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If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

I'm going to skip the movie's plot details, most of you have already read the other reviews and/or seen the movie and know what it's about. What many of have also done is to see/take the movie completely out of context. For this you can be forgiven, unless you (a) grew up in the 1950s and/or (b) know who Peter De Vries was and/or (c) read his novel THE TUNNEL OF LOVE. De Vries was a successful writer of satire, on the staff of The New Yorker for some time, and wrote lots of satirical novels, including this one, first published in 1954, sharply poking fun at sophisticated sexual and social mores. The novel is set in Westport, Connecticut, where De Vries lived, and its depiction of sexual double standards, social life, euphemisms, booze, etc., is typical of the time period. A stage version was produced in 1957, and presumably to "water it down" a little for theater audiences, the ending was changed, which basically ruined the story. A year later the Doris Day/Richard Widmark movie version came out, using the play's watered-down feel-good ending and destroying the novel's biting satire. So if you regard this movie out of the context of its novel and its time period, you might be confused or disappointed.

Tunnel of Love, The (1958) ** 1/2 (out of 4)"Comedy" about a happy couple (Richard Widmark, Doris Day) who are struggling to have a kid on their own but their attempts at adoption isn't going any better. Things take a turn for the worse when the husband thinks he might have had an affair and got that woman pregnant. This is a very strange film that never seems to know what it wants to do. I've heard that Day and her husband/manager would often try to force their way on pictures but I have no idea if that's what happened here. She pretty much plays a supporting role here but her character is so strange, as is the story and some of the casting, that you can understand why this thing didn't do too well at the box office. A lot of the reviews I read bash the casting of Widmark in a "comedy" when he's best at playing "dark gangsters" and that sort. I think that is far from the truth and I think it's the offbeat casting that actually keeps the film watchable. Widmark is certainly best known for his tough guy roles but I thought he was rather fun here simply because we don't get the chance to see him as a pushover and someone who actually has a lot of fears. The early scene with him coming home exhausted and fearing his wife and her need for sex (for the baby) was very funny and I thought Widmark played it well. Sure, it was a little forced seeing him playing such a weak person but I found it to be funny and charming. Day, on the other hand, appears to be going through the motions as she never really gets going in the picture. She doesn't come off very funny and her character at times, especially at the end, becomes quite annoying. Gia Scala is very good in her role of woman Widmark fears he has pregnant. Gig Young is also very delightful in the role of Widmark's friend who has all the kids and plenty of girlfriends on the side. The screenplay is all over the place but I found it's look at sexuality and moral issues pretty frank for 1958 and maybe this was another reason it didn't go over too well. The film isn't a classic and it's not even a good one but I think fans of Widmark will at least get some smile out of seeing him playing a character like this.

This film has an astonishingly ludicrous, unbelievable plot. Doris Day and Richard Widmark are unable to conceive while ol' reliable neighbor Gig Young (as Dick Pepper) has kid after kid, despite having (arguably) the biggest substance abuse problem on the block. With all the single beds and double shots, it's a wonder.Anyway, an adoption agency finds a baby for the childless Day/Widmark pair. Mr. Widmark is convinced he actually fathered the child they find, during a drunken one-night-stand... It gets worse. Ms. Day recognizes the newly adopted baby as Mr. Widmark's, and storms out on her bicycle! The movie makes absolutely no sense. Day and Widmark are terrible parents. Widmark also sings, by the way, at a cocktail party and to the baby. Be warned! Won't reveal the film's climax, but it should be easy to guess… ** The Tunnel of Love (11/21/58) Gene Kelly ~ Doris Day, Richard Widmark, Gig Young, Gia Scala

Just had to add my ditto to prior comments. Maybe as a historical peek. My reason for bothering. As entertainment, zero value. As bad time capsule is about all. Catch all the 'clever' way past McCarthy era chatter about "you mean we might be investigated" over the adoption setup. Or "double think" line. So hip. Not. Seemed not worthy of colorizing. Just annoying as hell. Stay in CT and out of the old Village. But of course today's Greenwich Village takes a 1958 Westport income at the very least. UNIVAC, where art tho? Poor rich stressed out commuter. Shoulda stayed in Village and become a Pop Artist over time. Cute chick social worker tho. Not so with the sad MM player.