Lili

"Lili" is one of the sweetest, most enchanting musicals Hollywood has ever produced. Not that most of the Hollywood musicals are ever realistic, but this particular story is more of a fable than an imitation of life. The character of Mel Ferrer is reminiscent of the Beast in "the Beauty and the Beast", a tortured soul aching for love, and as any girl worth her salt would know, tortured souls make the best kind of heroes!

The two dance/fantasy sequences are charming, especially the latter one, where Lili grows from an awkward, love-sick child into a woman of character and determination, all in a few steps of waltz. Oh, and the puppets are totally adorable!!

Of all the popular overblown, oversexed "coming of age" movies (mostly about male coming of age - starting with "The Summer of '42"), none has the honesty and truth of "Lili". Why? Because coming of age has less to do with sex (as most men think) than it has to do with an awareness of evil. The most telling line in the film is spoken by Paul's partner, who chides Paul for slapping Lili and says, "She is realizing that there is cruelty in the world, and she is learning to protect herself from it." Like Eve in the Garden of Eden, Lili's loss of innocence comes with her knowledge of evil, not her loss of virginity.

And unlike other coming of age movies that have the young actors tossing around "cute" sexual comments that don't ring true for a callow young person (because they were obviously scripted by a jaded 50-year-old male), "Lili" rings true with every note (as Paul says, "She's like a little bell that gives off a pure sound every time you strike it."). Her naivety is far more true to form -- when she is warned by one of the puppets that the lecherous puppet Renaldo "is a wolf", the innocent Lili replies, "I thought he was a fox." This is exactly the way a kid would really respond -- not "getting" the sexual reference and thinking that the comment was about the species of the animal.

I understand Audrey Hepburn beat out Leslie Caron for the Oscar that year with her amateurish performance in "Roman Holiday" -- what a travesty that was, since Audrey's performance had none of the depth and exquisite vulnerability of Leslie's performance in "Lili".

This is one of my favorite films. It is so delightfully simple. Leslie Caron does a marvelous job of making us believe she is an awkward 16 year old in love with a magician. I can't explain exactly why I love this film--perhaps I'm a sucker for all in-love-with-someone-who's-in-love-with-someone-else stories, or maybe I have a soft spot for puppets. But this film warms me to the heart and I recommend it to all but the heart hearted cynic.

All too rarely has a film about lost innocence and earnest love been so sensitively brought to the screen. Respected screenwriter Helen Deutsch (The Seventh Cross '44) adapted Paul Gallico's (The Snow Goose) darkly observant novella "The Seven Souls of Clement O'Reilly" into an inspiring story of a naive young orphaned girl coming of age. Deutsch also maintains the opportunistic exploitation of the vulnerable girl without sensationalizing this angle.

The Academy award-winning score by brilliant composer Bronislau Kaper is nothing short of unforgettable. This beautifully produced MGM film cannot be called a musical as there's only one song but what a song! It's been universally popular for over 60years, and screenplay writer Helen Deutsch also wrote the world-renowned lyrics.

The haunting dream-ballet sequence that closes this unique movie brings both tears of joy and wonder at its stirring and visually fascinating realisation. Apart from a couple of clunky trick edits, direction, cinematography (Robert Plank - 'Strange Cargo '40) and performances - combine to create movie making at its most magical - and should be seen by all lovers of classic film art. While it might not be to everyone's taste (what ever is?) in 2004 the New York Times added Lilli to their listing of the best 1,000 movies ever made.

The WB Archive DVD delivers an excellent visual and sound transfer.

"Lili", based on Paul Gallico's "Love For Seven Dolls", is one of the most delightful films ever. Leslie Caron deserved her Academy Award nomination as "Lili". The ballet sequence at the end of the film in which each puppet turn into Paul, the puppeteer, making Lili realize she loves him is magical. "Lili" was the basis for a big, lavish Broadway musical "Carnival" that lost the basic beautiful simplicity of the original. This film is a classic and deserves to be. The puppets are magnificent.