Tonight's Movie: Father's Little Dividend (1951) - A Warner Archive Blu-ray Review

The Warner Archive Collection has done a wonderful thing this summer, rescuing two MGM films starring Elizabeth Taylor from public domain.

The first title was THE LAST TIME I SAW PARIS (1954), which I reviewed in late August.

The other film is FATHER'S LITTLE DIVIDEND (1951), the sequel to FATHER OF THE BRIDE. FATHER OF THE BRIDE had a lovely Warner Archive Collection release in 2016, reviewed here.

FATHER OF THE BRIDE was released in May 1950, and the same cast and crew quickly gathered to make a sequel, released less than a year later, in April 1951.

Like THE LAST TIME I SAW PARIS and a handful of other MGM titles of the era, including MR. IMPERIUM (1951), FATHER'S LITTLE DIVIDEND accidentally fell into the public domain due to legal errors. It's never had an official DVD release and has been available for the last few decades in iffy prints from a variety of sources.

For this beautiful release the Warner Archive Collection presents a new 1080p HD master from a 4K scan of the original camera negative. It looks absolutely wonderful and is a "must buy" for fans of the film and cast. I'm grateful to finally have this movie available in a lovely print!

This time around newlyweds Kay and Buckley Dunstan (Elizabeth and Don Taylor) invite their parents for dinner at their little apartment. The parents (Spencer Tracy, Joan Bennett, Moroni Olsen, and Billie Burke) quickly learn that they are to be grandparents!

Stanley (Tracy) has a particularly difficult time realizing that, just as he's feeling "free" of children, the next generation is arriving. While navigating his own adjustment, he also helps the young parents-to-be as they deal with a new home, hovering in-laws, newfangled birth ideas, and hormone-induced emotions.

Truth be told, while I like both movies very much, I think of the two films FATHER'S LITTLE DIVIDEND is my favorite. The film's pace is sprightlier, with its 82 minutes a full 10 minutes shorter than the original film, and the story is a little more fluid.

The original film plays almost as a series of vignettes, crossing off the checkpoints on the way to the wedding day; while this film also has the expected moments depicting a baby on the way, returning screenwriters Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett present what feels to me like a more relatable story.

I have one question: When the baby is christened by Rev. Galsworthy (Paul Harvey) -- the same minister who conducts the wedding in the original film -- and the baby is named, how is it that the name was a surprise? What were they calling the baby for the first few months of his life?!

Tracy and Bennett, who first worked together in ME AND MY GAL (1932) nearly two decades previously, continue to make a believable couple whose interactions are enjoyable to watch. The two Taylors are also cute as the young couple, and pros Olsen and Burke are perfect as Buckley's parents.

The rest of the cast is tops, with returning faces also including Russ Tamblyn, Tom Irish, and Marietta Canty. Hayden Rorke plays Kay's obstetrician, and look for a young Dick Martin as one of the baby's godfathers in the christening scene.

I even noticed that a friend and most of the bridesmaids from the first film, played by Jacqueline Duval, Erin Selwyn, Wendy Waldron, and Janey Fay, return as baby shower guests in the sequel! I love that attention to detail.

Like the first film, the movie was directed by Vincente Minnelli and filmed in black and white by John Alton.

Extras on the Blu-ray disc consist of the trailer; the Tom and Jerry cartoons JUST DUCKY (1953) and JERRY AND THE GOLDFISH (1951); and the Pete Smith Specialty BARGAIN MADNESS (1951).

Recommended.

Thanks to the Warner Archive for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray. Warner Archive Blu-rays may be ordered from the Amazon Warner Archive Collection Store, Movie Zyng, or from any online retailers were Blu-rays are sold.

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