Life with Father

Life With Father, the story of an eccentric, excitable 1880s gentleman and his continually exasperating family is the perfect showcase for the under-appreciated talents of William Powell. Powell, best know for his work with Myrna Loy in the "Thin Man" series of films. Powell uses every second of this plum role to display his charming style and verbal acuity.

The story is simple: Powell and his wife, played by Irene Dunne, face a series of calamities, some serious and some ridiculous, mostly brought on by their four rambunctious, red-headed sons. After a visiting cousin brings along fifteen-year-old Elizabeth Taylor, events are put into motion which threaten to turn Powell's neatly-ordered world upside down.

The performances are uniformly fine, and Powell and Dunne are absolutely sterling. A supporting cast that includes Zasu Pitts, Edmund Gwenn and early appearances from Martin Milner and Elizabeth Taylor round out the picture quite well. If there is anything to detract from the complete enjoyment of the film, it is Taylor's performance, which can get grating, but hey, she's just a kid, and when you look at her, you can already see the amazing beauty still to come. The exceptional visual style of the film makes you long for the day when people rode in horse-carts to Delmonico's for dinner.

Watch for some classic dialogue between Powell and Dunne over the cost of a new coffee pot, between Powell and his son about "the facts of life where women are concerned," and the nonsensical wordplay over the return of a Porcelain Pug-Dog.

This film's excellent cast brings interest to a story of otherwise routine family events. Almost all of the performers are nicely matched with their characters, especially William Powell and Irene Dunne as the parents. The period piece setting works well most of the time, and although it is occasionally stagy, "Life With Father" is a pleasant movie to watch, with many good comic moments.

Powell is perfect as Mr. Day. The character in himself is not especially distinctive - an autocratic, mildly eccentric, often oblivious patriarch - but Powell gives a fine performance that makes him a worthy center of attention. Dunne is, if anything, even better as the charming and patient Mrs. Day, who is much more clever than she appears, and who in most respects actually runs the household. The rest of the cast includes some fine supporting actors like Zasu Pitts and Edmund Gwenn, with Jimmy Lydon adding a good performance as Clarence, Jr. There is not that much to the actual plot, but the acting, writing, and careful production (including attractive Technicolor photography) make innocent day-to-day events seem significant, and make the viewer want to see how things come out.

Because of the fine cast, this movie works well as comedy and as a thoughtful look at family life. If you enjoy classic cinema, take a look.

When I first saw this movie, I thought it was fair at best. On the second viewing, I really, really liked it. I'm almost afraid to see it for the third time, as I could almost dislike it again since I seem to flip-flop on this.

THE GOOD: The film has "charm" written all over it. Although Irene Dunne has some Grace Allen-type gag lines, William Powell is the one who provides most of the laughs in this tale of upper-crust family life in the 1880s. However, both Powell and Dunne are excellent and play off each other well. The story revolves around the personal and business life of the Clarence Day family, a true family in the sense of the word it, which is nice to see. Every character is interesting and the supporting cast includes Edmund Gwenn and Zasu Pitts (love that name!). Nice Technicolor, too.

THE BAD: The romance between Jimmy Lydon and a young Elizabeth Taylor gets a little sappy. Powell's constant exclamation "Gad!" is very annoying as a close as screenwriters apparently could get to saying "God" all the time in 1947.

All in all, it's a nice period piece that takes you back life a little over a century ago, and provides us another one of these more-innocent family stories. To my knowledge, there has never been a good print made of this, either on tape or DVD, which doesn't make sense considering the fine cast and good reputation of this movie.

... 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.

Once again Michael Curtiz demonstrated his bewildering versatility by moving from black & white noirs to this nostalgic Technicolor whimsy whose success doubtless led a couple of years later to the superior 'Cheaper by the Dozen', in which the wife was appropriately played by Myrna Loy, for whom Irene Dunne here provides a most satisfactory substitute as Mrs William Powell.

Even more than Mr Gilbreth in the latter film the title character is really just a pompous boor whose supposed charm largely resides in the fact that he's played by Bill Powell; and it's a shame we don't see more of Heather Wilde as the short-lasting maid Annie who carries the first twenty minutes before quitting in tears, never to return.