Questionable Disney film with Hayley Mills playing 2 roles; twins whose existence was kept from the other due to an improbable and cold-hearted decision by their selfish, divorced parents played by a lovely Maureen O'Hara and a tubby Brian Keith who's notably lacking in warmth. Mills doesn't make the twins distinctive though the special effects are fine and unobtrusive. The big problem with the film is that the adults are childish and unappealing and Keith and O' Hara don't belong together and what brought them together in the first place remains a mystery. Pity Joanna Barnes who was so good in Auntie Mame (1958), she has a thankless role and has been prematurely aged by hairstyle, make-up and photography. The supporting cast made up of familiar faces is dull and David Swift's direction of this big screen sitcom is anything but swift.
Review of The Parent Trap
