Hôtel international

Seven years before "Airport," there was this similarly laid out, lush MGM soap, which wasn't produced by Ross Hunter but looks like it could have been. The stars, the fashions, the mid-century-modern sets, the Miklos Rosza themes grinding and repeating in the background, all speak to a more innocent, more optimistic time. And best of all, while Hunter had only Perlberg and Seaton to bring Arthur Hailey's novel to the screen, MGM had the super-literate, super-crafty Terrence Rattigan to provide his own original story, expertly plotted out to afford a plethora of wide-screen star-gazing. Elizabeth Taylor, resplendent in St. Laurent, is about to leave Richard Burton for lounge lizard Louis Jourdan, but their plane is fogged in at Heathrow and Burton catches up to them, allowing for some civilized sniping between the two men, neither of whom seems good enough for her. Meantime, Dino di Laurentiis-like producer Orson Welles has to be out of Britain by midnight to escape some tax burdens; duchess Margaret Rutherford is headed unhappily to a new job in Florida to pay expenses for her Brighton mansion; and tractor maker Rod Taylor, subject to a hostile takeover, needs 150,000 pounds to cover a bad check, in which he's ably assisted by his plain-Jane secretary, Maggie Smith (all Janes should be this plain). Rattigan's epigrammatic screenplay darts dazzlingly between the four story lines, and he's instinctively fair-minded; nobody's all good or all bad, and even Linda Christian, as Rod Taylor's shallow girlfriend, isn't entirely reprehensible. Everybody's great fun to watch, and interesting people like Michael Hordern and Robert Coote and David Frost can be glimpsed in supporting roles, but the movie really belongs to the two Maggies. Rutherford picked up a supporting Oscar for playing essentially what she'd been playing for the previous 25 years, but who deserved it more, and she's not only pricelessly funny but unexpectedly touching. And Smith, silently loving her boss Rod Taylor (and who wouldn't), effortlessly steals a particularly good scene from Burton, bringing on the third act and walking off with the rest of the movie. Deep it isn't, and Rosza's themes feel a little obvious (I grew to hate that cutesy-English strain underlying every Rutherford scene), but what a luxuriously entertaining ride. That the prime storyline is based on Rattigan's own observation of the Vivien Leigh-Laurence Olivier-Peter Finch triangle being played out at the airport a few years before only adds to our sumptuous enjoyment.

but a fascinating melodrama also. This was the first movie Liz Taylor and Richard Burton made as a married couple.

The story is by Terence Rattigan who apparently based it on a scene he observed in the VIP lounge of London Airport when Vivien Leigh made plans to run away with Peter Finch and was stopped by her husband, Laurence Olivier.

It is well filmed, way ahead of its time in certain segments where other minor characters are playing in the background of the scene, a continuum not employed in movies until the nineties (this was filmed in the early 60s).

Some of the script is a hoot, the fact that Liz and her lover are running away without ever having "made love". Richard and Liz both overact dramatically. But the cast make it well worth watching.

Maggie Smith is particularly vulnerable as a secretary, she is yet to find the acerbic edge that laces her subsequent movies. Margaret Rutherford is particularly good as a Duchess who has to go earn a living in America to save her stately home. More scenes with her would have been a treat.

7 out of 10, totally watchable and almost sinful in the enjoyment of same, it is just so deliciously shallow.

Nothing has been spared, production wise, with THE V I P'S. They sure don't make them like this anymore. While the story is a bit of a soap opera, some of the acting is quite good for a film of this ilk. Elizabeth Talor and Richard Burton are so-so, as is Orson Welles and Louis Jourdon. Less of them would have made a better film. The Airport in London is fogged in and the story focuses on a few of the V I P'S. Love triangles prevail as well as money issues for most of the people. It's kind of a ala GRAND HOTEL of sorts. The best thing about the movie is Maggie Smith (a jewel of a performance) and the lush music. How nice to hear a reacurring theme which is no longer used in todays films. The DVD transfer is super and while I wouldn't want to own the film, it's a great rental.

The beautiful people, the jet set, or let's just call them by their names - Liz and Dick. They are the cornerstone of this luscious, glamorous cream puff about the elite stranded at an airport.

There's Liz, the unhappy wife of the filthy rich Burton, getting ready to run away with playboy Louis Jourdan; Margaret Rutherford, on her way to work in Florida so she can keep her estate afloat; Orson Welles as a filmmaker, who has to leave London by midnight or be stuck with $1 million in taxes; Elsa Martinelli as his bratty star; Rod Taylor as man about to lose his business; Maggie Smith as his secretary suffering from unrequited love for her boss.

It doesn't get much better than this in terms of star power. Taylor is gorgeous with a wardrobe to match, Rutherford delightful, and Burton, Jourdan, and Rod Taylor all at their handsome bests. Maggie Smith gives a lovely, very touching performance, adding reality to this superficial story.

This is a marvelously entertaining film, done back in the days when a film budget went for a star cast and wardrobe and not special effects. The original star with Burton was to be Sophia Loren, but Taylor piped up and said she'd do it. It was made rather quickly to beat "Cleopatra" to the box office and cash in on Burton and Taylor's hot love affair.

Terrence Rattigan based his story on a true account of Vivien Leigh running away with Peter Finch and Olivier managing to stop them because their flight was delayed.

As another user has said, I love this movie. I too saw it multiple times in theatres (the first Dick/Liz film made it a must-see at the time) and have played the grooves off the laserdisc. DVD anyone????

In the classic "Grand Hotel" style, the film follows several A stories and several more B stories during one night, fogged in at Heathrow. Though the script has some dreadful stuff, there are moments throughout the movie which seem indelibly etched on my mind: Burton's face as he sits in the hotel lobby, every Smith/Taylor scene, every Rutherford scene, every Welles scene.

Am I the only one who enjoys good melodrama? This one is so rich with such beautiful people, gorgeous clothes and glorious character actors, it has to be fattening.

I love the score, the sets, the richness of the colors and the way so many of these actors are captured in their absolute prime. I don't remember any film that wasn't a costume drama that shows off Liz's beauty any better. Rod Taylor, always handsome, often underrated, has some marvelous moments. And despite some pretty maudlin scenes, you get some idea why Liz fell for Burton so hard.