SincereFinest disgusting, overrated, pointless

Cleveronix A different way of telling a story

Keeley Coleman The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Cody One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

Myriam Nys One of the better Doris Day-comedies, well-made and enjoyable. It contains quite a few good scenes, such as the disastrous first commercial or the domestic crisis involving giant amounts of soap suds. There are a few possible inconsistencies here and there, such as the fact that a lady gets pregnant at an age where most women have gone through menopause, but still, these things happen. However, I was far from charmed by the underlying message with regard to women. Beverly Boyer (the character played by Doris Day) is very much like one of these miniature ballerina dolls on top of music boxes, who dance for a few minutes and then disappear. She has her little moment in the sun and then it's back to a life of housewifely duties and suburban gentility, mainly because her husband can't cope with the idea (horror of horrors !) that he might have to wait ten minutes before getting dinner. Or else - my hand trembles as I type this - he might come home and discover that his martini was improperly chilled !One does not need to be called Joanna Russ in order to realize there's a lot of contempt towards women hidden here. In case you doubt this, feel free to watch the scene where the said lady of mature years is about to give birth to her child inside a car. Beverly Boyer, a woman who has given birth herself, can console and assist her, but it is the male obstetrician who delivers the child, after riding to the rescue like a knight in shining armour. Aaah, poor silly women, they try their best - but when things get real, it's only a man who can save the day... For clarity's sake, I'm not attacking male obstetricians, doctors or gynecologists - everyone who undertakes long and difficult studies in order to perform a responsible and socially useful job deserves the utmost respect. What I do dislike, is the idea that only males could or should become obstetricians, doctors or gynecologists, with females spending their time on preparing little lobster cocktails for posh dinner parties. I also object to the idea that women are complete ninnies who know bupkas about deliveries or first aid. You might object that I'm looking at an older movie with the eyes of someone living in 2018. This is true, of course, but there is something mean-spirited and dismissive about the movie's intent which must have felt unpleasant even half a century ago.

SimonJack Doris Day was just 18 when her only child was born. That was before her multi-layered career took off, especially with movies from the late 1940s through the 1960s. Yet she could play a tender, loving, caring mom amidst the mayhem of comedy better than any other big name star. And, the kids in all her films convinced this viewer that she was the real thing. The two children in "The Thrill of it All," aren't played as much for laughs as in many other family comedies. Here, they are part of the family as the essence of the love that is "the thrill of it all." But there is humor in what the kids do and say at times. This film has a rare mix of comedy romance with family love and values, and the beauty of babies and having children. Doris shines as Beverly Boyer, and James Garner is a perfect match as her husband, Dr. Gerald Boyer. The film has a wonderful cast of supporting actors with more than cursory roles. Arlene Francis gives a glowing and warm performance as Mrs. Fraleigh. She is a newly expectant mother who has wanted children for 20 years. But, the sterling performance in this film is that of Edward Andrews. As Gardiner Fraleigh, this long-time character actor gives his best performance. It may seem strange to some people who were under age 40 at the start of the 21st century, but for the first three-fourths of the last century, most people were excited about having children. Family, friends and strangers would smile and congratulate an expecting mother. Expectant fathers might well be the nervous, anxious, excited, incoherent, and anything but calm characters as Gardiner Fraleigh appears in this film. That's why his exaggerated character will be so amusing to older men and women. We've "Been there, done that!" Especially in situations where couples really want to have children but can't for the longest time, one can still see such excitement today. I have known several younger couples who haven't been able to have children. Most conceived after considerable time, and were elated, as are the Fraleigh's in this film. Two couples have been able to adopt children, and they have been just as happy and excited. A scene with Mrs. Fraleigh and Dr. Boyer in his office is particularly descriptive of the time and culture. Mrs. Fraleigh, "I've been taking very long walks up and down Fifth Avenue." Dr. Boyer, "Fine! Exercise is very important." Mrs. Fraleigh, "I don't walk for the exercise. I walk to show off. I'm proud of my condition. Is that silly?" Dr. Boyer, "Silly? It's about the healthiest attitude you could have." Mrs. Fraleigh, "I don't know when I've been so happy. I guess there's nothing more fulfilling in life than having a baby. Oh, listen to me. Something you've probably heard a thousand times." Dr. Boyer, "Never stated so beautifully."And the scene of the Fraleighs rushing to the hospital and getting caught in a traffic jam with the baby coming was not all that rare in times past. I will never forget my own experience. Our youngest daughter came quickly and unexpectedly late at night. My wife delivered her naturally, with my nervous, dazed help of just holding the baby by her feet. I called the hospital, packed mom and baby in our car and headed to the hospital about five miles away. I turned the emergency flashers on, honked my horn and broke the speed limit all the way. We didn't get a police escort but we made it safe and sound."The Thrill of it All" is not a comedy of many witty lines of dialog, but of humorous situations. One of the funniest sequences is when Fraleigh hustles nervously between cars in the traffic jam. He asks one irate motorist if he has a shoestring. "I'm having a baby and I need a shoestring." The motorist yells, "Get outta here." Here are a few more funny lines. Andy, "Mom, can we play golf till lunch is ready?" Beverly, "Yes, darling. You can play in the back yard. Don't chop up the lawn like daddy."Gerald, "Now you have finally done it." Beverly, "Done what?" Gerald, "You have finally succeeded in equating the delivery of a baby with the delivery of a commercial."One other hilarious scene involves a phone call that passes between Dr. Boyer, Mrs. Boyer, the doctor's nurse-secretary, and the Boyer's German- speaking housekeeper. The German word for nurse is a real lulu – "krankenschwester." I would have loved to see and hear more dialog develop in that sequence. The funny incidents pile up in this movie and add up to a very amusing and enjoyable film. And, definitely a movie for the whole family.

