Ma femme et ses enfants

I saw this movie once on TV and have not forgotten it. It was entertaining with the strained relationship of Colbert and Fred McMurray and the back and forth snipping that the old comedies were so famous for. Let's face it, these two just have great chemistry together and are masters at that kind of domestic comedy. The honeymoon with the kids at the Grand Canyon is everyone's nightmare and you have to laugh at their plight with the honeymoon sabotaged by those out of control kids. What I loved so much were the views of the Lodge at the South Rim and just the opportunity to see the Grand Canyon from a time lost forever. Some of the shots are amazing. If this one ever came out on DVD I would buy it because it is fun light hearted entertainment done only as these two know how to do it.

Family Honeymoon is one of those comedy movies where you're supposed to laugh at people's misfortunes. Bad things kept happening to the people in the movie, one after the other. These misfortunes were supposed to be funny but they were really just too sad to be that funny.

To unmarred people, or those who have never had children and don't have a background filled with more than one sibling, this movie might be a turnoff. To those who come from a large family, or who have raised a family with at least two kids, this film may strike them in any number of ways. To some, it will seem real. To others very exaggerated. To some, lack of parenting or control of kids. To others, a bunch kids run wild. But, for all who have a family background of any kind, it should be enjoyable for the humor.

As a father of six adult children and grandfather of a couple dozen (by blood, adoption and marriage), I have experienced all sides. And, I would only take issue with anyone who thinks the three children in this film are brats. They are children - young children, and only the oldest is likely to remember their father who died almost five years ago. Zoe would have been a baby in diapers yet.

It isn't clear if Katie Armstrong had to work to support the family, or if she had considerable financial help from insurance or family assets. They did have a maid, so they weren't poor.

Any mom trying to raise kids alone will have difficulties far beyond homes that have a mother and father. It's harder for a single parent to be able to discipline children all the time when they need it, and it's harder for one adult to coral kids at times. And, single mothers (and some single fathers I've known) tend to give their children a little more leeway when they have lost the other parent, especially to death. So, one might say that Claudette Colbert's Katie was a little too lax in training her kids. Otherwise, this film just shows types of the sometimes crazy, sometimes silly, sometimes annoying, and occasionally risky or dangerous things kids may do.

So, taking the film as it is, Fred MacMurray's Grant Jordan, is quite good as a brand new stepdad. This is a nice little family flick. There aren't lots of clever or witty lines, and the humor is mostly in the situations. Many parents might even chuckle over the lost boys who got off the train before it pulled out. Many of us have had our own scrapes with a child suddenly disappearing or darting off in a huge department store. It's natural to be worried in such instances. But seeing others having the same experiences, when one knows it's almost certain to turn out all right, one can't help but smile.

"Family Honeymoon" isn't one of the rollicking funny, or clever and hilarious comedies that both MacMurray and Colbert starred in. It's a family comedy, with the unusual situation of having to have kids along on a honeymoon. I enjoyed it. I think most people with families will too. But there will be some who won't.

Two favorite lines in the film are early in the picture as guests are gathered for the wedding and reception. One woman says to another, "Imagine - the most eligible bachelor in town being captured by a widow."

Another woman is talking with Minna Fenster (played by Rita Johnson). "Is there any reason why Mrs. Armstrong and Professor Jordan shouldn't be happy," she asks. Minna replies, "Well, you see.." Just then, the three kids come charging into the house with Aunt Jo, Katie's sister, and scamper up the stairs. The woman asks, "Uh, are all these hers?" Minna says, "Yes. The bride to be is with you might call a crowd."

Another good line is between Grant and young Abner. Abner, "Can you hypnotize people?" Grant Jordan, "Well, I , uh, I have put a lot of students to sleep. Heh, heh."

It's ridiculous and not because of the kids but because of the ex- girlfriend who is able to fool Fred. I love all the other films where Claudette Colbert (one of my favorite actresses) and Fred McMurray (one of my favorite actors) team up together because it's always a winning combination but it was beginning to get annoying mid-way and I would rather watch another film with them in it again than waste my time on this. Sorry, but it's the truth unfortunately.

When the story begins, Katie and Grant (Claudette Colbert and Fred MacMurray) are about to get married. It's an unusual marriage because Katie is a widow with three kids and Grant is getting an instant family. However, he gets a more instant family than he anticipated, as Katie's sister breaks her leg at the wedding and cannot stay to watch the kids while Grant and Katie go on their honeymoon...so they are forced to take them with them on their trip to the Grand Canyon.

The problems are many on the way to the Canyon...and the boys accidentally get left behind at one of the train stations! Now, instead of spending time canoodling at the natural wonder, they don't have a minute together because of the kids. Can it get any worse? Well...yes...when Grant's ex-girlfriend shows up!!

Up until the family arrived at the Grand Canyon, I enjoyed the movie. However, once at the Canyon the film took a huge nose dive. First, the children began behaving abominably...so much it stopped being fun. It's also quite odd that the new couple never really worked out how to parent these brats....and at the Canyon they are indeed brats. This brattishness was not fun to watch. Second, when the ex-girlfriend showed up...ditto. It just stopped being fun and started being frustrating and anything but fun. If an ex-girlfriend showed up on ANYONE'S honeymoon it would be like a declaration of war! Talk about unrealistic and tiresome! As a result, a cute little film soon became tedious and hard to enjoy. It was no longer a comedy nor a romance...just an exercise in frustration and about as much fun as a migraine. Plus, at the end, NONE of these issues had been worked out...leaving the viewer wondering what's next!