Bundle of Joy (1956)

Director:

Norman Taurog

Writers:

Robert Carson (writer)
Felix Jackson (story)

Release Date:

12 December 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical

Plot:

Kitschy musical remake of "Bachelor Mother". Debbie Reynolds plays an over-eager clerk in a large department...

Plot Keywords:

Remake

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe.

Cast

Eddie Fisher	...	Dan Merlin
Debbie Reynolds	...	Polly Parish
Adolphe Menjou	...	J. B. Merlin
Tommy Noonan	...	Freddie Miller
Nita Talbot	...	Mary
Una Merkel	...	Mrs. Dugan
Melville Cooper	...	Adams, the Butler
Bill Goodwin	...	Mr. Creely
Howard McNear	...	Mr. Appleby
Robert H. Harris	...	Mr. Hargraves
Mary Treen	...	Matron
Edward Brophy	...	Dance Contest Judge (as Edward S. Brophy)
Gil Stratton	...	Mike Clancy
Scott Douglas	...	Bill Rand

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #18147) | Finland:S

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Trivia:

'Eddie Fisher' states in his memoirs "Been There, Done That" that he owned 65% of this film, and Howard Hughes owned the remaining 35%. Debbie Reynolds' salary for this film was $150,000.

Movie Connections:

Remake of Bachelor Mother (1939)

Great example of remakes that never should have been

This film is strictly for fans of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher.

I get angry at TCM for showing this mess more frequently than Bachelor Mother, the delightful original. I get angrier still that some Hollywood boob thought it would be a good idea to remake Bachelor Mother, filling it with some lame songs that only serve to interrupt the flow of a cute comedy. Instead, Hollywood could have spent the time, money, energy and talent wasted on this horrible remake to give us something new and original - Wow, what a concept!

Bachelor Mother (the original), with Ginger Rogers and David Niven is a spicy stew, simmering with sexuality. It is a 1930's wink at the Hays Office. Bundle of Joy (the remake), with Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher is strictly milk and cookies. It is a 1950's handshake with Eisenhower.

Which cast would you rather watch - Debbie Reynolds, Eddie Fisher and Adolphe Menjou, or Ginger Rogers, David Niven and Charles Coburn? For me, every member of the cast in the original version is far better than his/her counterpart in the remake.

In the original a beautiful, young Ginger Rogers is at her peak. David Niven delivers perfectly as a somewhat spoiled, sophisticated and yet befuddled scion of a wealthy department store magnate. And I always love to see Charles Coburn in a movie. In Bachelor Mother, he is priceless as the desperate grandfather wannabe.

In Bundle of Joy Debbie Reynolds is her usual perky self. She is fine in this role, although her performance (along with Fisher's) completely changes the tone of the story. As an actor, Eddie Fisher is hopeless. He is completely lacking in screen "presence." Here he is way too wholesome for this story. His acting is completely bland and clueless. Likewise, his singing is so bland and unremarkable that it has been completely forgotten by the world at large. The only time he is not completely painful is in Butterfield 8 - where, incidentally, he doesn't sing. Here, Fisher's lame performance alone is enough to ruin this movie. Adolphe Menjou, a favorite character actor, delivers a competent performance, but not one of his best. He is more blustering than commanding. He and Fisher are not convincing as a father and son.

Do you see a musical for the music, the story being merely incidental? Or do watch a musical for a story, with some (hopefullly) good music used for seasoning? If the former, you might like this lame remake. Otherwise you are much better off watching the Ginger Rogers non-musical original, Bachelor Mother.