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Month: September 2021

Biches, Les (1968)

Biches, Les (1968)

“I love hunting.”

Synopsis:
A bored, wealthy woman (Stephane Audran) picks up a beautiful street artist (Jacqueline Sassard) and takes her back to her country home in St. Tropez, where Sassard is seduced by a handsome architect (Jean-Louis Trintignant) who Audran soon falls for herself.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Claude Chabrol Films
  • Cross-Class Romance
  • French Films
  • Lesbianism
  • Love Triangle

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “ambiguous study of lesbian lovers” and “the man who comes between them” “bears much resemblance” to director Claude Chabrol’s “earlier film Les Cousins, about two male cousins and the woman they both love.” Once again, “an innocent comes to live with a sophisticate… who serves as a corruptive influence” and “each wishes she were more like the other,” developing “resentment and jealousy to go with the admiration.” In his review, Peary questions what’s really going on in this unusual storyline, filled with plenty of unexpected twists and turns:

“Has Frederique [Audran] chosen to seduce Paul [Trintignant] so she can experience what Why [Sassard] did with him, or to claim Paul and thus prevent Why — who she loves — from leaving her for him, or because she harbors heterosexual feelings? Is she running away from herself?”

It’s hard to say, but one is definitely left wondering (and analyzing) the entire way through. It’s refreshing seeing a lesbian relationship treated so naturally:

… even if this is eventually dropped in favor of both women falling for Trintingnant, and the film’s other gay-coded characters (Dominique Zardi and Henri Attal) shown as bumbling, shallow leeches.

More front and center to the storyline are both class and gender dynamics: Sassard comments to Audran that her work seems better suited for a man; Audran walks around in “masculine” garb; Audran bosses Zardi and Attal around; Sassard eventually adopts more and more of Audran’s moneyed persona. Your enjoyment of this odd tale will ultimately depend on your appreciation for Chabrol’s unique sensibility — but it remains worth a look for its historical relevance as a turning point in Chabrol’s career.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Stephanie Audran as Frederique
  • Fine cinematography

Must See?
Yes, as a unique (albeit puzzling) outing by a creative director.

Categories

  • Important Director

Links:

Play Misty for Me (1971)

Play Misty for Me (1971)

“There are no strings… But I never said anything about not coming back for seconds.”

Synopsis:
A psychotically obsessed fan (Jessica Walter) of a small town radio DJ (Clint Eastwood) seduces him, then refuses to leave him or his girlfriend (Donna Mills) alone.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Clint Eastwood Films
  • Obsessive Love
  • Psychopaths
  • Radio
  • Winning Him/Her Back
  • Womanizers

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “impressive directorial debut” by Clint Eastwood once again — as in The Beguiled (1971) — features a character “who is impressed by his ability to attract women” only to have “his taking women for nothing more than sexual playthings backfir[ing] on him.”

He writes that while “Eastwood’s come up against great villains, from Lee Van Cleef in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly to Andy Robinson in Dirty Harry,” the “superpsychotic Evenlyn… takes a back seat to no one.”

Peary notes that “the film is exciting, weirdly amusing, and scary (many critics compare the knife scenes to Psycho), but the most enjoyable thing about it is watching Eastwood’s cool-talking disk jockey become increasingly confused, perturbed, and terrified by this lunatic he has no control over.”

He adds, “Significantly, no future Eastwood character would become involved with two women at once; in fact, Eastwood never again exploited his image as a romantic lead.”

I agree that this remains an enjoyably taut and tense stalker film — though I’m frustrated by a couple of plot points that don’t make much sense (or at least position the characters as waaaay dumber than one would expect). However, Walter’s powerhouse performance makes this worth a one-time look despite its flaws, and the overall gist of the movie — that fame and sexual attraction can lead to incredibly risky encounters — remains just as powerful as ever. Excellent use is made of location shooting in Carmel, California, where Eastwood eventually became mayor.

Note: Highly recommended is the 2001 documentary Play It Again: A Look Back at ‘Play Misty for Me’, in which Eastwood, Walter, Mills, and others reflect back on their experiences making this movie.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Jessica Walter as Evelyn
  • Fine cinematography


  • Beautiful location footage

Must See?
Yes, for Walter’s performance, and as a strong directorial debut by Eastwood.

Categories

  • Noteworthy Performance(s)

Links:

I Am a Camera (1955)

I Am a Camera (1955)

“I’ve been most divinely chaste!”

