Bette Davis goes the "kitchen sink drama" route in The Catered Affair. As the frowsy wife of Bronx cabdriver
Ernest Borgnine, Davis insists that her daughter
Debbie Reynolds have a high-class wedding--caterers and all. Reynolds and future hubby
Rod Taylor want a simple ceremony, but Davis' mind is made up. The wedding snowballs into an unwieldy affair as Davis and Borgnine find that they must invite everyone they know or risk incurring the wrath of their neighborhood. When the cost of the affair exceeds the family's bank account, Davis rails at Borgnine for failing to be a good provider. It takes her till the very end of the film to realize what a fool she's been.
Gore Vidal, of all people, adapted The Catered Affair from a TV drama written by
Paddy Chayefsky; the original telecast had starred
Thelma Ritter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide