Hear Those Wedding Bells?

Father of The Bride (1950 Version)

While the rest of us may hear birds chirping, children laughing, and romantic music playing, fathers of the brides often hear only one thing at weddings: Cha-Ching! In this wonderfully written comedy starring a very young and beautiful Elizabeth Taylor (the bride, Kay Banks) , a frugle and defeated Spencer Tracey (FOB, Stanley Banks), and a charming Joan Bennet (MOB, Ellie Banks), we get a view into the circus of weddings from the 1950s, a circus of course that has only been increased in size and cost in recent years.

What Rocked

The scene opens to a destroyed house, half full glasses and plates of picked over food are thrown across a table, confetti and other party decorations litter the floor, and we see a man sitting in an armchair surveying the damage. Begin Stanley Banks' monologue.
What a way to open a movie.
Tracey was my favorite part of the film. He didn't have the slapstick or physical comedy that most of the funny men of today had. Instead he portrayed a sophisticated and strong man who unexpectedly loses it a bit when his only daughter suddenly decides to get married. His witty quips, though few, gave me quite a few laughs. "Only two syllables from banks to bankruptcy!"
If nothing else the film definitely served as an interesting telescope through time. Here we see husband and wife in separate beds, disillusioned daughters who don't even know what their fiance's jobs are ("Well, I don't know, Pops, he makes something. Does it really matter what it is?"), and weddings that cost $3.75/head and are considered grossly OVERPRICED! I think Mr. Banks would drop dead on the spot if he heard today's numbers...

What Blew

While old black and white films don't usually bother me, I did begin to lost interest in this one about halfway through. Not to put down the b&w's because there are dozens, maybe hundreds, of them that could pulverize a lot of the crap out there today--but they do have to have something special to compete with the colored, computer enhanced, gigantic budget movies of today.
Father of the Bride started off really well, they had me hooked on Bank's struggle to keep up with the bullet train of the wedding plans, but then it faded. The funny lines and incidents seemed to come up less and less. I got distracted and couldn't really find my way back into the movie.
And I know this is a movie from the 1950s and times were different, but it is still hard for me-- a daughter of the age of equality (kinda)-- to stomach movies, shows, books, etc. where women are held in the bonds of a strongly patriarchal world. Guys are strong and get all the pleasure, girls are weak and do the dishes. It hit me right in the beginning when Stanley gives his opening monologue and says something to the effect of "If the boys are all over your daughter, you worry that she won't pick the best one and if they are not then you worry what's wrong with her." After all, nothing is worse than a daughter who doesn't wed, right?

What Others Thought

• The film was nominated for 3 gold men, including Best Picture and Best Actor
• RottenTomatoes gives it a whopping 94% rating.
  
• A film critic from yester-year seems to agree that the end suffered: "[the director] permits the wedding rehearsal sequence to play too long, lessening the comedic effect"
• Janet Maslin of the New York Times sums up the movie pretty well: "Vincente Minnelli's 1950 "Father of the Bride" is an affectionate reminder of the days when parties required stiff protocol, suburban life was martini-filled and gracious, a majority of one's college classmates were likely to be married and a father was truly a patriarch, valiantly meeting the fiscal and emotional needs of everyone in his household." Maslin certainly seems to prefer the original to the remake where "condoms and seat belts and running shoes are part of the world." Sounds like someone may be clinging to the past a bit...

Well, other than the one guy who agreed with my comment about the tapered ending, it seems the critics really liked the original. A nod from both Oscar and RottenTomatoes definitely means it is a success.

What Else You Should Know

Pay attention when we meet the Dunstons. Do you recognize the mother's voice? The actress's name is Billie Burke, and if you're like me you will surprised to see this woman come down from her bubble. :)


After watching that I think Robert DeNiro's Meet the Parents' character would be a better match at Tracy's outrageous paranoia, but let's see how funnyman Steve Martin did.