Synopsis:
In 1931 Berlin, hedonistic, penniless nightclub singer Sally Bowles (Julie Harris) — living with aspiring young writer Chris Isherwood (Laurence Harvey) — wracks up terrible debt during a night on the town, and allows a wealthy American (Ron Randell) to wine and dine her. Meanwhile, a poor friend (Anton Diffring) hoping to marry into money woos one of Harvey’s students (Shelley Winters), but soon finds himself falling authentically in love with her.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Flashback Films
  • Gold Diggers
  • Julie Harris Films
  • Laurence Harvey Films
  • Shelley Winters Films
  • Writers

Review:
South African-born Henry Cornelius — director of Passport to Pimlico (1949) and Genevieve (1953) — helmed this adaptation of John Van Druten’s 1951 play, best known as one of the sources for Bob Fosse’s Cabaret (1972). Given the time of its release, it covers some rather scandalous material — including pre-marital sex, promiscuity, and abortion — thus leading America’s Production Code Administration to deny its approval of the finished film. Those familiar with Liza Minnelli’s iconic, Oscar-winning portrayal of Sally Bowles in Cabaret will likely find it jarring to see Harris (so different looking!) in the role, but she’s ultimately convincing here and helps anchor the film in wackiness.

Indeed, the entire affair has an air of comedy to it that underplays (while not entirely ignoring) the risk of rising Nazism:

What’s primarily missing from this iteration of the story is any hint of Isherwood’s sexuality or intimate involvement with either Sally or the character played by Randell. Meanwhile, Diffring and Winters’ romance is simply glossed over quickly, and not given much weight or significance.

While this film remains notable for taking risks most others at the time wouldn’t dare consider, it’s only must-see viewing for those interested in Isherwood’s stories.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Julie Harris as Sally Bowles

Must See?
No; this one isn’t must see. Listed as a film with Historical Importance in the back of Peary’s book.

Links:

Cabaret (1972)

Cabaret (1972)

“That’s me, darling: unusual places, unusual love affairs. I am a most strange and extraordinary person.”

Synopsis:
In early 1930s Berlin, aspiring movie star and cabaret singer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli) begins an affair with her new housemate Brian, a bisexual British academic (Michael York) who earns money by tutoring a Jewish heiress (Marisa Berenson) and a gigolo (Fritz Wepper) seeking her attention. Meanwhile, both Sally and Brian become involved with a wealthy baron (Helmut Griem) while Nazism rises insidiously all around them.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Aspiring Stars
  • Bob Fosse Films
  • Expatriates
  • Historical Dramas
  • Liza Minnelli Films
  • Love Triangle
  • Michael York Films
  • Nazis
  • Nightclubs
  • Play Adaptations

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that “Bob Fosse’s stylish political musical” — “adapted by Jay Presson Allen (and Hugh Wheeler) from John van Druten’s play I Am a Camera, which had been based on Christopher Isherwood’s autobiographical Goodbye to Berlin stories, and the Broadway musical” — “looks better all the time.” He notes that “what the film shows us is that decadence of the type that distinguishes Berlin in 1931 (as seen in the cabaret acts, as seen in Sally’s experiences)”:

… “has a seductive power, that violence is a natural [?] outgrowth of perversion:” [?!?!?!?!]

… and “that Nazism was nurtured by moral decay.” (Perhaps so, given society’s broader reactionary response to it; but he neglects to add the important caveat that this supposed ‘moral decay’ — actually LGBTQ+ sex-positivity — was far from innately harmful.) He adds that the “film went back to old-style musicals in that all the songs (Fred Ebb and John Kander won an Oscar) are performed on the cabaret stage, except ‘Tomorrow Belongs to Me,’ which is eerily sung in an open-air cafe by young Nazis and exuberant Germans who join in.”

Peary points out that the songs — including “Cabaret,” “Money,” and “Two Ladies” — are “unforgettably performed by Minnelli and cabaret emcee Joel Grey (who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar) and a group of gyrating chorus girls,” with “these stunningly choreographed numbers… photographed (by Geoffrey Unsworth, who won an Oscar) in a stylized manner that emphasizes the performers’ sexuality and lewdness.”

