VALUTAZIONE IMDb
5,7/10
1618
LA TUA VALUTAZIONE
Un regista tirannico (Peter Finch) assume un'attrice sconosciuta (Kim Novak) per interpretare il ruolo da protagonista in una biografia filmica di una grande star di Hollywood deceduta.Un regista tirannico (Peter Finch) assume un'attrice sconosciuta (Kim Novak) per interpretare il ruolo da protagonista in una biografia filmica di una grande star di Hollywood deceduta.Un regista tirannico (Peter Finch) assume un'attrice sconosciuta (Kim Novak) per interpretare il ruolo da protagonista in una biografia filmica di una grande star di Hollywood deceduta.
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Recensioni in evidenza
Robert Aldrich had a solid career which includes some extremely fine work such as "Kiss Me Deadly" and "The Big Knife" from his early period. He handled large action movies ("The Dirty Dozen") with the same craftsmanship as small .intimate pieces, ("The Killing of Sister George"). In both "Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte" and perhaps his most famous movie "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane", there is a definite camp touch which is carefully controlled in that it never derails the proceedings but only adds much to the general enjoyment of these films as a whole.
"The Legend of Lylah Clare" is a film that cannot be derailed, since from the very first frame it's clearly out of control. What proceeds is a very bumpy ride indeed. The question that remains is just how much of this was intentional. Can one consciously make actors perform so ludicrously, and if so, just what is the point ? It's seems totally unfeasible that a director with Aldrich's record should allow these poor actors to humiliate themselves in having to deliver the most preposterous dialog imaginable. Perhaps it's his hate letter to Hollywood. Aldrich who steered clear of the tyranny of Hollywood by establishing his own production company, paints a truly crass portrait of the movie industry. The point is that this is not an intelligent, witty or biting take on the industry, it's simply a grotesque movie which really has to be seen to be believed. Actors with vast experience such as Peter Finch and Ernest Borgnine are made to look like total amateurs in the business. And then there's Kim Novak. (One can only wonder what Tuesday Weld made of the role in the original television version.) Perhaps one should not be too surprised that this was her last American movie, and the signal of the beginning of the end of her somewhat shaky career.
Novak was apparently thrust into stardom far too fast. Her radiant screen presence may have been captivating but there was little real talent behind the looks. What she did exude was a vulnerability which seems to be founded on her justified lack of confidence as an actress. Columbia groomed her as a potential new Marilyn Monroe. But no matter what dark complexes were lurking beneath Monroe's screen presence, she always made us believe she was having a ball. That was her genius. Novak always seems uncomfortable and decidedly awkward. It's something that at times may have worked in her favor, but ultimately her lack of having what it really takes could not be disguised. Lylah Clare is a role that many a Hollywood actress of the time could really have sunk their teeth into. Novak simply does not have a clue what to do with it and director Aldrich leaves her stranded.
The awfulness of this movie becomes riveting in itself. You'll probably want to see it through to the end. One of the greatest worst movies of all time.
"The Legend of Lylah Clare" is a film that cannot be derailed, since from the very first frame it's clearly out of control. What proceeds is a very bumpy ride indeed. The question that remains is just how much of this was intentional. Can one consciously make actors perform so ludicrously, and if so, just what is the point ? It's seems totally unfeasible that a director with Aldrich's record should allow these poor actors to humiliate themselves in having to deliver the most preposterous dialog imaginable. Perhaps it's his hate letter to Hollywood. Aldrich who steered clear of the tyranny of Hollywood by establishing his own production company, paints a truly crass portrait of the movie industry. The point is that this is not an intelligent, witty or biting take on the industry, it's simply a grotesque movie which really has to be seen to be believed. Actors with vast experience such as Peter Finch and Ernest Borgnine are made to look like total amateurs in the business. And then there's Kim Novak. (One can only wonder what Tuesday Weld made of the role in the original television version.) Perhaps one should not be too surprised that this was her last American movie, and the signal of the beginning of the end of her somewhat shaky career.
Novak was apparently thrust into stardom far too fast. Her radiant screen presence may have been captivating but there was little real talent behind the looks. What she did exude was a vulnerability which seems to be founded on her justified lack of confidence as an actress. Columbia groomed her as a potential new Marilyn Monroe. But no matter what dark complexes were lurking beneath Monroe's screen presence, she always made us believe she was having a ball. That was her genius. Novak always seems uncomfortable and decidedly awkward. It's something that at times may have worked in her favor, but ultimately her lack of having what it really takes could not be disguised. Lylah Clare is a role that many a Hollywood actress of the time could really have sunk their teeth into. Novak simply does not have a clue what to do with it and director Aldrich leaves her stranded.
The awfulness of this movie becomes riveting in itself. You'll probably want to see it through to the end. One of the greatest worst movies of all time.
Well yes, it's compelling viewing in spite of, everything. So overwrought it's jarring and at the center of it all, Kim Novak. The swan of Picnic. James Stewart's obsession in Vertigo. She appears in The Legend Of Lylah Clare, but she's not really in it. Distant, cold, awkward. Pale, almost white lipstick. She has a death scene for goodness sake! It reminded me of that death that Goldie Hawn plays again and again in "Death Becomes Her", she watches it on TV as her arch rival, Meryl Streep, brilliantly plays an actress without talent - dies again and again strangled by Michael Caine. Meryl's Madeline Ashton even licks her lips before her death - Well, Kim Novak's Elsa Campbell/Lylah Clare doesn't lick her lips but almost.Peter Finch is the leading man. Peter Finch! Howard Beale in "Network" His dialogue here is not by Paddy Chayefsky, no, not by a long shot. Hysterically funny I must admit, specially because of the seriousness of the delivery. Then, surprise surprise a few genuine delights, Coral Browne plays a columnist with a wooden leg, Rosella Falk, a talkative lesbian and the glorious Valentina Cortese plays a costume designer. As I'm writing about it I feel an urge to see it again to make sure I didn't imagine the whole thing.
