- Father Goose is an excellent reminder of the value of a strong lead actor. The film itself is little more than a silly premise supported by a good (but hardly Oscar-worthy) script, but Cary Grant somehow makes it all watchable. Taking a page from what I'll call the "Charlie Allnut" playbook, Grant has his turn as a drunken captain named Eckland who suddenly and quite accidentally finds himself having to care for other people. In this case, it's a French schoolmistress named Freneau (Leslie Caron) and the seven little girls she would be teaching if WWII hadn't intervened.
- So why would Eckland ever consent to taking charge of a gaggle of schoolgirls? For that matter, why is he helping the British Navy? One of the wittiest parts of the script has to do with the ways that Freneau and a naval commander named Haughton (Trevor Howard) induce Eckland into helping them. In most instances, this simply involves holding the keys to his liquor cabinet. In one memorable incident, it even means having a destroyer "accidentally" ram Eckland's ship. Eventually, Freneau finds alternative ways to motivate Eckland, but I'll leave those to your imagination.
- It occurred to me while watching this film that Grant was one of the true masters of the incredulous reaction. He put this talent to great comic effect in Arsenic and Old Lace, great dramatic effect in Notorious, and some combination thereof in North by Northwest. In Father Goose, his surprised reactions mostly result from the re-appropriation of his possessions by Miss Freneau ("So far you're shared me out of my clothes, my food and my house!"), although my personal favorite is probably his exclamation at hearing Miss Freneau's full name read aloud at their wedding. Without Grant, this would have been a forgettable film most famous for co-starring a bunch of kids. With Grant...well, the result should come as no surprise.
