{"id":38931,"date":"2017-07-22T13:44:01","date_gmt":"2017-07-22T20:44:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=38931"},"modified":"2022-01-27T01:03:36","modified_gmt":"2022-01-27T08:03:36","slug":"loved-one-the-1965","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=38931","title":{"rendered":"Loved One, The (1965)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;You&#8217;ll be the death of me yet, Mr. Barlow.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Poster-192x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"192\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-38933\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Poster-192x300.jpg 192w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Poster-82x128.jpg 82w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Poster.jpg 281w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 192px) 100vw, 192px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA penniless British poet (Robert Morse) arrives in Los Angeles to visit his uncle (John Gielgud), who works as an artist for a movie studio run by a young producer (Roddy McDowell) and his junior executive (Jonathan Winters). When Gielgud dies unexpectedly, his British compatriot (Robert Morley) arranges to have him buried at Whispering Glades, a mega-funeral home run by Winters&#8217; brother (also played by Winters), where Morse romances a young beautician (Anjanette Comer) being pursued by a middle-aged mortician named Mr. Joyboy (Rod Steiger).\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Black Comedy<\/li>\n<li>Dana Andrews Films<\/li>\n<li>Death and Dying<\/li>\n<li>James Coburn Films<\/li>\n<li>John Gielgud Films<\/li>\n<li>Love Triangle<\/li>\n<li>Robert Morley Films<\/li>\n<li>Rod Steiger Films<\/li>\n<li>Roddy McDowell Films<\/li>\n<li>Tab Hunter Films<\/li>\n<li>Tony Richardson Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nTony Richardson&#8217;s adaptation of <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_Loved_One\">Evelyn Waugh&#8217;s 1948 novel<\/a> &#8212; co-scripted by <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Christopher_Isherwood\">Christopher Isherwood<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Terry_Southern\">Terry Southern<\/a> &#8212; is beautifully shot by DP Haskell Wexler, headily surreal (&#8220;Let me explain the dream to you &#8212; this entire place is a dream.&#8221;), and has &#8220;a scene to offend everyone&#8221;, but (as Peary notes) features &#8220;plodding&#8221; direction and fails to pack a satisfying overall punch. Part of the problem lies in failure to connect with Morse, who lacks charisma and doesn&#8217;t inspire much investment. There are also far too many cameos and sub-plots, including several not present in Waugh&#8217;s original novel (i.e., the final outrageous twist about Winters&#8217; nefarious plans for the corpses in his care). Scenes of excess and grotesque greed &#8212; such as &#8220;Comer&#8217;s visit with embalmer Joyboy&#8217;s (Rod Steiger) grossly fat mother [Ayllene Gibbons], who&#8217;s pigging out on food and salivating over food commercials on television; a woman (Margaret Leighton) battling her husband (Milton Berle) over giving up their beloved dead dog; and a gravelly-voiced huckster (Lionel Stander) pretending to be a sage guru-by-mail &#8212; seem merely calculated for shock. By the time Dana Andrews shows up in a small role as a general, the story has twisted too many times to maintain interest. Ultimately, the excesses of both Hollywood and funeral preparations in California have been more effectively portrayed in other cinematic efforts &#8212; see, for example, <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=37889\"> John Schlesinger&#8217;s <em>The Day of the Locust<\/em> (1975)<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=33840\">Errol Morris&#8217;s <em>Gates of Heaven<\/em> (1978)<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p><strong>P.S.<\/strong> As Peary notes, &#8220;one of the best scenes has Morse visiting Comer&#8217;s unsteady house-on-stilts, which is built in a slide area&#8221; (see still below). <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Haskell Wexler&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-38941\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets2.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets2-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets2-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets2-768x432.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Cinematograpjy2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Cinematograpjy2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-38938\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Cinematograpjy2.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Cinematograpjy2-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Cinematograpjy2-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Cinematograpjy2-768x432.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Some effectively satirical scenarios and sets<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-38936\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets3.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets3-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets3-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Sets3-768x432.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Rod Steiger as Mr. Joyboy<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Steiger.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Steiger.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-38937\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Steiger.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Steiger-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Steiger-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Steiger-768x432.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Liberace&#8217;s too-short cameo role: &#8220;Rayon chafes, you know. Personally, I find it quite abrasive.&#8221;<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Liberace.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Liberace.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"853\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-38939\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Liberace.png 853w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Liberace-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Liberace-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Loved-One-Liberace-768x432.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, though it&#8217;s certainly worth a one-time look. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0059410\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/3032\/the-loved-one#articles-reviews?articleId=64136\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1965\/10\/12\/archives\/screen-a-searing-look-at-the-funeral-professionwaughs-loved-one.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s2056love.html\">DVD Savant Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thespinningimage.co.uk\/cultfilms\/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=4658&#038;aff=13\">Spinning Image Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;You&#8217;ll be the death of me yet, Mr. Barlow.&#8221; Synopsis: A penniless British poet (Robert Morse) arrives in Los Angeles to visit his uncle (John Gielgud), who works as an artist for a movie studio run by a young producer (Roddy McDowell) and his junior executive (Jonathan Winters). When Gielgud dies unexpectedly, his British compatriot (Robert Morley) arranges to have him buried at Whispering Glades, a mega-funeral home run by Winters&#8217; brother (also played by Winters), where Morse romances a&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=38931\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38931","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38931","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=38931"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38931\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80704,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38931\/revisions\/80704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=38931"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=38931"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=38931"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}