As I have already said and will continue to say, Robert Aldrich has always astounded me when I watch his filmography. Actually, there were TWO Bob Aldrich, two different characters, personalities, two directors at least. One film maker for men male topics, hard, tough, rough, with no female at all, or only extras : DIRTY DOZEN, ATTACK, TOO LATE THE HEROES, ULZANA'S RAID, LONGEST YARD, TWILIGHT LAST GLEAMING, EMPEROR OF THE NORTH...And besides, there was Aldrich dedicated to women, and nearly only women. LEGEND OF LYLAH CLARE,KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE,WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE, HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE, CALIFORNIA DOLLS.....This movie is a bitter story, depicting the other face of Hollywood, and we could not expect anything different from Aldrich, the director of KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE. The most daring and disturbing film of the director, even now. So imagine in the sixties.... Kim Novak absolutely outstanding here, unforgettable. And I am dead sure that her character in Alfred Hitchcock's VERTIGO had some influence on her character here, there are some similarities, do you agree? Excellent last scene, a terrific metaphor of Hollywood industry, thru a simple commercial on TV. Disgusting Hollywood.
Another piece of yesterday from Robert Aldrich, filthied-up through his askew, slightly campy/slightly serious vision. We never know where we sit with an Aldrich movie; he enjoys setting up a comfortable scenario before wickedly pulling the rug out from under his audience. He also exposes the weaknesses of Kim Novak as an actress, rather cruelly allowing the puckered blonde to look silly (at her expense) and without ever giving her a fair shot at a meaty scene. The opening moments are richly evocative, but they don't last long: Kim (in a mousy brown wig) hangs out in a dingy apartment in Hollywood, surrounded by movie magazines and celebrity biographies. Turns out she resembles a long-deceased movie queen named Lylah Clare and is quickly tapped to star in a picture of the actress' doomed life--to be directed by Lylah's widower husband! Bits of satire, supernatural elements, trendy lesbianism and symbolism muddy up this potboiler, which is almost always overwrought but never boring. Peter Finch and Coral Browne are worth watching, and Novak's mere presence is tantalizing (even if her acting is not). Frank De Vol's background score is lush, and the finale is interesting if a tiny bit inscrutable. It is Aldrich's stamp as a filmmaker to go over-the-top; here, he goes over-the-edge as well. **1/2 from ****
I think the word to describe it is "unbelievable". Peter Finch is in it, an actor known for being rather picky. He was to win an Oscar for "Network" I wonder what this movie looked on paper. Robert Aldrich won his dues with films like "Attack", "The Big Knife" even "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane" another camp fest but with a brain and a real intention. Here, everything is in top gear without ever really moving. In short, a mystery. Poor Kim Novak. Even her make-up doesn't make any sense. Pale lips. It's pointless for me to go on, you have to see it. I had the chance, thanks to Turner Classic Movies. Kim Novak's character seems to be possessed by the spirit of Lylah Clare, the doomed star she's suppose to to play in a preposterous movie about her life. When she is under the influence of the spirit, she laughs and talks with the grave tones of a hybrid, part Lotte Lenya part Mercedes MacCambridge. Outrageous! Peter Finch playing the director and one of the former Lylah's lovers creates a monster without nuances. His debate with the studio head, played loudly by Ernest Borgnine, about films vs movies seems to be Aldrich's major preoccupation. Valentina Cortese's costume designer is a very brief delight, Rosella Falk's lesbian is in unintentional hoot but the prize goes to Coral Browne, playing a columnist as if she were Catherine The Great and with a wooden leg. I swear I'm not joking. As yo may very well suspect, I think this is one of the worst films I've ever seen and yes, I had a lot of fun. That's why a 5 out of 10 seem fair to me.
Lo sapevi?
- QuizTo date, this is Kim Novak's last starring role in an American-made feature film. Novak returned to the screen after a three-year absence with the 1968 gothic drama, Quando muore una stella (1968), making up for lost time by taking on two roles, a long-dead Hollywood sex symbol and the novice actress hired to play her. Although she was still beautiful at 35 and more than believable as an exotic sex symbol, Novak didn't get the comeback she deserved. The film was a major box-office flop that brought her mostly negative reviews. Over time, however, the growth of a cult surrounding director Robert Aldrich, coupled with the picture's over-the-top dramatics and the difficulty of seeing it programmed at theaters or on television, made the film legendary, viewed by some as guilty pleasure and by others as a lost treasure.
- BlooperDuring the opening credits, Elsa supposedly is walking along the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and she looks at the stars for Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle, Jean Harlow, Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe, and Rudolph Valentino in less than one block. In reality these stars are stretched along Hollywood Boulevard for several blocks, and Gable's is on Vine Street. Also, Arbuckle's star has his name Roscoe on it, not his nickname of "Fatty".
- Citazioni
Molly Luther: She's tame enough now, Lewis, but will she turn into a slut like the last one?
- ConnessioniFeatured in Lionpower from MGM (1967)
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Dettagli
- Data di uscita
- Paese di origine
- Lingua
- Celebre anche come
- The Legend of Lylah Clare
- Luoghi delle riprese
- 1628 North Vine Street, Hollywood, California, Stati Uniti(Elsa arrives at the Hollywood Brown Derby restaurant)
- Azienda produttrice
- Vedi altri crediti dell’azienda su IMDbPro
Botteghino
- Budget
- 3.490.000 USD (previsto)
- Tempo di esecuzione
- 2 ore e 10 minuti
- Mix di suoni
- Proporzioni
- 1.85 : 1
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