The Courtship of Eddie's Father

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The Courtship of Eddie's Father

Released Mar 6, 1963

1h 57m

Kids & Family

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

67%

Tomatometer

6 Reviews

69%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

Realizing that he needs a mother -- and his widower father, Tom (Glenn Ford), needs a wife -- precocious Eddie Corbett (Ron Howard) is determined to get his dad remarried. While Tom dates numerous women, including the uptight aristocrat Rita Behrens (Dina Merrill), nobody seems to be a good fit for Eddie or his father. Soon it becomes apparent that Tom's ideal match may be closer than he thought, as he begins to develop feelings for his lovely neighbor, Elizabeth Marten (Shirley Jones).

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Excellent seriocomedy.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jun 17, 2023

Full Review

Clyde Gilmour

Maclean's Magazine

Astonishingly, this time the net product is an agreeable entertainment, nimbly sidestepping most of the pitfalls in its path.

Oct 7, 2019

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Michael E. Grost

Classic Film and Television

Strange film about family tragedy masquerading as a comedy, the film does have some impressive sequences.

Aug 8, 2008

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

One of Minnellli's weakest (or is it modest?) serio comedies, dealing with the adjustment problems of a recent widower (Glenn Ford) and his young son (played by child actor-future director Ron Howard).

Rated: C

Jul 12, 2007

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Ken Hanke

Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Enjoyable family comedy.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 27, 2003

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Josh Gilchrist

Billings Outpost (Montana)

Rated: 4/5

Jul 29, 2003

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CodyZamboni

An amusing comedy with undercurrents of sadness , as a widower, Glenn Ford, and his young son try to move on in life. Movie's main charm is young Ron Howard, trying to fix up his dad with other women, especially next door neighbor, Shirley Jones. Movie's poignancy comes with how Ron copes with the loss of his mom. To the movie's credit, it doesnt paint Ford as Mr Perfect, he is a real jerk sometimes, especially to Shirley. And I like that the movie doesn't provide easy happy answers or plot resolutions, only hope. Shirley Jones is so appealing and stunningly beautiful.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/31/23

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Steve D

Completely adorable and heartfelt.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/26/23

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Audience Member

Ron Howard's youthful innocence at the time during his days on Mayberry steals the show in a unique rom-com from an emotionally fragile, common angle but also adapted not too far apart from how Andy Griffith approaches things with Glenn Ford substituting nicely. (B)

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/17/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I saw this was gonna be on one of the classic movie channels, so I decided after 52 years, it was time to set the DVR. Ron was great, as I expected, but John Ford not so much. Not only was the chemistry all but non-existent, what was there was just awkward. Less disturbing than Ford's shitty performance, but still painful, was the odd pacing and completely unaddressed jumps in time and plot. Ehh, it was OK, and certainly fun to see Opie out of Mayberry and a young Shirley Jones, who's always good, but I was expecting more from a classic I'd never seen. Bleh.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/14/23

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Audience Member

good gr8 cast rom-com

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/21/23

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Audience Member

A very cute movie with the young Ron Howard as the precious Eddie who tries to get his father to marry the attractive next door neighbor. The way it makes light of a heavy issue of adjusting to life without a mother (or wife) was a bit odd, but the performances and understanding of it's lead characters were charming enough.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

Full Review

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Vincente Minnelli

Director

Glenn Ford

Tom Corbett

Shirley Jones

Elizabeth Marten

Ron Howard

Eddie Corbett

Stella Stevens

Dollye Daly

Dina Merrill

Rita Behrens

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Synopsis

Realizing that he needs a mother -- and his widower father, Tom (Glenn Ford), needs a wife -- precocious Eddie Corbett (Ron Howard) is determined to get his dad remarried. While Tom dates numerous women, including the uptight aristocrat Rita Behrens (Dina Merrill), nobody seems to be a good fit for Eddie or his father. Soon it becomes apparent that Tom's ideal match may be closer than he thought, as he begins to develop feelings for his lovely neighbor, Elizabeth Marten (Shirley Jones).

Director: Vincente Minnelli
Producer: Joe Pasternak
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Venice Productions
Genre: Kids & Family, Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 6, 1963, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 18, 2008
Runtime: 1h 57m

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