San Francisco debutante, Jessica Poole, is marrying Napa Valley cattle rancher, Roger Henderson, and hopes her peripatetic father, "Pogo" Poole, whom she hasn't seen for years, comes to the... See full summary »
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San Francisco debutante, Jessica Poole, is marrying Napa Valley cattle rancher, Roger Henderson, and hopes her peripatetic father, "Pogo" Poole, whom she hasn't seen for years, comes to the wedding. He arrives, disrupting the household of his ex-wife, Katharine, and her long-suffering husband, and befriending their cook, Toy. At first it seems that Pogo is set on breaking up the engagement, making up for years of neglect by wining and dining Jessica, showing up Roger as a hick, and enticing her to come to Europe with him. Then it seems his real goal is to win back Katharine's heart: why else would he have two tickets to Paris booked on a plane leaving right after the reception? Written by
<jhailey@hotmail.com>
Designer Edith Head appears in the opening scene of the movie (one of a select few appearances in film) directing alterations to Jessica's wedding dress at I. Magnin & Company, a luxury department store in San Francisco, California. See more »
Goofs
When asked by James, Mr. Sanford tells him that Popo's plane leaves at 6:30. However, when everyone arrives at the airport to see Pogo off, the sign at the departure gate clearly shows the departure time as 4:30. See more »
Things to like about this film: San Francisco locations, Edith Head's costuming, the music.
Things that are much harder to like: Fred Astaire's character, Debbie Reynolds, and the plot.
Reynolds, at age 30, is absurd as an ingenue/debutante.
In the '20s, a studio executive wrote about the young Astaire -- "Can't sing. Can't act. Slightly balding. Can dance a little." Although you'd never know it from the stature he has in Hollywood history, that executive nailed it. Astaire *can't* sing, can barely act, and he's no Cary Grant in the looks department.
There is nothing to like about Fred Astaire in "The Pleasure of His Company", playing a roguish, absentee father who comes back from spending his life entertaining himself abroad and promptly attempts to ruin everyone else's relationships. But for the script that subverts all logic, there could be no explanation for the way he's lionized in this film as a charming man of the world. To me, he could not have been more boorish and pretentious. Take that assessment for whatever its worth.
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Things to like about this film: San Francisco locations, Edith Head's costuming, the music.
Things that are much harder to like: Fred Astaire's character, Debbie Reynolds, and the plot.
Reynolds, at age 30, is absurd as an ingenue/debutante.
In the '20s, a studio executive wrote about the young Astaire -- "Can't sing. Can't act. Slightly balding. Can dance a little." Although you'd never know it from the stature he has in Hollywood history, that executive nailed it. Astaire *can't* sing, can barely act, and he's no Cary Grant in the looks department.
There is nothing to like about Fred Astaire in "The Pleasure of His Company", playing a roguish, absentee father who comes back from spending his life entertaining himself abroad and promptly attempts to ruin everyone else's relationships. But for the script that subverts all logic, there could be no explanation for the way he's lionized in this film as a charming man of the world. To me, he could not have been more boorish and pretentious. Take that assessment for whatever its worth.