Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story

An American documentary; A story about a couple who had an enormous influence over the informational and visual aspects of dozens of the world's most famous motion pictures. Largely uncredited in these movies, Harold and Lillian had an expertise that throws new light on the actual roles of a film director and head of production design. While these two important roles take the rap if a film goes wrong, when it goes right the film researcher and storyboarding play an important role in the success of the overall production. As for the documentary itself, it succeeds as a personal story about a couple falling love - the two being quite different, and their personal and family challenges. It also works as a fresh perspective on Hollywood. Moreover, it is a well crafted film with great insights and humour and a beautiful story arc.

This is the story of Harold and Lillian Michelson who were a showbiz couple who enjoyed a 60 year marriage. These guys weren't your typical showbiz people, however, as they worked the whole time under the radar and behind the scenes. Harold was a Hollywood storyboard artist and Lillian a film researcher. This may not sound like a lot but this film makes it very clear indeed that it in fact was rather a lot. If you need one individual piece of proof, look no further than the iconic shot of Dustin Hoffman framed by Anne Bancroft's leg in The Graduate (1967). An image that not only encapsulated so much of the dynamics of the film itself but more than that is generally considered to be one of the most iconic images in movie history. This was not the idea of the man who won an Oscar for directing the film, Mike Nichols, nor Robert Surtees who was nominated for an Oscar for best cinematography. It was the idea of Harold Michelson, the man who story-boarded the film. He didn't win an Oscar. He wasn't even credited.

This is but one example of the sorts of ideas Harold regularly brought to the table that were then used in a large array of films from the classic era like The Ten Commandments (1956), West Side Story (1961) and The Birds (1963), up to special effects bonanzas such as Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) and beyond. Harold's work once again shows if proof is needed, that film-making is a collaborative effort where the director tends to get the credit for everything in spite of this fact. Throughout the film we see examples of Harold's beautiful drawings, which were so invaluable for directors trying to work out how to visualise the screenplays they had to work with.

His wife Lillian was a film researcher who set up a library that became an invaluable resource for many of the greatest film-makers in Hollywood. Circumstance led her to move it from place to place including Paramount Studios, Francis Ford Coppola's American Zoetrope Studios and ultimately at Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks. This library supplied the information on everything from the type of pants worn by Jewish girls in the late 19th century to the ins and outs of the hard drug trade. Of the latter, Lillian was even offered to go on a trip to Bolivia with a drug lord to see the operation at first hand! So these two individuals have made an immeasurable impact on the films coming out of Hollywood over a period of decades. And this film celebrates not only them as individuals but also as a loving couple whose marriage lasted for decades in an environment which is notoriously volatile for relationships. Charmingly, the movie is story-boarded throughout with cute drawings illustrating the narrative. There are also many film insiders on hand to offer their recollections of this fine couple, including Danny DeVito, Mel Brooks and Francis Ford Coppola. Its overall a very rich and rewarding bit of work about people who fully deserve the recognition it affords them.

This film could very well have flown under my radar. I saw it during a one-week engagement at our town's small art house theater, and I don't always keep up with what they're showing. Similarly, Harold and Lillian Michelson flew largely under the radar of Hollywood. Most film buffs probably have never heard of them (I certainly hadn't); Harold was a storyboard artist and a production designer, and Lillian a researcher. But someone decided they would make a good subject for a film, and indeed they do. Harold had passed by the time the filmmaking began, but there was a large amount of archival footage on him. Lillian (age 87) is still alive and sharp as a tack. Both are charming, eloquent and endearing. I was greatly entertained by this film. The couple are great storytellers, and they have great stories to tell! I was amazed at the impact they have made on many films I have seen. Harold made indelible contributions to such films as 'The Birds,' 'Spartacus' and 'The Graduate'. Lillian, similarly, has had a hand in many iconic films. This is warm, fascinating documentary that will leave you with a big smile on your face (and a tug at your heart).

I liked this docu a lot, I'm always interested in what happens behind the scenes of film making, in particular when it covers a total lifetime and lots of decennia. You get 3 stories, the storyboard artist, the rechearcher and a love story. Although I believe the love story has been sweetened (at a moment even very naive), I got sucked into this docu from the first till the last moment.

If I was still single, I would be trying to woo the ageless widow Lillian Michelson whose storytelling in this, her own life story documentary about her sixty (60) year marriage to her husband, life and business partner Harold Michelson is such an enduring story that it touches your heart strings and at the same time provides some great insight into the behind the scenes activities in classic Hollywood film making.

You will quickly forget that you are watching a documentary, and instead you will feel that you are sitting next to Harold and/or Lillian as they walk you through their sixty (60) year love story trials, tribulations and far too many film successes to mention within the maximum space that IMDB allows for a single IMDB review. Now "THAT's" a worthy epitaph to be inscribed on Harold's tombstone.

Mrs. Shullivan and I were mesmerized with the many intimate family details that Lillian (who was an orphan) was willing to share in her documentary and how she and her husband Harold and three children (all boys and their oldest with autism) moved from one major film production company to another, quickly developing the most respected reputations in their respective fields, Harold with his influential story board artist drawings, and Lillian with her unparalleled film research (library) capabilities.

The last major motion picture studio that Harold and Lillian worked for before officially retiring was The Dreamworks Studio. In 2004, the Dreamworks Studio paid the ultimate homage to these two veterans of the Hollywood film industry by placing them into their Shrek 2 (2004) film as King Harold and Queen Lillian in the Kingdom of Far Far Away. It is such a touching and personal way to tell all of Hollywood how much their own film industry loved and respected these two Hollywood veterans.