Review of Houseboat (1958) by Jessicaann D — 03 Jul 2007

This somewhat forced love story has its good elements, but overall it seems strange and nothing seems to fit together.

Cary Grant stars as a father of three who has been separated from his wife for several years when she passes away leaving him alone with the children he barely knows. The child actors are delightful, intelligent and full of life. Grant is great as a distant father used to being alone who is unprepared for the strange curiousity of youth as well as children who are trying to cope with mortality.

The movie takes a turn for the weird when Grant's son encounters the runaway daughter of a famous Italian conductor (Sophia Loren) and begs his father to make her their maid. Loren looks over-tanned and sort of dirty throughout the film. Her golden dress is a sight to behold, but before that she looks over-corseted and odd. As far as her acting, Loren is charming, but her accent can be slightly frustrating.

Thus the film goes from being about fatherhood to being about surrogate motherhood to being a romantic comedy to being about modern marriage. By the end of the film, the children are aggravating and Loren is tiresome, Grant is the only constantly good element in the film.