Houseboat is a 1958 film directed by Melville Shavelson. The film's plot is a romantic comedy that follows the adventures of a widowed architect and his three children as they adapt to life on a houseboat and face the challenges of love and family.

Plot:

The story revolves around Tom Winters (played by Cary Grant), a widowed architect with three young children. After the death of his wife, Tom has become a workaholic and neglected his family. However, when his sister Carol (played by Martha Hyer) decides to get married, Tom offers to take care of her three children while she's on her honeymoon.

Tom decides to purchase a houseboat and settle on it with his children. However, the houseboat is in a state of disrepair and needs many repairs. As he works to fix up the houseboat, Tom meets Cinzia Zaccardi (played by Sophia Loren), a young Italian woman who has stowed away on the boat to escape an arranged marriage.

Cinzia initially hides from Tom, but eventually emerges and asks for his help. Tom decides to help Cinzia and hires her as a governess for his children. Over time, a romantic relationship develops between Tom and Cinzia.

Director: Melville Shavelson

Writers: Melville Shavelson, Jack Rose

Producer: Jack Rose

Music: George Duning

Main Cast:

• Cary Grant as Tom Winters
• Sophia Loren as Cinzia Zaccardi
• Martha Hyer as Carol Winters
• Harry Guardino as Angelo Donatello
• Eduardo Ciannelli as Father Moretti
• Murray Hamilton as Elliot
• Mimi Gibson as Elizabeth Winters

Major Awards: The film received mixed reviews from critics.

Box Office Gross: The film achieved moderate success at the box office.

My opinion: I wanted to see this film again recently, well remembering the negative impression it made on me long ago. I confirm the judgment of that time. First of all, the screenplay is worth little, with a rambling plot that turns Cinzia, the daughter of a famous conductor (Sophia Loren) into a maid who, having lived in a gilded environment, obviously does not know how to do anything. And why does this girl decide to be a domestic helper ? Because her father, who is Italian and therefore traditionalist, does not let her go out and wants to take her only to protected and refined environments. So the girl decides to run away and earn a living. So far, the plot would hold up. But what doesn't hold up is the absurd personality played by Sophia Loren who slips blindly, at night, into far-fetched clubs and situations that unfortunately are not even funny. Moreover, Sophia Loren was made up "as an Italian," or at least the way Americans at that time imagined Italian women : she looks like Verdi's Otello. Take a look at the heavy, dark makeup : all she is missing is a mustache.

Cary Grant is very good, but Loren acts badly in a painful and meaningless character. Very good the children who are the only funny note in the film

Sloppy direction, with some scenes shot in the wrong light and edited incorrectly and non-sequentially.

Fair music, terrible makeup artist and cinematography. Definitely poor film.