The town is turned upside down when three weeks after the death of his wife, Mr. Blakeslee proposes to Miss Love, and she accepts. They get married, much to the chagrin of the Blakeslee family who must grin and bear it. They are outraged that he is recently widowed and that she is young enough to be his daughter. The only one in the family who truly welcomes Miss Love is Will Tweedy (Neil Patrick Harris), Mr. Blakeslee's teen grandson. The rest are simply aghast.
When a blast from her past turns up on Miss Love's doorstep and something happens that threatens to cause a major scandal among the town gossips, Will and Mr. Blakeslee stand by Ms. Love. Gradually, what seems to have been a marriage of convenience blossoms into something more than for which either party bargained. While Mr. Blakeslee confers a certain respectability upon Miss Love, she puts a spring into the step of her old codger husband, and he begins to look positively rejuvenated. It is also a coming of age film with respect to Will.
Richard Widmark and Neil Patrick Harris give wonderful performances, very easy and natural. Faye Dunaway gives a decent enough performance, but I felt that she tended to pose for the camera rather than act. I was also very distracted by her face as it was so tightly pulled back over her cheekbones that her smile tended to look as if it were in rictus. The name Mr. Sardonicus would come to mind whenever she smiled. That is not to say that she did not look attractive, only somewhat unnatural. That being said, the film never rises to a level beyond that of a film made for the small screen. Notwithstanding that, it is a film that is worth a rental, as it is moderately entertaining.
