I agree with the other six user reviewers about this baffling, inconsistency-laden film that somehow became a smash hit in the late 1940s, just as the world was rising from the ashes of World War II. As one reviewer stated, the film no doubt was a welcome relief after the dangers, trials, and concerns Americans had endured during the war years.
Most reviewers have recognized Claudia as a rather immature, dim-witted young woman who needed someone to look after her. Personally, I recognized her as an upper-class, fashionable, and younger version of "Edith Bunker." Apparently Claudia had been protected and watched over by her parents and never had to fend for herself. Once on her own, except for the "snoopervision" of her husband David, she takes unwise and dangerous chances and has to face the fact that tragedy and death loom all around her but are unseen in her idyllic world. She does begin to grow up when she acknowledges the pain she felt over her father's death and her mother's unfortunate diagnosis and eventual death. She further matures when she becomes the mother of little Bobby and must deal with a childhood disease that could have proven fatal to her precious child. She also shows maturity when she sympathizes with Mrs. Dexter about the tragic death of the Dexters' only child, an event that has caused emotional problems for the bereaved Dexter couple.
While watching the film, I was appalled by the self-centeredness and "know-it-all" attitude exhibited by David, something other reviewers did not mention. As a viewer, I was angered by the way he chided Claudia for her motherly concern and made light of Bobby's serious illness. To me, it seemed he saw the child as the latest toy or source of entertainment for Claudia and something he personally saw as a nuisance and an annoyance. Quite a few times he criticized Claudia for paying attention to the child, and his words and actions struck me as terribly childish, selfish, insensitive, and irresponsible. I thought of the caring, supportive father Robert Young later portrayed in the "Father Knows Best" TV series, and that is why I gave my review the title that reads "Father DOES NOT know best!"
While it is true that the film shows the limited gender roles accepted and exhibited by the young adults of the World War II generation, the film leads today's viewers to realize how the generations since that time have benefited from world-wide communication, practical approaches to education in public school, counseling, parenting classes, and the new ideas about gender roles and the concept of marriage and responsibility. Yes, we all have come a long way and are much more grown up now.
Most reviewers have recognized Claudia as a rather immature, dim-witted young woman who needed someone to look after her. Personally, I recognized her as an upper-class, fashionable, and younger version of "Edith Bunker." Apparently Claudia had been protected and watched over by her parents and never had to fend for herself. Once on her own, except for the "snoopervision" of her husband David, she takes unwise and dangerous chances and has to face the fact that tragedy and death loom all around her but are unseen in her idyllic world. She does begin to grow up when she acknowledges the pain she felt over her father's death and her mother's unfortunate diagnosis and eventual death. She further matures when she becomes the mother of little Bobby and must deal with a childhood disease that could have proven fatal to her precious child. She also shows maturity when she sympathizes with Mrs. Dexter about the tragic death of the Dexters' only child, an event that has caused emotional problems for the bereaved Dexter couple.
While watching the film, I was appalled by the self-centeredness and "know-it-all" attitude exhibited by David, something other reviewers did not mention. As a viewer, I was angered by the way he chided Claudia for her motherly concern and made light of Bobby's serious illness. To me, it seemed he saw the child as the latest toy or source of entertainment for Claudia and something he personally saw as a nuisance and an annoyance. Quite a few times he criticized Claudia for paying attention to the child, and his words and actions struck me as terribly childish, selfish, insensitive, and irresponsible. I thought of the caring, supportive father Robert Young later portrayed in the "Father Knows Best" TV series, and that is why I gave my review the title that reads "Father DOES NOT know best!"
While it is true that the film shows the limited gender roles accepted and exhibited by the young adults of the World War II generation, the film leads today's viewers to realize how the generations since that time have benefited from world-wide communication, practical approaches to education in public school, counseling, parenting classes, and the new ideas about gender roles and the concept of marriage and responsibility. Yes, we all have come a long way and are much more grown up now.