You can still feel the stage origins of this material and the director, Gene Saks, leaves pauses for laughs that don’t come. But, at least, it’s livelier than Fonda’s 1966 picture Any Wednesday.

Gene Saks, an excellent comedy director, is skilled and imaginative, and his players are responsive to his suggestions for getting the most from humorous lines and situations.

Barefoot in the Park, a comic delight on the stage, is at least three times funnier on the screen, and has to rank with How to Succeed as the best movie comedy of the year.

When you find yourself wanting to spend less time with the central couple, and don’t have that much to say about the on-screen depiction of their marriage, it’s a clear sign that this film didn’t work as a romance...