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| FAMILY
WAY, THE (director/writer: Roy
Boulting; screenwriters: from the play "All in Good
Time" by Bill Naughton/Bill Naughton/Jeffery
Dell; cinematographer: Harry Waxman; editor: Ernest Hosler;
music: Paul McCartney; cast: Hayley Mills (Jenny Piper), Avril Angers (Liz Piper), John Comer (Leslie Piper), Wilfred Pickles (Uncle Fred), John Mills (Ezra Fitton), Marjorie Rhodes (Lucy Fitton), Hywel Bennett (Arthur Fitton), Murray Head (Geoffrey Fitton), Hazel Bainbridge (Mrs. Bell), Ruth Gower (Mrs. Pike), Diana Coupland (Mrs. Rose), Fanny Carby (Mrs. Stone), Helen Booth (Mrs. Lee), Margaret Lacey (Mrs. Harris), Barry Foster (Joe Thompson), Liz
Fraser (Molly Thompson), Lesley Daine (Dora), Ruth Trouncer (Marriage
Counselor); Runtime: 110; MPAA Rating: NR;
producer: John Boulting; Studio Canal PAL format;
2008-UK) "A dated but still enjoyable smart comedy-drama." Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz A
dated but still enjoyable smart comedy-drama directed
by Roy Boulting ("Man in a Crooked Hat"/"Twisted
Nerve"/"Seven Days to Noon"). It's based on the
one-hour television
play "All in Good Time" by Bill Naughton. The
story revolves around the developing problems in the
marriage between newlyweds
Arthur Fitton (Hywel
Bennett) and
the 20-year-old virgin Jenny Piper (Hayley Mills). After a church wedding,
the innocent couple spend their wedding night in the
home of Arthur's working-class parents--Ezra (John
Mills) and Lucy (Marjorie Rhodes). Arthur's crude boss at the
movie theater, Joe Thompson (Barry Foster), where the
sensitive Arthur works at night as a projectionist,
plays a practical joke and the wedding bed collapses.
This disturbance is enough to make the nervous couple
fail to consummate the marriage that night. The next
day they discover that the travel agency swindled them
out of their money, and they would have to cancel
their honeymoon plans. The defeated couple return to
live in Arthur's room in his parents' house, as
they're unable to afford a place of their own. After
ten weeks the marriage is still not consummated, as Arthur
feels there's no privacy living with his parents and
is unaware that his younger motorcycle riding brother
Geoffrey (Murray Head) is coming on to the vulnerable
sweet Jenny while he's at work. Poor Arthur feels terrible
about his impotency, and finally agrees with Jenny's
request that he consult with a marriage counselor (Ruth Trouncer) since he has a poor
relationship with his insensitive uneducated macho
gasworks working dad and doesn't feel comfortable
asking him for advice. But a cleaning lady overhears
Arthur talking to the counselor and tells all the
other gossips in her circle, who spread the gossip
through the Lancashire neighborhood. The frustrated
Jenny, even though she promised not to tell, can't
help blurting it out to her nagging mom (Avril Angers). Mom, after promising not
to tell, tells Jenny's kind-hearted father (John Comer). The Pipers then visit
the Fittons and tell all. When Arthur learns that his
embarrassing secret is public knowledge, he freaks
out. This is Hayley Mills' first adult role and she handles it with grace (even has a nude scene). Her real-life dad steals the picture, with a blustery performance as the gruff blowhard dad who will finally show he has a heart of gold by laying out the money for his son to buy a house. Marjorie Rhodes as John Mills' long-suffering but understanding wife, has a nice turn conveying motherly warmth to the struggling couple. The sentimentality is kept in check by the fine ensemble cast, as this is a superior farce that has charm, class and conveys a proper sympathy to the likable newlyweds and their domestic problems. REVIEWED ON 2/17/2012 GRADE: B+ Dennis Schwartz: "Ozus' World Movie Reviews" © ALL RIGHTS RESERVED DENNIS SCHWARTZ |