It seems to me that if your Father sends you to the best, most expensive schools in the country at the time (Exeter, and Harvard, including law school) you owe him a little respect, and could follow his wishes until you graduate.
Oliver was an insufferable ass towards his Father.
Did you WATCH this movie? Oliver was graduating from Harvard College when he wanted to marry Jenny, whom he described to his father as a brilliant, talented Radcliffe graduate (i.e., self-made thru intelligence and hard work). His father says no, not if you want my money to go to Harvard Law School, she's the daughter of a cookie baker from Cranston RI (where the Barretts made their money running textile mills on the backs of the immigrants, Jenny's among them).
Oliver decides that he will make it (HLS, etc) on his own and marries the woman he loves. It's called LOVE STORY not because he's supposed to live like a child for another 3 years in his father's hope that he and Jenny will fall out of love having to wait. Do you remember she gave up her graduate scholarship in Paris to marry him and support him thru law school?
BTW, in the late 60's, couples didn't live together so that was not an option and Father wasn't going to pay for Oliver to go to school and Live In Sin as it was called then.
And someone else wrote that Father gave his son money...yes, he did because Oliver was begging (for Jenny's medical treatment) and lied that he'd gotten a girl "in trouble" so Father would give him the money even tho he was now working in a great job. Father did that to avoid a scandal, not out of the goodness of his heart: Oliver was working with attorneys well-known to the elder Barrett who runs in the same social circle.
I think the ending, when Father has found out what the money was for and goes to the hospital to finally support his son, is, despite the trite phrase "Love means...", quite meaningful: Father sees that Oliver has stood up for himself, done extremely well in LS, gotten the powerful corporate job Father expected had he continued to control his son, AND the daughter-in-law had supported the son and they were happily married. Oliver got his father's respect. I think the 2 reconciled thereafter. LOVE STORY! all around.
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jack31961
13 years ago
I get your point, I guess I'm old fashioned in thinking you should respect a Father's wishes. Especially one who bankrolls your superior education, gives you a large inheritance, and helps you be a success in the world.
Three years to finish law school is not forever. Certainly Oliver, and Jenny could have seen each other frequently, their obvious love for each other was not going to fade.
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MyMovieTVRomance
9 years ago
Did you WATCH this movie? Oliver was graduating from Harvard College when he wanted to marry Jenny, whom he described to his father as a brilliant, talented Radcliffe graduate (i.e., self-made thru intelligence and hard work). His father says no, not if you want my money to go to Harvard Law School, she's the daughter of a cookie baker from Cranston RI (where the Barretts made their money running textile mills on the backs of the immigrants, Jenny's among them).
That's not quite the whole truth. The father wasn't flat out denying that the sun could marry the girl. He simply said "give it some time – and if you still love her after a couple of years, then we'll see what happens" or something like that. He was not threatening to Oliver off from the money. That only happened after Oliver was very rude to his father and refused to give it some time. His father had every reason to think that Oliver was jumping into this with eyes closed, as fast as it was, and he just didn't want to see his son make a mistake.
Also, you have to put yourself in his father's place – being the head patriarch of the dynasty of riches. Rich people have to be careful because they never know who loves them for their money or who loves them for themselves. Oliver's father had every right to be cautious and classist, because when you're that Rich you have to be. And as I said, all he was asking from Oliver was to give it some time. He did not say that Oliver couldn't see the girl or that he couldn't marry the girl. He simply said to give it some time. Oliver refused to do so, and suffered the consequences.
It may not have been the nicest situation, but his father was right. Not that Oliver was wrong, but his father was right.
Ryan O'Neal is adorable, but I thought that his character was a prick to his father.
Please excuse typos/funny wording; I use speech-recognition that doesn't always recognize!
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