In Alternate Oscars, Peary agrees with the actual Academy in awarding Minnelli the Best Actress of the Year award, noting that while “it’s possible she would have won with just a mediocre performance because the Academy wanted to make up for its slight of her mother [Judy Garland],” “Minnelli gave such a dynamic performance that no one questioned her victory over a weak field of nominees.” He writes that “with those big, soulful eyes that flood her face with tears without need of a cue, a stunned, open-mouthed, little-girl pout, and a tries-too-hard-and-makes-a-fool-of-herself manner, Liza Minnelli was peerless at seducing audience pity for her characters,” as she had in The Sterile Cuckoo and would again in New York, New York. He adds that “it is during Fosse’s stylized musical numbers that Minnelli completely amazes us, whether singing marvelous solos, or duets with Joel Grey… We are jolted by these performances, suddenly remembering that her acting, as fine as it is, is only her second-best talent.”

While I’m not particularly enamored by the sub-plots involving more peripheral players (i.e., Berenson and Wepper’s romance):

… the songs and visuals keep one consistently engaged, and better able to stomach the film’s sobering historical context.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Liza Minnelli as Sally Bowles
  • Michael York as Brian
  • Joel Grey as the Kit Kat’s M.C.
  • Enjoyable musical numbers
  • Fine direction, cinematography, sets, and costumes

Must See?
Yes, as an Oscar-winning classic.

Categories

  • Noteworthy Performance(s)
  • Oscar Winner or Nominee

(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die)

Links:

Educating Rita (1983)

Educating Rita (1983)

“I came to tell you you’re a good teacher.”

Synopsis:
An alcoholic literature professor (Michael Caine) reluctantly agrees to mentor a hairdresser named Rita (Julie Walters) who is interested in learning more about herself through formal education. Meanwhile, Rita’s husband (Malcolm Douglas) is distressed to find that Rita doesn’t want a baby right away, and Caine is unaware that his kind girlfriend (Jeananne Crowley) is actually having an affair with his colleague (Michael Williams).

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Alcoholism and Drug Addiction
  • Character Arc
  • Class Relations
  • College
  • Feminism and Women’s Issues
  • Mentors
  • Michael Caine Films
  • Play Adaptation
  • Professors

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that “Julie Walters gives a witty, endearing performance as Rita (the role she had on the London stage), a working class Liverpool hairdresser who decides to study literature at the Open University,” and “Michael Caine is also exceptional as the alcoholic, non-caring professor, a failed poet, who reluctantly becomes her tutor.”

However, I’m not sure I agree with the remainder of Peary’s assessment. He notes that Rita’s “enthusiasm excites [Caine] and he becomes a good professor” (this is only marginally indicated; he still has enormous drinking problems), and that “Caine, who has fallen in love with [Rita], misses the honesty she conveyed before she became (with his help) too sophisticated.” (Again, I’m not sure either of these statements is quite true.) Peary adds, “While the picture was made a decade too late to be taken seriously as an important woman’s-movement film, it does make an interesting point that a man resents a woman who is as educated as or more educated than himself — even if he is the one who encouraged her education” (a “favorite theme of Woody Allen”); however, I don’t actually see evidence of Caine’s Professor Frank Bryant resenting Rita — rather, she puzzles and intrigues him.

In Alterate Oscars, Peary names Caine Best Actor of the Year, asserting that while “Educating Rita was a showcase for Julie Walters, and she gives a dynamic performance, full of grit and wit,” “Caine matches her every step of the way.”

He notes, “As Rita changes in dramatic ways, we notice subtle changes in Frank. As his drinking drops off, he again looks out his window with clear eyes at the pretty world outside, starts to care again about teaching, is excited again about literature, smiles, has energy, looks trimmer… and likes himself again.” But “when Rita leaves his sphere of influence, getting stimulation and experiences elsewhere, he is crushed, reacting with spite and martyrdom,” and “orders her to go away.” (No — actually, he strongly recommends that she attend summer school, reminding her that she has plenty to learn from other tutors besides him.) At that point, “obsolete again, he returns to booze”:

… and “his attitude becomes obnoxious, but Caine makes it evident that Frank is feeling emotions that he hasn’t experienced in years. So while he tries to destroy himself — if the drinking doesn’t wreck him physically, it will at very least cause him to lose his position — he also looks deeply inside himself and unexpectedly finds good qualities, the result of his relationship with Rita.” Peary concludes that “as Frank Bryant, tutor of someone who had a background much like Caine’s own, he got the opportunity to be intelligent, tender, funny, bitter, self-pitying, and insecure.”

