Cheaper by the Dozen (1950)

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1. 

   Siskoid

   Quadruple the kids in Life With Father, and you get Cheaper by the Dozen, a film equally based on a humorous memoir about family life in the 20th Century, with a comically authoritarian patriarch, and pretty flimsy in the plot department. Cheaper by the Dozen is a lot flimsier though, with only one subplot tying things together really, that of the eldest daughter rebelling against her father's regimentation. Otherwise, it reads as lightly comic vignettes, with a soft punchline at the end. Clifton Webb gives withering looks. Myrna Loy is the sensible one in the family. Twelve kids run around (well, no, a couple can't walk yet) but don't come off as annoying, which is a triumph in and of itself. And because it's autobiographical, there's a tragic twist thrown in that may surprise. I can't quite tell if some of the notions on show are dated because the story takes place in the 1910s, or because the film was made in 1950, but the tonsils kerfuffle and the reaction of the Planned Parenthood lady come off as slightly bizarre. Held my interest if just barely, but I'm still interested in seeing Belles on Their Toes, the sequel where Myrna Loy is more central and Jeanne Crain, the heart of this picture, takes the lead. 4 years ago
2. 

   DisneyStitch

   Just a heartwarming "feel-good" kind of family movie. The dialogue is rather witty especially this humorous bit.
   
   Man on street: "Hey Noah, what are you doing with that Ark?"
   Frank Gilbreth: "Collecting animals like the good Lord told me brother. All we need now is a jackass. Hop in!" 7 years 1 month ago

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