Favor Não Incomodar

Doris Day is a ray of sunshine in most of her films, and Do Not Disturb is no exception. She is perfectly cast as the neglected wife, isolated and bored in Kent, England. Day's character (Janet Harper)has a husband who is not playing his part in the marriage, and takes her for granted. What she needs is an interest which takes her outside of the marriage and the idea of the good, dutiful wife.

Day's comic timing is so masterful that it reinvigorates the otherwise tired clichéd, and stereotyped gags. Ironically Day deconstructs our stereotypical perspective of Hollywood glamour by not taking herself too seriously and as such taking a swipe at the movie star image. Very clever and well accomplished albeit in an inadvertent way.

If you are a fan of Day, then this film is a must see, but it's also great if you just want a carefree chuckle.

DO NOT DISTURB has been hastily conceived as a star vehicle for the ever-frothy Doris Day, playing a wife whose love has gone out of her marriage to hard-working husband Rod Taylor. She decides to try to win his heart back by pretending to embark on a passionate affair, but things don't exactly go according to plan...

The whole film is designed to show off Day at her quick-thinking best, to show off her comedic skills as she goes from one situation to the next. I have to say that, while I like Day (in THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH, for example), her performance soon started to grate on me here. The absolute pits is the scene where she gets drunk; I hate these old comedies where women get drunk and act stupid, because they're just over the top and embarrassing. There were similar moments in a lot of Audrey Hepburn movies.

Still, DO NOT DISTURB isn't too bad, and as a light-hearted comedy you can enjoy it if you don't expect too much from the premise. Taylor is a delight as the foil to Day's wit, and a supporting cast do their best with the material they're given.

I caught this on American Movie Classics, thinking it would be a match for Doris' earlier comic work in, e.g., "Lover Come Back" and "Pillow Talk". The sparkling, fizzy, dialogue and non-stop comedic capering of those earlier films is here replaced by elephantine pacing and a leaden, unfunny script. Even Doris' valiant attempt to inject some carbonation into this flat brew falls, well, flat. The film really makes you appreciate the work of truly master comic writers such as Stanley Shapiro and Paul Henning, who made such a difference in her earlier work with Rock Hudson. And, by the way, Rod Taylor is no Rock Hudson. And - just to keep kicking while the victim is down - the phony portrayals here of English customs and character types, in conformity with the stalest and most parochial American stereotypes, is both unfunny and demeaning. A sad waste of Doris Day's talents.

OK, so it's not unreasonable to enter into a Doris Day romantic comedy expecting undemanding froth and a little sexiness. With that, Do Not Disturb delivers on that expectation. Day's line in this type of film caters for like minded people knowing exactly what they want from a Sunday morning time filler. The trouble is, is that where's the cut off point to say no more please? This film is arguably the one where Day fans {and I count myself among them} finally realised the formula had run its course. Yes the enjoyable fluff that was The Glass Bottom Boat would follow a year later, but that too has a familiarity, that whilst not breeding contempt, certainly felt like being stuck on a carousel.

The plot here is naturally simple, but sadly so is Richard L. Breen's screenplay {adapting from William Fairchild's play}. Thankfully Day at least manages to make the thread bare script work to a degree, and although no Rock Hudson, Rod Taylor does make for an appealing foil to Day's sexy effervescent efforts. Hermione Baddeley shines brightest out of the supporting cast and the funky opening credits are accompanied by Day's delightful rendition of the title tune. Enter with caution then, for even the hardiest of Doris Day fans must know this is but a time filler in all but name. 5/10

Now I didn't hate Do Not Disturb, but it was nothing special really. It does have its good points though. I loved the fun title sequence, the catchy title song and the drunk scene in the middle scene. While nothing spectacular, the production values are quite nice and the music is good. And Doris Day, the talented and endearing actress/singer she is, really makes the most of what she has.

What I didn't like about Do Not Disturb so much was that Rod Taylor came across as one of Day's more blander co-stars and does resort to overacting. But I think what did hurt the film more was its thin script, predictable plotting(albeit some moderately funny scenes), elephantine pacing and sit-com-ish direction.

Overall, Do Not Disturb isn't terrible as such, but it could have been better and Day did deserve much more. 5/10 Bethany Cox