Father of the Bride (1950)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Vincente Minnelli

Writers:

Frances Goodrich (screenplay) and
Albert Hackett (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

16 June 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

You're invited . . . to a hilarious wedding !

Plot:

A father of a young woman deals with the emotional pain of her getting married, and the financial and organizational pain of arranging her wedding.

Plot Keywords:

Wedding | Marriage Engagement | Marriage | Chaos | Family Relationships

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Spencer Tracy	...	Stanley T. Banks
Joan Bennett	...	Ellie Banks
Elizabeth Taylor	...	Katherine 'Kay' Banks
Don Taylor	...	Buckley Dunstan
Billie Burke	...	Doris Dunstan
Leo G. Carroll	...	Mr. Massoula
Moroni Olsen	...	Herbert Dunstan
Melville Cooper	...	Mr. Tringle
Taylor Holmes	...	Warner
Paul Harvey	...	Reverend A.I. Galsworthy
Frank Orth	...	Joe
Russ Tamblyn	...	Tommy Banks (as Rusty Tamblyn)
Tom Irish	...	Ben Banks
Marietta Canty	...	Delilah - the Maid

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Canada:G | Spain:13 | UK:U | USA:Approved (PCA #14439) | USA:Not Rated (DVD rating) | Germany:12

Filming Locations:

All Saints' Episcopal Church - 504 N. Camden Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

In the film, one of the gifts Kay gets as a present is a Venus de Milo statue with a clock in the stomach, which Spencer Tracy refers to as a "stinker". This same gift makes its' way into the 1991 re-make among the presents, and is still not received well.

Goofs:

Continuity: Early in the film in the scene where the Banks family are having a meal and talking about the forthcoming wedding the length of the candles on the table change from long, to short and back to long.

Quotes:

Stanley T. Banks: You fathers will understand. You have a little girl. She looks up to you. You're her oracle. You're her hero. And then the day comes when she gets her first permanent wave and goes to her first real party, and from that day on, you're in a constant state of panic.

Movie Connections:

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs: America's Funniest Movies (2000) (TV)

Every Father's Worse Nightmare

"Father of the Bride" is Spencer Tracy's picture. His performance as the overwhelmed father of the bride is outstanding.

The plot is simple. Stanley Banks'(Tracy) daughter Kay (the beautiful teen-aged Elizabeth Taylor) announces her impending marriage to Buckley Dunstan (Don Taylor). Mother (Joan Bennett) gets into the act and before you know it the bills are mounting and father is going greyer by the minute. There is the usual pre-marriage argument between the two lovers, the ever increasing guest list, a frantic rehearsal and finally the big day itself with father trying to maintain his sanity throughout.

The supporting cast is excellent. Leo G. Carroll is good as the befuddled caterer, Melville Cooper does a funny bit as the church deacon and the still beautiful Billie Burke along with Moroni Olsen appear as the parents of the Groom.

"Father of the Bride" under the able direction of Vincente Minnelli, is the kind of family comedy that we rarely see anymore.