I am eager to see all of Fredric March's pre-1940 films. Some of them are brilliant. Others are just OK, but his performance is always top-notch, regardless of the material. Or so I thought. If this were the first time someone was seeing March, they would never know he was a professional actor.Mary Brian plays March's college friend's daughter. A series of marriages and divorces has left a large collection of children in her primary care. She is only seventeen. After a whacky meeting on the beach, the young girl and the kids are all smitten with March. However, March's character is engaged to a widow he has allegedly loved for a long time. You see where this is going. The age difference is supposed to seem acceptable, though March initially protests, and viewers are left to see which woman he finally chooses to marry.If you want to see young Mitzi Green, with her loud mouth, or young Anita Louise, you might enjoy this film. Lilyan Tashman always turned in a good performance when playing a villain. The delightful Kay Francis is less than enjoyable here though. Mary Brian is probably the best performer in the cast, but I didn't like her character. March's devotion to the children seems unnatural, and I couldn't see him as a believable husband to either woman. I came in wanting to like this film, but after viewing it, I don't understand the good reviews it got at the time.

The other three reviews thus far seem to be addressing a different film altogether. The pacing here is funereal, the actors don't act their lines, they speak them, slowly and haltingly, as if we were at a first rehearsal of a high school drama performance. There is no talent to speak of, even Kay Francis is subdued. Fredric March is embarrassingly bad. Some of the facial expressions are truly laughable.I have not yet read the novel, THE CHILDREN, from which this is derived, but I doubt it was a comedy. Irresponsible playboy/girl rich adults behaving like children and leaving a wake of seven stepchildren in their entourage, constantly being torn apart, as the adults switch marriage partners, yearning to remain together as siblings - hardly stuff of comedy - perhaps it was a further indication of the distorted times during which the film was made that it was adapted in this fashion.This was remade in France in 1990 under its original title, but the film is not available on DVD for comparison.A real chore to sit through and a colossal bore to boot.

With her constantly battling father Huntley Gordon and stepmother Lilyan Tashman too busy traveling around to take care of her six younger siblings (by various other women), 17-year old innocent Mary Brian must raise them. A chance encounter with an old family acquaintance (Fredric March) makes Brian take a look at her family situation. This early talkie seems actually a few years younger thanks to witty dialog, a camera that does more than sit there, and some nice outdoor scenes (mostly at the beach) as well. Anita Louise and Mitzi Green are the most familiar of the cute actors playing the kids, while some amusing lines are given to Maude Turner Gordon (as the aunt of March's love interest) who cracks after receiving a telegram, "Who's dead? I hope its someone I don't like". The 23-year old Brian, already a veteran from silent films, is an absolute doll. Tashman and Gordon are amusingly uppity as the neglectful parents who can barely stand each other (yet travel all over the world together). To add to the hilarious confusion, one of the step-mothers (Kay Francis) shows up with an ultra effeminate husband (William Austin) with her. "You may not believe it, but I make the funniest face", he says to Francis' daughter, Green. I half expected Green to retort, "Without really trying, I'm sure." Green turns step daddy into her own personal horsey, while March does all he can to prevent Francis and Tashman from ripping each others hair out when they encounter the other (in the same dress!). Seena Owen plays the cold-hearted Rose, Brian's rival for March's affections. Yes, the plot is a bit convoluted, and it takes some sorting out to remember whose child is whose, but it is all so funny. The romance between Brian and March develops slowly (as he is in love with someone else), but it helps the viewer deal with the obvious age difference between the two characters. There were few comedies of the early sound era that manage to hold up today, and this is one of them.

Here are the quickest 75 minutes of your life. A delightful pre-code cocktail recipe. Take three couples (add gin and tonic), their several divorces and the seven children/stepchildren of their intermarriages and blend thoroughly, and you have a mixture a too-young-to-believe Frederic March will try to straighten out.Whew! That said, let me straighten out a possibly intentional preconception. These sophisticated couples, with an early flirting reference, seem to be playing to the naughty implication of the title. You'll comprehend the title once you've met the kids, because they are the heart of this film. Now a cast including Frederic March, Lilyan Tashman, Kay Francis and Seena Owens giving great performances can't be upstaged, right? Well this batch is the best I've seen. They steal every scene and are given lines which mirror just what you're thinking. And they deliver them like bullets. It's timed like some successful stage play where the comedy has been closely honed in front of an audience. March is doing his job just keeping a straight face!It all works thanks to a wide open Mary Brian as the oldest (17) of the kids. Her full throttle approach to the role locks all the elements together. She has to work vigorously to keep stability in the kids custodial situation. Indeed, spying on her charges, she discovers them playing Divorce Court.Director Lothar Mendes loaded the film with brilliant touches. Mary Brian as Judy has a full, puffy coiffure while the other females have close, short hairstyles. The eternally effeminate William Austin's on hand to be Kay Francis' "big, strong (rich) man". Mitzi Green teaches him what its like to be a father, making him her pony. The children interface with adults on adult terms, playing them like violins. I won't disclose some delicious scenes as they should be yours to discover. Have fun!