Amusing movie entry following up on the TLOR radio series. All the characters are present including daughter Babs, son Junior, wife Peg, buddy Gillis, and of course the inimitable Riley. And what a guffaw to be reminded of Digger O'Dell, "the friendly undertaker". With his graveyard voice and dead serious demeanor, he's a real hoot.
The plot's okay. Blue-collar guy Riley doesn't like it when Babs appears to be dating the boss's son. After all, the loyal worker's been bucking for a promotion for years, but to no avail thanks to the boss. Then when the headman finds out about the dating arrangement, guess who gets a big promotion. But at what cost, as new foreman Riley soon finds out. Too bad that the gangster subplot disrupts the generally amusing flow.
One thing to note is how clearly the Riley series reflects conditions of the 30's and 40's when working men were king. That's in contrast to the upward decade of the 50's when family drama reflected white-collar life in the suburbs, e.g. Father Knows Best, (1954-60). That earlier arrangement is especially reflected in this film's windup. Anyway, Babs is cute, Junior is energetic, Peg's supportive, and Riley's his usual amusing and obstreperous self. What a perfect piece of casting Bendix was. His homely mug is so unlike the slicker dads of later times.
For geezers like myself, the 90-minutes amounts to a fond trip down memory lane. And given half-a-chance, younger folks might find it a worthwhile change from exploding cars and gutter language.
