Summary
Thomas Bates Jr. is the quintessential privileged son, a young man who views his father’s successful broom factory not as a legacy, but as a relic of inefficient, 'old-fashioned' thinking. After one too many lectures on fiscal responsibility and the weight of monthly bills, the elder Bates makes a radical proposal: a total role reversal. Tom is handed the keys to the factory and the household for one year, tasked with proving his modern methods can outperform his father’s 'grouchy' pragmatism. Into this experiment enters Geraldine Marsh, a family friend forced by tragedy into the role of housekeeper. As Tom navigates the crushing reality of management and a dissolving engagement to the social-climbing Florence Levering, he finds himself falling for Geraldine. However, a toxic cocktail of pride and misunderstanding leads Tom to believe Geraldine is actually in love with his father. The film follows Tom’s slow-motion collision with reality as his arrogance crumbles under the weight of the very bills he once mocked.
Synopsis
Thomas Bates, Jr. brings his father a long bill at the first of every month," calls his father a grouch and criticizes his old-fashioned business methods. The father lets his son take over the management of his broom factory and the household for a year in an attempt to make a man of him. Geraldine Marsh, an old friend of the family whose father has just died, is taken into the family as a housekeeper. Tom falls in love with her and breaks his engagement with the mercenary Florence Levering, his father's ward. Convinced, however, that Geraldine loves his father, he sees to it that both Geraldine and his father leave the household. After a year, Tom admits his failure and asks his father's help. Geraldine also returns, and Tom happily discovers that she has not married his father.
