I bought the DVD of Cheaper By The Dozen months before watching it. The movie was part of a larger number of old movies that I was working through. Part of the reason for putting it aside was that in order to appreciate some movies you have to be in the right frame of mind.
Knowing that Cheaper By The Dozen was made shortly after World War II, it was expected that the family's values would reflect Hollywood's "perfect" world of that era. The truth is, many families strove for that level of obedience and order. With the story set in the 1920's and the nature of Mr. Gilbreth, there was another level of family structure that may seem odd today. Instead of watching the movie randomly, I chose a time at which I could think in terms of the real Gilbreth family and their environment. I had to bring myself to the level of the movie instead of waiting for the movie to draw me in.
Having recently been taught a little about how efficiency managers view manufacturing processes, I could understand the character of Frank Gilbreth much better. They really do look for ways to save ten seconds here and twenty seconds there. At the end of the day minutes or hours are saved, which translates into more product output. Seeing Gilbreth apply his morals and industrial efficiency techniques on keeping order within his household is what makes this movie funny. I admire Mr. and Mrs. Gilbreth for their thoughtful parental guidance.
Knowing that Cheaper By The Dozen was made shortly after World War II, it was expected that the family's values would reflect Hollywood's "perfect" world of that era. The truth is, many families strove for that level of obedience and order. With the story set in the 1920's and the nature of Mr. Gilbreth, there was another level of family structure that may seem odd today. Instead of watching the movie randomly, I chose a time at which I could think in terms of the real Gilbreth family and their environment. I had to bring myself to the level of the movie instead of waiting for the movie to draw me in.
Having recently been taught a little about how efficiency managers view manufacturing processes, I could understand the character of Frank Gilbreth much better. They really do look for ways to save ten seconds here and twenty seconds there. At the end of the day minutes or hours are saved, which translates into more product output. Seeing Gilbreth apply his morals and industrial efficiency techniques on keeping order within his household is what makes this movie funny. I admire Mr. and Mrs. Gilbreth for their thoughtful parental guidance.