I’m a fan of Caine’s work here, but can’t relate to much of Peary’s assessment, given that Frank’s trajectory is ultimately peripheral (rightfully so) to that of Rita. Caine’s performance hints at the depths indicated in Peary’s analysis — but because they’re not the primary focus, we don’t really know for sure what’s going on. We see the folks around Frank (students, colleagues, friends) showing remarkable sympathy for his disease, giving him yet another chance, time and again — but we’re not actually sure he deserves these chances. Instead, it’s Rita’s bold liberation from the shackles of her class expectations that keeps us engaged; it’s easy to sympathize with the predicament she finds herself in, given that she genuinely cares for her husband and family but simply can’t relate to their desires or lifestyle anymore.

Peary ends his Alternate Oscars review of Caine’s performance by writing:

“After Rita’s transformation from honest woman to pretentious [sic] sophisticate, Frank alludes to Mary Shelley’s creation of a monster. Significantly, while he begrudges himself for having altered Rita, he is the one who is acting like a monster. You really do feel his ‘smirking terror’ as he gazes at this woman who has outgrown him and wants her freedom. What’s really scary, for many of us men, anyway, is that we can identify with Caine’s abandoned mentor at this moment.”

Peary’s sentiments are authentic and revealing of his own insecurities — and while I can’t relate to them, it’s clear that this film offers different take-aways for a variety of viewers. As Peary writes in GFTFF, “This was an unexpected hit that most everyone liked, despite the conventional Pygmalion-influenced story,” and it remains worth a one-time look.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Julie Walters as Rita

  • Michael Caine as Dr. Frank Bryant

Must See?
Yes, for the strong central performances.

Categories

  • Noteworthy Performance(s)
  • Oscar Winner or Nominee

Links:

All that Jazz (1979)

All that Jazz (1979)

“I try to give you everything I can give.”

Synopsis:
Ailing Broadway choreographer and director Joe Gideon (Roy Scheider) receives visits from a beautiful angel of death (Jessica Lange) while overseeing the production of a musical starring his ex-wife (Leland Palmer); editing a film about a caustic comic (Cliff Gorman); visiting his adoring 12-year-old daughter (Erzsabet Foldi); sleeping with an aspiring starlet (Deborah Geffner); and disappointing his loyal mistress (Ann Reinking) by refusing to settle down with her.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Bob Fosse Films
  • Dancers
  • Death and Dying
  • Jessica Lange Films
  • Roy Scheider Films
  • Womanizers

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary argues that “Bob Fosse’s stylized, semi-autobiographical musical about a hopelessly overworked Broadway and movie director” — “who suffers a heart attack that should, but doesn’t really, give him a new perspective on life and death” — “starts out like a house afire, with beautifully choreographed, erotic — almost lewd — dances”:

… but “once Scheider has his attack that sends him to the hospital”:

… “the picture deteriorates into a never-ending wave of self-indulgence” and “you really get to hate Scheider’s character.” He further adds that the “‘Bye Bye, Life’ finale, during which Fosse, Scheider, and company do to the Everly Brothers what TV commercial jingles do to many of our standards, is perhaps the most annoying production number in cinema history” (I disagree):

Peary asserts that this “picture will be enjoyed most by those involved in theater or film,” which is surely true — but I think he massively undersells this uniquely crafted, one-of-a-kind musical drama. Scheider’s self-depracating, pathologically perfectionistic character is put on full display, and it’s refreshing to see his personal demons inextricably interwoven with his creative genius.

We get an unfiltered (albeit highly stylized) glimpse at the costs of being driven by your art, the sacrifices an artist makes because they don’t see any other way ahead, and the collateral damage that inevitably occurs all around them. Gideon is so creatively obsessed that even his custody time spent with his daughter centers on dancing (which, for the record, she seems to love):

I’m increasingly convinced that brilliance of any kind — if pursued fully and relentlessly — comes at a cost. While society benefits from the fruits of genius, the individual and those in their close circle suffer. Obviously, this isn’t always the case: people make trade-offs all the time to prioritize (for instance) their spouse or kids or privacy; but how many examples do we have of generative brilliance coupled with a sane and balanced personal life? Not nearly enough. The reality is that those who seek fame and creative satisfaction often sacrifice their health by — for instance — over-relying on drugs and adrenaline to get by (as we see oh-so-clearly in this film) while wreaking emotional havoc on the people who love them and can’t quit them. Joe Gideon doesn’t get away with anything by the end — he’s all-too-mortal — but at least we know he’s had a hell of a visionary time until then.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Roy Scheider as Joe Gideon
  • Fine supporting performances

  • The compelling opening “cattle call” sequence
  • Giuseppe Rotunno’s cinematography

Must See?
Yes, as a powerful and unusual classic.

