. I have it and watch it often, just for the good feelings it gives me. As a Naval officer, Gig Young is very good, acting as the protective, loving man. Red Buttons, as always, plays his part with great skill, making the movie just that much more enjoyable. I also liked the names of the characters, as they were unusual (Cy, Tandy, Key) and suited the persons who played them. Wonderful movie for a happy, contented evening's worth of watching.