I'd never seen this film before today, but it was a cute little movie about a NY family in the late 1950's. David Niven plays the husband, who comes home a little tipsy on his anniversary (he's married to Mitzi Gaynor) with his law partner and their client who just got her 4th divorce. When the client finds out it's their 13th wedding anniversary, she laments that she's never been able to have as happy a marriage as the lawyer & his wife.
The thing is, underneath it all, Chris (Niven) is an old fashioned guy and wants his marriage to be like it was in the beginning--all romantic and sexy. Alice (Gaynor) takes a more practical view. They have been married a while and have 2 children (delightfully played by Patty Duke & Kevin Coughlin.) The trouble starts when they receive not 1, not 2 but 3 TV's for their anniversary--which starts trouble every time one of them is delivered. The main reason is because Niven thinks he's being pushed around by everyone--his wife, children, maid, partner & in-laws. Things escalate to the point where the daughter goes on TV and tells a very embarrassing story about what happened when her parents had an anniversary dinner with her grandparents. The story takes a some what serious turn at this point but all ends happily.
Niven blows hard over everything and there are lots of misunderstandings. However, it's not bad for an 83 minute movie. It doesn't require too much from the viewer but it's a pleasant diversion mainly because of the kids & the in-laws. And it's a nice bridge from old fashioned family life to a new type of family life that the 60's brought. The kids may be a little too clever (I don't remember being that clever at 10 & 12) but they bring a lot of humor. The son even drinks 3 glasses of champagne and gets a little tipsy, which would never fly in a movie in this age of "family values." It's not a great movie, but it has some laughs and it's not insulting to the viewers intelligence even when it goes over the top.
The thing is, underneath it all, Chris (Niven) is an old fashioned guy and wants his marriage to be like it was in the beginning--all romantic and sexy. Alice (Gaynor) takes a more practical view. They have been married a while and have 2 children (delightfully played by Patty Duke & Kevin Coughlin.) The trouble starts when they receive not 1, not 2 but 3 TV's for their anniversary--which starts trouble every time one of them is delivered. The main reason is because Niven thinks he's being pushed around by everyone--his wife, children, maid, partner & in-laws. Things escalate to the point where the daughter goes on TV and tells a very embarrassing story about what happened when her parents had an anniversary dinner with her grandparents. The story takes a some what serious turn at this point but all ends happily.
Niven blows hard over everything and there are lots of misunderstandings. However, it's not bad for an 83 minute movie. It doesn't require too much from the viewer but it's a pleasant diversion mainly because of the kids & the in-laws. And it's a nice bridge from old fashioned family life to a new type of family life that the 60's brought. The kids may be a little too clever (I don't remember being that clever at 10 & 12) but they bring a lot of humor. The son even drinks 3 glasses of champagne and gets a little tipsy, which would never fly in a movie in this age of "family values." It's not a great movie, but it has some laughs and it's not insulting to the viewers intelligence even when it goes over the top.