The Happy Time is a charming little piece of nostalgia, a small film that delights in the joys and small traumas of childhood and family. While some viewers may find it a bit sentimental, for the most part it manages the difficult trick of being sweet without being sticky. If Happy occasionally tries a bit too hard to pull at the emotions, it still is filled with a genuine warmth and love that is both rare and refreshing. Earl Felton's screenplay is a deft adaptation of the stage original and the book upon which the play was based, and Richard Fleischer's direction is surprisingly assured, making some sudden shifts in pacing work smoothly. Happy's greatest asset, however, is its cast, which plays the material with both boisterousness and delicacy. First among equals is Charles Boyer, who employs a marvelously light touch throughout and who makes the ending a little gem. Bobby Driscoll gives a lovely, fresh performance as the boy, and Louis Jourdan is just right as the roguish uncle. Happy is a small film, but it is thoroughly engaging.