Turner Classic Movies continues its William Powell celebration with his third (and final) Oscar-nominated performance as the frustrated patriarch of a colorful family in Life with Father.
Really colorful. Powell--along with Irene Dunne and a cast of four boys as their sons--had to dye his hair a bright red that flares more like orange in Technicolor. But it was more than the bad dye-job that left him looking a bit worse-for-wear.
By 1947, Powell was fast approaching the end of his run as detective Nick Charles in The Thin Man series. Little did his fans know, he had other worries. While the press reported that the actor was taking a brief respite from Hollywood due to an eye injury, he was in fact battling rectal cancer. Life with Father marked his return to the big screen after a year-long absence from the spotlight but, although he recovered his health, he never quite recovered his career. (Miller 177)
Life with Father is an entertaining glimpse of family life in the nineteenth century and remains a worthwhile comedy in the twenty-first, if only to see Powell and Dunne as a married couple still falling in love.
Life with Father (December 15 at 8:00 PM, EST)
Life with Father is a true story...in a roundabout way. Director Michael Curtiz's film is based on a long-running Broadway play by Howard Lindsay, and the play is based on the popular memoirs of Clarence Day Jr.
But it's Clarence Day Sr. who's the star of Life with Father, as a man who tries to keep his family as orderly as his bank book. It's really his family who keeps him in line by constantly shaking up his routine with unexpected purchases, unexpected visitors and unexpected illnesses. He manages his daily irritations by venting loudly to imaginary opponents and exclaiming "Oh, Gad!" at every turn.
Aside from one-too-many "Oh, Gad!"s, Clarence's temperamental outbursts are good for a laugh, but it's the calmer moments in between where Powell really shines. He has a knack for conveying more meaning in a glance than can be contained in words, especially in his scenes with Dunne. Powell always seemed to luck out with his female co-stars, resulting in romantic pairings that are so natural they just have to be real - only they're not. The moment occurs for Powell and Dunne as the two quietly sing the song "Sweet Marie" together in their parlor.
Dunne's character, Vinnie, is at first glance a scatter-brained wife driven by frivolous impulses. She spends her time defending her random purchases to her husband with nonsensical logic. Look a little closer and you'll see a woman who's mastered the art of manipulation. It would be an unlikeable trait if she only used her powers for selfish reasons, but Vinnie is caught up in a hilarious mission to save her husband from his sacrilegious ways.
Jimmy Lydon plays author Clarence Day Jr's role in a puppy-love story with a young Elizabeth Taylor that's a little too cute to stand. Taylor tries to emulate Dunne with her shrieks and tears, but her antics are more annoying than funny. Lydon is quite funny in other scenes, however, like when Junior is convinced he becomes more like his father when he wears his hand-me-down suit. Overstated gestures and shouting ensue.
It's always a treat when Edmund Gwenn pops up in a classic film. The character actor, who had just finished his stint as Kris Kringle in Miracle on 34th Street, plays a reverend who's in cahoots with Vinnie to get Clarence baptized.
Derek Scott, Johnny Calkins and Martin Milner also star as the rest of the Day boys.
Sources:
- Life with Father. 1947. Dir. Michael Curtiz. Perf. Irene Dunne, William Powell, Elizabeth Taylor. Warner Bros. Pictures. Running Time: 118 min.
- Miller, Frank. Leading Men: The 50 Most Unforgettable Actors of the Studio Era. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 2006. Print.
- Turner Classic Movies
Amanda Flinner - Amanda is a freelance writer who earned her Bachelor's degree in Writing from Geneva College in 2006. Although a variety of interests ...
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