Categories

  • Good Show

(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die)

Links:

Big Chill, The (1983)

Big Chill, The (1983)

“The thing is, nobody said it was gonna be fun. At least, nobody said it to me.”

Synopsis:
When their friend Alex commits suicide, a group of baby boomers — including a tabloid writer (Jeff Goldblum), an actor (Tom Berenger), a drug-taking Vietnam vet (William Hurt), a lawyer (Mary Kay Place), and the wife (JoBeth Williams) of a successful businessman (Don Galloway) — gather at the home of happily married Sarah (Glenn Close) and Harold (Kevin Kline), where Alex’s young girlfriend (Meg Tilly) is also staying.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Counterculture
  • Ensemble Cast
  • Get Togethers and Reunions
  • Glenn Close Films
  • Jeff Goldblum Films
  • Suicide
  • William Hurt Films

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary is highly cynical in his review of this film by “Lawrence Kasdan and his co-writer Barbara Benedek” about “seven college radicals from the sixties-early seventies [who] are reunited when the ‘leader’ of their former group commits suicide.” He notes that “if this is what became of his previously involved, socially conscious friends, then it’s no wonder the guy committed suicide.” OUCH! Peary argues that while “the film is slick and funny,” it’s “infuriating that Kasdan thinks most sixties radicals have gone the way of Jerry Rubin:”

… and adds that he “certainly know[s] more people from the sixties protest movement who are more like the characters in John Sayles’s superior 1980 film Return of the Seacaucus Seven” — who, “if they’re not out in the streets,” at least “haven’t sold out their values and are still doing their part for social change.” I don’t believe Kasdan or Benedek think this is what has happened to all “sixties radicals” — or even that this particular group of folks was once “radical” so much as idealistic, young, and liberal. The filmmakers are simply telling a slice of reality as they experienced it themselves.

Peary asserts that the “best, most nostalgic scenes have characters gathering in the kitchen for food and chit-chat”:


… and argues that while the “dialogue is sharp,” it’s “too precise (it comes across as if it were written rather than delivered spontaneously).” He notes that the “most appealing character is the outsider, the dead man’s young, shallow girlfriend Meg Tilly,” who “hasn’t been formed yet, so she surely hasn’t been corrupted.”

However, several of the other characters are appealing as well, most notably Close as the grieving ex-lover of the deceased friend:

… and Berenger’s refreshingly humble T.V. actor, who hates seeing himself on-screen:

While this immensely popular movie is no longer must-see for all film fanatics, I think it remains worth a look.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Strong performances by the ensemble cast

Must See?
No, but it’s recommended as an Oscar-nominated one-time favorite.

(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die)

Links:

Modesty Blaise (1966)

Modesty Blaise (1966)

“We’ve no alternative; we must have Modesty Blaise.”

Synopsis:
World-class jewel thief Modesty Blaise (Monica Vitti) is hired by a pair of British officials (Harry Andrews and Alexander Knox) to send a bribe of diamonds to a sheik (Clive Revill), knowing that a rival thief (Dirk Bogarde) will attempt to snatch them as well. Modesty teams up with her long-time partner (Terence Stamp) to complete her mission, which includes facing villainous Bogarde and his wife (Rossella Falk) on their isolated Mediterranean island.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Dirk Bogarde Films
  • Harry Andrews Films
  • Joseph Losey Films
  • Monica Vitti Films
  • Satires and Spoofs
  • Spies
  • Terence Stamp Films
  • Thieves and Criminals

Review:
This notorious misfire by director Joseph Losey — based on a novel featuring the titular comic strip character — is a colorful bomb of a satire attempt. The introduction to DVD Savant’s review sums the movie up well:

Modesty Blaise can best be described as an interesting mess. One of director Joseph Losey’s most expensive and atypical films, it’s a complicated, confusing, and sometimes tiresome collection of SuperSpy situations and characters that never finds a satisfying tone, although some aspects of its production are superb.

Later, DVD Savant describes it as “a comedy without laughs, that has no control over its tone” — a movie that “starts like a James Bond film and crumbles into rather boring scenes punctuated by pitiful jokes and impenetrable in-jokes.” Italian actress Vitti — best known for her starring roles in Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’Avventura (1960), La Notte (1961), L’Eclisse (1962), and Red Desert (1964) — is appropriately quirky and beautiful yet somehow not quite believable as an agile super-spy:

Much more intriguing (though under-developed) is Bogarde’s fussy super-criminal Gabriel, wearing dapper clothes and a silver wig and caring far too much about details of the food he eats:

… while allowing torture and killings to occur around him.

