Review of Father of the Bride 1950

Father of the Bride reminds us that heart beats hijinx in the long run

The last movie I watched all the way through was Father of the Bride (1950). Despite the middle class household with a maid, a father who wore a suit and tie around the house, and twin beds in the master bedroom, the movie holds up pretty well. It is still better than the Steve Martin version in 1991. The reason for this durability is that the Spenser Tracy/Elizabeth Taylor version has heart. Tracy's irascible father is over-the-top and Taylor is little more than pretty, but we care about them and about Joan Bennett's efforts to mediate and hold it all together.

The 1991 remake is more like a sitcom with the wedding as a backdrop for funny bits. If all a movie can give you is admiration for gags and stunts then you haven't had the full experience. Movies should make you more than a witness, you need to care about the characters.

To continue, the wedding preparations have enough authenticity to engage our sympathy, and the wedding ceremony is a near tear-jerker in its sincerity. The reception with twice as many guests as the house can comfortably hold is chaotic and Tracy's frustration at being a host while trying to find his daughter for a final word is appropriately poignant. The movie hits all the right notes and I recommend the movie for anyone anticipating participation in a wedding.

8/10
Richard Barr