{"id":88416,"date":"2022-11-24T16:16:06","date_gmt":"2022-11-24T23:16:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=88416"},"modified":"2022-11-24T16:16:06","modified_gmt":"2022-11-24T23:16:06","slug":"billy-liar-1963","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=88416","title":{"rendered":"Billy Liar (1963)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;He can&#8217;t say two words to anybody without telling a lie.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Poster-196x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"196\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-88417\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Poster-196x300.png 196w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Poster-84x128.png 84w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Poster-177x270.png 177w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Poster.png 615w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 196px) 100vw, 196px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA young man (Tom Courtenay) with a verbally abusive father (Wildred Pickles) and a worn-out mother (Mona Washbourne) lives a rich fantasy life, nurturing grandiose dreams of being a famous writer while romancing two young fiancees &#8212; Barbara (Helen Fraser) and Rita (Gwendolyn Watts) &#8212; at the same time. When his old flame (Julie Christie) suddenly arrives in town, will Billy (Courtenay) find the courage to leave for London?\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>Character Studies<\/li>\n<li>John Schlesinger Films<\/li>\n<li>Julie Christie Films <\/li>\n<li>Play Adaptations<\/li>\n<li>Tom Courtenay Films<\/li>\n<li>Womanizers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nJohn Schlesinger directed this adaptation of a <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Billy_Liar\">novel-turned-play by Keith Waterhouse<\/a>, about an undertaker&#8217;s assistant in Yorkshire who dreams of a much more glamorous life, and routinely retreats into fantasies, both grandiose and gruesome. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute-1024x440.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"275\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88422\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute-1024x440.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute-300x129.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute-128x55.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute-768x330.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute-604x259.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Salute.png 1293w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting-1024x435.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"272\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting-1024x435.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting-300x127.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting-128x54.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting-768x326.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting-604x257.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Shooting.png 1297w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>From its opening scenes in Billy&#8217;s oppressive household (he still lives with his parents and grandmother), we can see how and why Billy might want to find an escape route &#8212; and also why his parents are fed up with him. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household-1024x439.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"274\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88426\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household-1024x439.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household-300x129.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household-128x55.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household-768x329.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household-604x259.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Household.png 1291w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>His delusions are a way to cope &#8212; but the mess he makes of his job and love life show how wide an impact his dysfunction is having. The fact that his tale is told with an overall air of insouciance &#8212; and that his girlfriends are either shrewish (Watts) or dim-witted (Fraser) &#8212; makes it a bit easier to feel some sympathy for him: <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend-1024x434.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"271\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend-1024x434.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend-300x127.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend-128x54.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend-768x325.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend-604x256.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Girlfriend.png 1287w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring-1024x437.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"273\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88429\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring-1024x437.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring-300x128.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring-128x55.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring-768x328.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring-604x258.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Ring.png 1281w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; though he&#8217;s still undeniably an immature cad who has a lot of growing up left to do. Fans of British New Wave cinema will want to be sure to check this one out, but it&#8217;s not must-see viewing for all film fanatics. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Tom Courtenay as Billy<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay-1024x437.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"273\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88419\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay-1024x437.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay-300x128.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay-128x55.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay-768x328.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay-604x258.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Courtenay.png 1295w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Helen Fraser as Barbara<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser-1024x429.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"268\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88421\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser-1024x429.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser-300x126.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser-128x54.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser-768x322.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser-604x253.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Fraser.png 1295w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Julie Christie in her brief screen debut as Liz<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall-1024x437.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"273\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88423\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall-1024x437.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall-300x128.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall-128x55.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall-768x328.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall-604x258.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-Dance-Hall.png 1287w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Denys Coop&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-1024x440.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"275\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-88420\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-1024x440.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-300x129.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-128x55.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-768x330.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie-604x259.png 604w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Billy-Liar-Christie.png 1293w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, though it&#8217;s worth a look. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0056868\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.qnetwork.com\/review\/111\">Q Network Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1963\/12\/17\/archives\/screen-british-cousin-of-walter-mittytom-courtenay-stars-as-billy.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/68770\/billy-liar#articles-reviews\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;He can&#8217;t say two words to anybody without telling a lie.&#8221; Synopsis: A young man (Tom Courtenay) with a verbally abusive father (Wildred Pickles) and a worn-out mother (Mona Washbourne) lives a rich fantasy life, nurturing grandiose dreams of being a famous writer while romancing two young fiancees &#8212; Barbara (Helen Fraser) and Rita (Gwendolyn Watts) &#8212; at the same time. When his old flame (Julie Christie) suddenly arrives in town, will Billy (Courtenay) find the courage to leave for&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=88416\"> 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-88416","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\/88416","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=88416"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88416\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":88431,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88416\/revisions\/88431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=88416"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=88416"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=88416"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}