MovieChat Forums > Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948) Discussion > Good, but not as good as the book

Good, but not as good as the book

posted 17 years ago by sixpetite
7 replies | jump to latest

I did enjoy the film, but the Bill Cole/Affair and The WHAM Slogan plot lines just seemed rather out of place and 'thrown in' to me, as did the Gussie character. I suppose because the film was aimed at a broader audience and had to touch on certain points (ie more romance between Mr. and Mrs. Blandings) and it seemed to me that it was the WHAM Slogan story arc, rather than the building of the house that served as the major tension. (As opposed to the book)

I also felt that the satirical nature of the book was missing, such as Eric Hodgin's chapter titles 'The First Lamp of Architecture' & 'The Second Lamp of Architecture' (Sacrifice and Truth, respectively..according to John Ruskin)..as well as being funny the book touched upon the falsity of the Anglo-Saxon hegemonic "American Dream"...but the film was entertaining and had some good laughs - although I wish they would have made the ending not so happy; in the book Mr. Blandings dreams that his house is on fire...and he is smiling :)

[–] fegerter 17 years ago

"I suppose because the film was aimed at a broader audience"

Yeah. They were trying to turn a profit.

[–] sixpetite 17 years ago

touché

[–] behonest1 17 years ago

well i have never been able to get a copy of the book, but this is my all time favorite movie. And before i say anything else, this movie was made before my time, and so I say that the movie/real life format back then, was alot of people had maids and without a job, that for that time period, was high paying, it's understandable that his job be included in the movie. and i rather like the ending on the movie, than what you stated it ended in the book.

[–] seagoing1969 17 years ago

I like the book better too and my parents built a house in the country long ago with similar results. The book is grittier and more cruel but really (hilariously) nails the experience of building a house and what it does to the victims, er, I mean, family involved. Very realistic. But then it is based on a true story about the author's experience in building a house on an acreage.
One of my favorite moments in the book is when the Blandings are inspecting the unfinished house. Mr. Blandings opens the upstairs toilet only to see the downstairs and the top of Mrs. Blandings head through the hole. He seriously considers peeing on her for talking him into this little venture in the first place. The relationship teeters on the rocks and the Blandings go broke, desperately trying to secure emergency loans from banks that say they're already over-extended.
The movie is still good though.

[–] skiddoo 13 years ago

Only a real sicko would want to see Cary Grant contemplating urinating on Myrna Loy. That might be humorous in a book but in a movie it's chillingly psychotic and would go much better with a storyline like War of the Roses.

My favorite of the genre is Acres and Pains by S J Perelman. The ending is perfect. Perelman is a master wordsmith.

(I suspect so many Hollywood stories have maids because so many Hollywood execs and writers had maids. I saw one early tv show with a childless couple where the wife wasn't employed outside the home and they STILL had a maid! What in the world did the wife do with herself? She wasn't into charity work, as far as I could see. It was just stupid. Maybe others felt that way because it was short-lived.)

[–] LCella9370 10 years ago

The book is not easy to find but it is well-worth the effort. I got my copy from a b & b that was being sold in Cape Cod.

[–] mch3172 15 years ago

I really like this movie, but I agree that the book is better than the movie. In particular, I thought it was funnier in the book that the account Blandings is known for isn't Wham, but a laxative for which he has written award-winning copy.