Houseboat

Movie Review: Houseboat

Year of Release: 1958
Country of Origin: USA
Director: Melville Shavelson
Cast: Cary Grant, Sophia Loren

Plot outline: An Italian socialite on the run signs on as housekeeper for a widower with three children (IMDb).

Houseboat is a bit lame, though it’s hard to say why. Probably because a number of failed elements contribute to it. Cary Grant and Sophia Loren don’t seem to combine well, at least not in this kind of film. The script is weak relying as it does on a number of conventional film situations. And the directing is a bit pedestrian. Individually, none of these elements is particularly poor. They’re just not good. But because all of them are weak, the movie falls flat. Houseboat wants to be an urbane romantic comedy, but the element of children and parenting keeps throwing it off as this lends itself more to slapstick. Or perhaps it’s the opposite: a family film thrown off by the element of adult romantic comedy. Either way, the movie doesn’t know what it wants to be. It treads water between the two. Houseboat seems to rely more on the attractiveness of Grant and Loren to carry the movie, and it just isn’t enough. Despite this, I enjoyed Houseboat but less for the movie itself than for the sight of Grant and Loren on screen together. But the truth is, both actors are so much better than the script allows them to be. Overall, it’s a huge waste of talent. (BW)

My judgement: ** out of 4 stars