Yours, Mine & Ours has one thing to be thankful for: Frank and Helen realize immediately that they're still in love, all these years after they were the prom king and queen in high school. They see each other, they dance, they talk while dancing, they kiss while talking, and in the next scene they're engaged to be married. That saves us the Idiot Plot device in which they're destined for each other but are kept apart by a series of misunderstandings. In this version, they're brought together by a series of misunderstandings, mostly on the part of the filmmakers, who thought they could remake the 1968 Henry Fonda/Lucille Ball film without its sweetness and charm.

The story: He is a Coast Guard admiral with eight children. She is a fashion designer with 10 children. They were in love in high school and darn - they shoulda gotten married then, if for no other reason than that they'd probably not have 18 kids, although you never know, and some of hers are adopted. With a little willpower they could be merely starring in a sequel to Cheaper by the Dozen. Too late: Cheaper by the Dozen 2 opens Dec. 21.

Frank likes everything shipshape. Helen is comfortable with a certain messiness. His kids line up for roll call and mess duty. Her kids are free spirits with a touch of hippie. Her family has a pig for a pet. I think his family has two dogs. That's how many I counted about 45 minutes into the movie, although as nearly as I can recall nobody ever claims them. Of course, I may have missed something. I wish I had missed more.