THE COURTSHIP OF EDDIE’S FATHER (1963) (Warner Archive Blu-ray Review)

THE COURTSHIP OF EDDIE’S FATHER (1963)

Label: Warner Archive

Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: Unrated

Duration: 118 Minutes 37 Seconds 
Audio: English DTS HD-Master Audio 2.0 Dual-Mono with Optional English Subtitles 
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1) 

Director: Vicente Minnelli 

Cast: Glenn Ford, Shirley Jones, Stella Stevens, Dina Merrill, Ronny Howard

In the Vincente Minnelli (Father of the Bride) directed The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963) widowed single-dad Tom Corbett (Glenn Ford, Happy Birthday To Me), a radio station ad exec, navigates being back on the single's market with some oftentimes unsolicited advice from his precocious son, Eddie (Ronny Howard, The Shootist), while also traversing some delicate ground relating to their shared grief over his wife's unexpected death. The charming and heartfelt flick balances these elements quite nicely but is certainly more a buoyant dating comedy than grief-drama, but it's got plenty of sincerity as well. 

The women that enter into Tom and his son's life include wide-eyed beauty pageant hopeful Dollye Daly (Stella Stevens, The Ballad of Cable Hogue), buttoned-up socialite Rita Behrens (Dina Merrill, Caddyshack II), and his headstrong neighbor Elizabeth Marten (Shirley Jones, The Partridge Family), with young Eddie offering his dad his two-bits about each of the women, and giving his stamp of approval towards one young lady in particular much to the chagrin of his pops and the woman in question. The playing field is narrowed when Dollye ends up marrying Tom's best pal /co-worker Norman Jones (Jerry Van Dyke, TVs Coach), and the family's new housekeeper, a spitfire named  Mrs. Livingston (Roberta Sherwood), has much to say on the subject pf love and life herself. 

Directed with a whimsical flair this vibrant 60's dating comedy traverses both sweet father and son moments and effervescent dating scenarios with aplomb, coming off lighthearted but also sincerely heartfelt, it's a charmer with a wonderful cast, with young Ronny Howard being the secret ace-in-the-hole here. Glen Ford is no slouch though, his character is such a wonderful idealized dad, able to have warm, heartfelt and honest conversations with his son on a variety of topics, often humorously, and is quite a convincing romantic lead as well; plus Shirley Jones, Stella Stevens, Dina Merrill are also quite wonderful characters themselves with their own identities and character foibles, not to mention they're quite easy on the eyes. A romantic comedy imbued with warmth and humor, it might be predictable but it's a fun watch with some terrific turns from the main cast. 

Audio/Video: The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963) gets a 
new 2023 1080p HD Master from 4K Scan of original camera negative framed in the original 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio. The Blu-ray looks phenomenal, the source is in darn near immaculate shape or has been restored to appear so. Grain looks organic with copious amounts of fine detail, and colors are quite vivid and robust, capturing the early 60's color palette with it' zesty color choices. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 2.0 dual-mono with optional English subtitles. This heartfelt  comedy-laced is mostly dialogue driven and doesn't have much in the way of action, but the dialogue is crisp and clean and never a chore to discern, and the supportive score by George Stoll (Neptune's Daughter) sounds great. 

Extras include a wonderful  archival Audio Commentary by Shirley Jones, Stella Stevens and Dina Merrill carried over from. The previous DVD release, as well as a 7-min Classic M-G-M Tom and Jerry Cartoon “Penthouse Mouse” in HD that is tangentially related insofar as it takes place in a high-rise apartment, and we also get the 3-min Original Theatrical Trailer. The single-disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork featuring the original illustrated movie poster artwork, I always appreciate WAC's commitment to using original artwork. 

Special Features:
- Feature-length Audio Commentary by Shirley Jones, Stella Stevens and Dina Merrill 

- Classic M-G-M Tom and Jerry cartoon “Penthouse Mouse” (7:15) HD

- Original Theatrical Trailer (2:57) 

Screenshots from the Warner Archive Blu-ray: 

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