preppy-3 Housewife Beverly Boyer (Doris Day) accidentally becomes a TV star overnight selling soap on commercials. Her successful doctor husband (James Garner) isn't too happy about it and believes she should stay at home and bring up their kids like all women do. This leads to "hilarious" complications.Day and Garner are both charming and great in their roles but the sexual politics and unfunny comedy sometimes make this heavy going. The movie is continuously making it clear that a woman having a career is not a good thing and Garner's antics to get her to stop working are hardly funny. Also some of the comedy is beyond silly--the section with the back yard pool (all installed in a few hours) and soap is just dumb. Still, it was well done and the Garner and Day play off each other very well. If you can ignore the outdated attitudes in this movie you should enjoy it. I give it a 5.

Robert J. Maxwell James Garner is an OB-GYN kind of doctor and Doris Day is his perky wife with two mischievous but cute kiddies and a live-in maid. It's a wonderful life. The only problem is that Doris has nothing else to occupy her interests, just the PTA and the ketchup she bottles at home. Garner and Day are invited to dinner at a brash old tycoon's house. The media mogul decides that Day would be the perfect television spokesperson for his shampoo. She's hired. It upsets the routine and their home life. Garner resents his wife's working and her absence from her "wifely duties." The maid quits, they hire a new one who speaks only German, there are missed messages that lead to confusion and -- well, I don't know what all.Garner is as placid as the script allows him to be, and Doris Day is always chipper and sexy. She does an expert double take. The kids are a fulsome nuisance with their constant nattering and should be stomped on like little bugs.The story was written by Carl Reiner and Larry Gelbart, who know comedy when they write it, but they must have just overdosed on an "I Love Lucy" marathon.It isn't so much that the movie reflects the attitudes of the 1950s. That's not only not bad, but inevitable. "Pillow Talk" used the same axiomatic framework and was very funny. No writers can be held accountable for not predicting the Zeitgeist that lies fifty years in the future.It's that the jokes themselves are weak, sometimes so weak as to be embarrassing. Upon hearing that her salary will be $80,000, Doris Day collapses and sits back into a crate of ripe tomatoes. (Gag.) You want to know the joke I thought was most successful? At the TV studio in which Doris Day tapes her commercials for the shampoo, there is a dramatic "Playhouse 90" sort of production going on. Day has to watch it while she waits for the commercial break. In the first scene of the drama that we witness, Carl Reiner is a Nazi officer, sneering and threatening while trying to get a French girl to squeal on the Maquis. She splashes a proffered glass of wine in his face. He sputters and orders her out of the room with an oath.The following week, Reiner is some kind of gangster or something and a girl splashes wine in his face. He curses and has her thrown out. The following week, he's a jealous ex lover in a fancy restaurant and his girl throws wine in his face. "FLOOZIE!" he shouts at her as she storms out.The big wigs are sitting around with cigars watching these shows. And Doris Day asks if this isn't the same scene they've already witnessed. "Similar," says one, "but the public doesn't pay enough attention to notice the similarity." Cut to Day's house, where her two little kids are watching the show and one whines, "It's the same as last time!" There. Now you know the best joke in the movie and I've spared you the inconvenience of watching the rest of it.