I agree with the other reviewers about this movie being lovely to look at, and Rex Harrison and Kay Kendall are indeed very funny, but I was astounded at what the 17 year old Sandra Dee got up to! Drinking sherry (sherry?! was that the usual cafe drink for teenagers then?) like she'd been doing it all her life, staying out until 5 in the morning, smoking, and at the end of it all deciding to marry a guy she'd only seen a couple of times! And ridiculously, her father (Harrison) is totally nonchallant about it all. I know that in a lot of these old movies people got married after only knowing each other a couple of days or weeks, but a 17 year old? It beggars belief, and became annoying. What was the point of making the daughter a teenager if everone was going to behave as if she was 30? A somewhat funny movie, but Sandra Dee is obnoxious rather than endearing, in my opinion

I am not sure why this film isn't more famous, as it was a very entertaining romantic-comedy. Considering that it was directed by Vincente Minelli and stars Rex Harrison, it can't help but be good. It's apparently good enough that the film was remade just a few years ago as WHAT A GIRL WANTS.As the film begins, the cream of British society is readying itself for a long string of debutante balls--just as Rex Harrison's daughter from a previous marriage arrives from America (Sandra Dee). His new wife (played by his real-life wife, Kay Kendell) is having a disagreeable conversation with an annoying friend (Angela Lansbury) about these society dances when she feels compelled to announce that her step-daughter will be introduced to society at the next ball--even though the girl and her father have no interest in these stuffy affairs. But to please the step-mom, they go through with it. Unfortunately, Kay is pretty snobby and tries to arrange a marriage with an in-bred idiot and Sandra. At the same time, Kay is horrified that Sandra is falling for a lowly drummer with a lousy reputation (John Saxon). How all this is worked out to everyone's satisfaction is pretty funny and quite romantic. I think most of this is due to good writing and the nice gentle nature of the film. In fact, the longer I watched it, the more I liked it and found myself really being pulled into the story. It's a very good and often overlooked film--pity, as it really should be more widely seen.

I love this film... So does my wife, we love it together. love love love. Rex Harison is very dry, with always brilliant delivery a little Henry Higgins'esquire on occasion but funnier in my opinion this time round. Kay Kendall's Sheila is astonishing and full of wonder for her snobbery, competitive instincts and neurosis. She makes me hoot.The foolish David Fenner is infuriatingly silly yet gold to watch. The music captures the feel of the 50's beautifully, with an almost Cliff Richard like quality... Actually my wife is disputing that comment, it's much more American than Cliff in her opinion. It's jazzy. jazz jazz jazz. Big band. It makes me want to dance every time I see it. One of my favourite quotes from Sheila whilst dancing... "mmmmm, this song drives me out of my mind"You can watch this film over and over, we have been for the last 15 years and it doesn't get old at all. Watch it with different friends and they will love you for it. That's what we do. love love love.

I quite like this movie.The story is written like a Restoration mistaken identity comedy (think Wycherly, Congreve or Farquahar) but without the low necklines and with much less bawdiness (yes, you may wonder what's left).The lines given Saxon and Dee are pretty bad - and although Saxon does the best he can, I don't think Sandra Dee does an interesting job at all - she looks quite bored (if pretty). When they're on screen, this is incredibly dull.Yet the adults, working with almost nothing, go all out and make this a pleasure -- you'll wish that the story were a variant of Unfaithfully Yours with Harrison or Kendall suspecting the other of infidelity and no children in sight.Yet despite all,Minnelli makes the movie stunningly beautiful (you very much want to be there) with great rich colors, London shown in glorious sweeping color, and the movie goes swiftly with wonderful and amusing editing ---- the costumes and sets are just so beautiful ---- Rex Harrison is in as finely comic a mode (don't expect his Henry IV or wonderful Julius Caesar here) as he's ever been - and that is VERY high praise -- -- Kay Kendall is a moviegoer's dream - stunningly beautiful, an exquisite comedic touch, wonderful with either a line or a pratfall. In movies like this, Genevieve, Les Girls, she is an aristocratic Lucille Ball if you can imagine that - as giddy, as wildly inventive -- but haute.-- Angela Lansbury takes a thankless part and really gets into it - and Lansbury is superb.So, sure, the story is gossamer, there aren't many amusing lines, but the panache brought by the director, costume and set designers, Harrison, Kendall and Lansbury combine to make this quite enjoyable.There's something to be said for a movie that you want to see again and again simply because you wish you were there. I own relatively few movies, but this is one.