Product: Houseboat [VHS] (1958)
Rating: 4.0
Humor and Romance
I love old movies, but often times they feel stilted in their dialogue and/or they gloss over real-life difficulties. As a long time fan of Sophia Loren (what's not to like?), I picked up a copy of "Houseboat" and sat down to watch it with my wife and teen daughter. To our pleasant surprise, the film tells a story that still feels relevant in many ways.The story starts with Cary Grant, a recent widower, demanding custody of his three young children. He is a working man, in Washington D.C., and he drags the kids there against their wishes. They are mouthy, funny, and painfully sad. They would prefer staying with Aunt Carolyn, Grant's sister-in-law, on sprawling property far from D.C. Carolyn has always had a secret love for Grant, and she dreams of stepping in as the new wife and step-mother. Tensions rise when young and beautiful Sophia Loren appears on the scene. She is visiting America with her famous Italian father, a symphony conductor, and she wants to be free of his overbearing ways. When she runs into Grant's youngest son, she relates to his daddy-troubles and forms a quick bond that eventually lands her in the role of nanny to Grant's children."Houseboat" moves from humor to romance, and certain elements share similarities with "The Sound of Music." The overbearing father who hires the adorable nanny, who then runs off when she realizes her feelings for the man, but comes back because of the children. In this case, the children are less polished and polite, and this creates some believable conflicts for all concerned. In the end, it's a happy story, and even my teen daughter found herself sitting through the entire thing, despite her initial thoughts that "it's an old movie, and I'll be bored."