Hen Pecked Grant's Goose is Cooked

Father Goose (1964)   

With so many new movies hitting the big screens every week it is quite easy to forget the movies from yester year, ones which are not known for being classics but are just as good. One of my favourites which fits into this category is "Father Goose" a movie from 1964 which was sadly Cary Grant's penultimate movie. Why I enjoy "Father Goose" so much is that despite being set during WWII it is a light hearted, clean, romantic comedy with a very entertaining storyline and has an even more entertaining array of performances from Trevor Howard, Leslie Caron and of course Cary Grant who plays against type.

With WWII going on around him, loner Walter Eckland (Cary Grant - An Affair to Remember) is forced into becoming a Japanese plane spotter amongst the South Pacific islands in return for food and more importantly alcohol. Having begrudgingly agreed to take on the mission he finds his solitary life completely turned upside down by the arrival of a French school teacher, Catherine Freneau (Leslie Caron - Gigi), and her class to his island after becoming stranded.

As already mentioned, although "Father Goose" is set during WWII it is by no means a war movie; it is basically a comedy which focuses on the relationships between the characters, most significantly that of Walter Eckland and the French teacher Catherine Freneau, but also the interactions between Eckland and all the other characters.

Where "Father Goose" really works for me is the progression as the storyline is built up quite literally brick by brick. It starts off with the curmudgeonly Eckland being forced into a job he doesn't want by old friend Commander Houghton, magnificently played by Trevor Howard. This opening sets up the scene beautifully with Eckland and Houghton trying to out wit each other. Once the scene is set it adds the next brick with the introduction of the teacher and the school children which adds to Eckland's misery. This element of the story is really the main focus and the interactions at this point are so funny that it is at times hard to stop yourself from laughing, especially when Eckland finds himself losing out to Freneau and the school children. The movie then adds a further brick and changes direction slightly, but in doing so still manages to maintain the same level of humour right up until the credits roll.

A huge part of the reason why I like "Father Goose" so much is that it is good, clean fun with out the need for sexual innuendo, or bodily noises to make you laugh as is the case with modern comedies. Of course body noises and sexual innuendo were not part of movie making back in the 60s but movies like "Father Goose" show that they can still be entertaining without these. In some ways I find "Father Goose" more hilarious than many modern movies as the comedy comes from the interactions between the characters rather than set pieces. Watching Eckland become even grumpier after being kicked out of his home by Freneau is just brilliant as it is full of perfect comedy timing. But equally the banter between Eckland and Houghton constantly makes you smile as the dialogue is brilliant and the delivery is exceptional.

I won't deny that a huge part of the reason why I like "Father Goose" is the casting of Cary Grant in the lead role, one of my favourite actors from that era. In some ways Grant plays against type, being the unkempt loner rather than the dashing bachelor he usually played, but he still manages to bring so much charm to the character that despite his grumpiness you can't but help liking him.

Whilst Grant is quite rightly the star of "Father Goose", he is matched by equally good performances from Trevor Howard as Commander Houghton and Leslie Caron as Catherine Freneau. Howard plays your typical stiff upper lip British naval officer, but seems to have a strong friendship with Eckland and you get a real sense that Howard and Grant were friends off of camera as well as there scenes together seem so natural. The role of the French school teacher could be have written with Leslie Caron in mind, she is perfect as the bossy, argumentative teacher and like with Howard, the verbal sparring between Cary Grant and herself feels so realistic. Add to this a small group of school girls, all memorable characters, are a joy to watch as they make Eckland's life a misery and the performances are in all a joy to watch.

What this boils down to is that of course "Father Goose" is not a movie which will be to everyone's liking and some will find it a bit slow going at times, but for the most I would say it is a joy to watch. If you are looking for a good old fashioned comedy which revolves around clean humour, rather than toilet gags then I would completely recommend "Father Goose". Plus if you want to introduce a younger audience to the comedies of yester year and stars like Cary Grant, Trevor Howard and Leslie Caron then I would say this would be a good starting block. Whilst it is not Cary Grant's best performance it is still top notch and a joy to watch, especially on a lazy afternoon.