Review of The Catered Affair (1956) by Curtis J — 19 Jun 2017

This family drama is a quiet little movie, so if you're looking for a lot of action or a complicated plot, it's probably not for you. What it does offer is fantastic acting, a nuanced story, and a study in characters.

Bette Davis plays a middle-aged housewife married to her cabbie husband (Ernest Borgnine). One morning, their daughter (Debbie Reynolds) casually announces to them that she intends to get married (to Rod Taylor), and that the two of them are going to have a simple legal ceremony with only immediate family present.

In part because Davis didn't get a wedding herself and in part because she's disillusioned with her own marriage, she begins lobbying Reynolds to have a bigger wedding. I won't say anything more about the plot.

There are some outstanding scenes with supporting actors in the movie, including one with the groom-to-be's parents at a dinner party (Robert Simon and Madge Kennedy), and others with the bride-to-be's elderly uncle, a confirmed bachelor, and a woman he sees socially (Barry Fitzgerald and Dorothy Stickney).

In fact, Fitzgerald and Stickney were probably my favorite part of the movie, but it's hard to deny the excellent performances Davis, Borgnine, and Reynolds all deliver. Director Richard Brooks was brave in giving them the limelight in a "less is more" approach, and it paid off.

It's hard to fathom some of the "professional" critics' negative reviews, and even though these things are always a bit subjective, I think if you like 'small' movies, you'll like this one.