Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Mischa Redfern I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Casey Duggan It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

leedempsey This stands alongside "Its a wonderful life " as something sure to make any intelligent viewer laugh and weep with delight - which is no easy task for a hardened film fan and curmudgeon such as I. I cringe at sentimentality and so much formulaic drama but this sweeps you up, takes its time to draw you in with laughs from delightful performances and a genius script of delicate and succinct storytelling. We the audience, see all the pieces of a small puzzle fit together beautifully. By the end you will gasp with delight at the resolution. Ignore or enjoy the dated setting and period, - this film is not about England in the 1960s its about heart, family and genuine everyday love, with understated and underrated power. One of the greatest movies you have never heard of!!

ShadeGrenade 1966 was a busy year for writer Bill Naughton. In addition to Lewis Gilbert's 'Alfie' ( starring Michael Caine ), he also penned this wonderful, warm Boulting Brothers' comedy - based on his play 'All In Good Time' - a late addition to the cycle of 'kitchen sink' movies that began with 'Saturday Night & Sunday Morning' ( 1960 ). It opens on the wedding day of Lancashire couple Jenny Piper ( Hayley Mills ) and Arthur Fitton ( Hywel Bennett ). Things do not go right for them from the word go: the local travel agent ( Colin Gordon ) goes bust, losing them their honeymoon money, Arthur is beaten in an arm wrestling contest by his tanked-up father Ezra ( John Mills ), loud mouthed Joe Thompson ( Barry Foster ) plays a crude practical joke which results in the couples' bed collapsing as soon as they get into it, and worse, Arthur is stricken with impotence. News of his condition gets out, and he becomes the laughing stock of the street...Hard to believe now, but this was considered controversial back in its day. The fuss stemmed from a short scene in which Mills is seen taking a bath in the Fittons' kitchen. American audiences were used to seeing the actress in wholesome Disney pictures such as 'Pollyanna' and 'The Parent Trap' so the sight of her naked derrière on the big screen must have come as a shock. The performances are uniformly excellent; as well as Hayley and Bennett, there's John Mills as 'Ezra'. He hates seeing his son trying to improve his mind through reading and listening to Beethoven, and openly says so. Ezra is obsessed by his childhood friend 'Billy Stringfellow' whom he even took along on his honeymoon ( it is inferred that Billy once had a fling with Ezra's wife Lucy, and may in fact be Arthur's true father ) and talks about him constantly. Wilfred Pickles, John Comer, Avril Angers, Murray Head, Liz Fraser, Diana Coupland, Fanny Carby and Kathy Staff provide strong support, but for me the stand out performance comes from Marjorie Rhodes as Arthur's mother. Her exchanges with Ezra are priceless. Worried that the increasing Chinese population might cause a global food shortage, he says: "Someone should tell them to stop it!" to which she replies: "Why don't you? They might take notice!".Though primarily a comedy it manages to be incredibly poignant at times. There is an excellent sequence in which the impotent Arthur goes for a walk only to be bombarded by images promoting sex. Needless to say, everything works out well at the end, and Ezra gets to deliver one of the best final lines of any movie ever.Paul McCartney wrote the score. Unsurprisingly, some of it has a Beatles feel. One track, in particular, evokes 'Eleanor Rigby'.Mills and Bennett were reunited two years later for another Boulting Brothers picture - the very different 'Twisted Nerve'.

roghache I saw this movie as a young college student not long after it first came out. Hayley Mills was one of my favorite actresses at the time. Pretty well all girls of my era idolized, envied, and wanted to be just like her. She's a lovely lady still, beautiful accented voice, and wonderful actress. It was a thrill of a lifetime when I saw her on the London stage in 1975 in A Touch of Spring; she's even lovelier in person than on screen. Hayley's perfect here, sort of bubbly, sweet, wide eyed, and eager in the role of the young bride, Jenny. By the way, just as a point of interest for those who might not know, she married (though later divorced) this film's much older director, Ray Boulting, who was 33 years her senior.This movie tells the story of the marital difficulties of two young newlyweds, Arthur and his virginal bride Jenny, who live with Arthur's working class parents (presumably having no choice for financial reasons). The flat's thin walls prove a problem; Arthur becomes impotent and the couple is unable to consummate the marriage. Their affairs, or lack thereof, become the topic of conversation among interfering family members and the gossip of the neighborhood which, as you might predict, does not prove an asset to Arthur's situation. This unusual (for that era) and touching theme is sensitively portrayed. Times may have changed but believe it or not, I think it's a subject that's still relevant even in the modern Viagra era. Lots of sexual dysfunction issues of one sort or another for modern couples today.Apparently there were other significant family relationship stories in this picture, especially mother / father / son interactions, but frankly, after all these years, I don't recall any of the details. I would love to watch this film again now, especially as some reviewers seem to indicate that the movie actually revolves more around these issues than the question of Arthur's performance. One commented that the impotency was merely a sub-plot. Naturally the main focus in a movie is invariably the juicy sexual aspect, and I confess that's what I focused on myself when I saw it years ago.Hayley's real life father, John Mills, plays her father-in-law (Arthur's dad) so it was interesting seeing father and daughter on screen together. They also star together in the much earlier 1959 film Tiger Bay. He's brilliant of course in all his roles, especially the village idiot in Ryan's Daughter.The film generated a great fuss about it being Hayley's first grown up part, accustomed as we all were to her starring childhood roles in Pollyanna, The Parent Trap etc. Too much has been made of the infamous bathtub scene and the revealing glimpse (actually brief, tastefully done, and not terribly risqué) of Hayley's derriere. This is a marvelous, highly under rated, currently virtually unknown film of British working class family life...a kitchen sink movie, they seem to be calling it. Even after thirty years, it has left a good impression on me and I recommend it.

billc-7 Bittersweet comedy-romance starring Hywel Bennett as projectionist Arthur Fitton and his pretty wife Jenny Fitton (Hayley Mills) Unable to afford their own place, Arthur and Jenny are staying with Arthur's parents, Dad (John Mills) and Mum (Marjorie Rhodes) Arthur and Jenny are desperate to consummate their marriage, but the thin walls of the Fitton household make this impossible and Jenny is anything but in 'The Family Way.' Anxious to be 'of help' is Arthur's brother (Murray Head) and cinema boss(Barry Foster) Wilfred Pickles as Jenny's Uncle (an SRN) provides essential fatherly advice. Music 'Love In The Open Air' by Paul McCartney adds beautifully to the enjoyment of this film. British film-making at its best