A day down by the old mill stream has David Niven bringing something back other than some holy mackerel. He meets sobbing pre-teen orphan Tommy Rettig who lives at priest Hugh Beaumont's foundling home. The sweet little boy becomes upset every time a baby he attaches himself to is adopted.
Now Niven wants to adopt him much to the concern of wife Frances Rafferty who wants to have her own kids and not start to mother someone already grown. She has valid reasons based on her own past, and feels guilty for her misgivings, but can't bring herself to come around. Then Beaumont expresses his concern that Rettig is becoming too attached, another issue for the bond that starts to grow as Niven becomes more fond of him.
While Rafferty could come off as cruel had the role been directed a bit more harshly, she finds life as a potential adopted mother isn't for her since she didn't raise him as a child. A gap in the story has Niven bringing Rettig home without explaining the situation that transpired so the audience has to guess what occured to have Rettig there permanently.
Myra Marsh, as Niven's stepmother, comes along to convieniently give her own perspective on the situation, and there's something about her performance that seems quite off, like she's just rehearsing it, not acting it. This could have been so much better and could even have been a decent feature, but while there are many good ideas within the story and script, this comes off as a bit of a rough draft that needed further development. As it stands, this somehow comes off far too incomplete.
Now Niven wants to adopt him much to the concern of wife Frances Rafferty who wants to have her own kids and not start to mother someone already grown. She has valid reasons based on her own past, and feels guilty for her misgivings, but can't bring herself to come around. Then Beaumont expresses his concern that Rettig is becoming too attached, another issue for the bond that starts to grow as Niven becomes more fond of him.
While Rafferty could come off as cruel had the role been directed a bit more harshly, she finds life as a potential adopted mother isn't for her since she didn't raise him as a child. A gap in the story has Niven bringing Rettig home without explaining the situation that transpired so the audience has to guess what occured to have Rettig there permanently.
Myra Marsh, as Niven's stepmother, comes along to convieniently give her own perspective on the situation, and there's something about her performance that seems quite off, like she's just rehearsing it, not acting it. This could have been so much better and could even have been a decent feature, but while there are many good ideas within the story and script, this comes off as a bit of a rough draft that needed further development. As it stands, this somehow comes off far too incomplete.