This movie has color and style to spare, but it’s frustrating to be tossed from set to set — with Vitti rapidly changing outfits and hair colors as well:

— for no real purpose other than whimsy. Given its budget, Modesty Blaise had the potential to be a clever, female-centric send-up of James Bond flicks, but it falls far short of this goal.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Dirk Bogarde as Gabriel
  • Jack Hildyard’s cinematography

  • Stylish sets and outfits

Must See?
No, though it’s worth a one time look if you’re curious.

Links:

Accident (1967)

Accident (1967)

“All aristocrats were made to be… killed.”

Synopsis:
An Oxford tutor (Dirk Bogarde) whose wealthy student (Michael York) is interested in a beautiful Austrian exchange student (Jacqueline Sassard) invites the two of them and his colleague (Stanley Baker) for a visit at his country home, where his pregnant wife (Vivien Merchant) is getting ready to give birth — but soon other romantic entanglements emerge, leading to tragedy.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Delphine Seyrig Films
  • Dirk Bogarde Films
  • Flashback Films
  • Infidelity
  • Joseph Losey Films
  • Michael York Films
  • Professors

Review:
Along with uncredited work on Modesty Blaise (1966), playwright/author Harold Pinter collaborated with director Joseph Losey on three films: The Servant (1963), The Go-Between (1971), and this award-winning adaptation of a novel by Nicholas Mosley. Unfortunately, Accident is a disappointing film that doesn’t seem to have aged well: we’re never given a reason to care about these self-absorbed, privileged characters, who lack depth and aren’t interesting. The most sympathetic character is played by Merchant:

… though her role is peripheral and she has little agency over matters given her advanced pregnancy. Mostly we’re forced to watch insecure middle-aged men lounging around, drinking too much, and treating infidelity as casually as stopping to fill up a tank of gas:

Sassard, meanwhile, is merely a vapid beauty with no defining characteristics — or interests! or thoughts! — at all.

Delphine Seyrig shows up at one point for a small role, but we don’t like her character either, so…

At least the sets and cinematography are beautiful to look at.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Gerry Fisher’s cinematography

Must See?
No; you can skip this one.

Links:

Servant, The (1963)

Servant, The (1963)

“What do you want from this house?”

Synopsis:
When a manservant (Dirk Bogarde) arrives to help care for an alcoholic young investor named Tony (James Fox), Tony’s entire life — including his relationship with his fiancee Susan (Wendy Craig) — is soon turned upside down, with events taking an even darker turn when Barrett (Bogarde) brings his sister Vera (Sarah Miles) into the house to work as a maid.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

  • Class Relations
  • Dirk Bogarde Films
  • James Fox Films
  • Joseph Losey Films
  • Living Nightmare
  • Servants, Maids, and Housekeepers

Review:
Joseph Losey directed and Harold Pinter scripted this highly unique psychological drama about class relations and power dynamics in mid-20th-century England; as DVD Savant writes, this “impeccable, incisive, observant and richly appointed” film “is a fascinating and rather creepy little gem.” After his breakthrough “arthouse” role in Victim (1961), Bogarde gives yet another layered performance as the title character — a calculating and unflappable servant-for-hire who knows exactly the right moves to make at each moment as he pursues his self-serving, often inscrutable goals.

Equally compelling is Craig in a role which could easily be tossed off as peripheral or shrewish, but instead posits her as an uneasy bridge between Fox’s two worlds.

Fox, meanwhile, brings just the right blend of arrogance and insecurity required by his role, wherein we easily vaccilate between generalized contempt and authentic pity for his situation.

Viewers should be prepared for an unlikely turn of events midway through, and then another — until one finally realizes this film has become a dark and surreal nightmare. Douglas Slocombe’s shadowy cinematography heightens this sensation:

… and Losey’s direction emphasizes power relations and domination at every turn:

While some have complained that the very odd ending — specifically the unexpected behavior of a particular character — throws one off, I would argue that it’s all of a piece with the film’s vision of Tony’s existence (and by extension, all of upper-class Britain) having become topsy-turvy and unnerved.

Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:

  • Dirk Bogarde as Hugo Barrett
  • James Fox as Tony
  • Wendy Craig as Susan
  • Sarah Miles as Vera
  • Douglas Slocombe’s cinematography


Must See?
Yes, as a unique psychological thriller. Listed as a film with Historical Importance, a Cult Movie, and a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary’s book.

Categories

  • Good Show

(Listed in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die)

Links: