After an initial scene featuring a Ford which is extremely reluctant to start, most of the action takes place on an excursion ferry.

This is followed by a scene of the family returning home, and encountering trouble at an intersection, which involves a traffic cop, and hot tar.

A Day's Pleasure is almost universally regarded as Chaplin's least impressive First National film.

Even contemporary critics were muted in their enthusiasm, as evidenced by this mixed review from The New York Times of December 8, 1919 :"Charlie Chaplin is screamingly funny in his latest picture, A Day's Pleasure, at the Strand, when he tries in vain to solve the mysteries of a collapsible deck chair.

But most of the time he depends for comedy upon seasickness, a Ford car, and biff-bang slap-stick, with which he is little, if any, funnier than many other screen comedians.