Autumn Leaves (film)

Infobox Film
name = Autumn Leaves


image_size =
caption = Original theatrical poster
director = Robert Aldrich
producer = William Goetz
writer = Jean Rouverol
Hugo Butler
starring = Joan Crawford
Cliff Robertson
music = Hans J. Salter
cinematography = Charles Lang
editing = Michael Luciano
distributor = Columbia Pictures
released = flagicon|US 1 August 1956
time = 107 minutes
country = USA
language = English
amg_id = 1:3376
imdb_id = 0048967

"Autumn Leaves" (1956) is a Columbia Pictures feature film starring Joan Crawford and Cliff Robertson in an older woman/younger man tale of mental illness. The screenplay was written by Jean Rouverol and Hugo Butler. The film was directed by Robert Aldrich and produced by William Goetz. "Autumn Leaves" won an international award for its director and has been released to VHS.

Plot and cast

Spinsterish Millicent "Millie" Wetherby (Crawford) works at home as a self-employed typist. One evening in a diner, she meets a lonely young man named Burt Hanson. They take a liking to one another and begin dating. When Burt proposes, Millie accepts and they marry. Burt's ex-wife Virginia (Vera Miles) and his father (Lorne Greene) abruptly enter the scene. Burt is haunted by the day when he discovered his wife and father making love; he begins displaying signs of mental instability with their sudden, unwelcomed presence in his life. When he becomes violent, Millie sends him to a mental hospital. His condition improves with treatment, and he severs connections with his past. Millie happily discovers he still loves her and they look forward to a brighter future. Cast includes Ruth Donnelly as Millie's landlady Liz, Marjorie Bennett as a diner waitress, and Frank Gerstle as Mr. Ramsey.

ong

The film's original title was "The Way We Are" but was changed to capitalize on the success of the then popular tune "Autumn Leaves" as sung by Nat King Cole. Cole's rendition is used over the film's title sequence. The song's original title is "Les feuilles mortes" with music by Joseph Kosma and lyrics by Jacques Prévert. English lyrics were written by the American songwriter Johnny Mercer (1949). The song was introduced by Yves Montand in 1946 for the film "Les Portes de la Nuit."

Reception

Although Bosley Crowther panned the film in the "New York Times" of August 2, 1956, (calling it a "dismal tale") [ [http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?_r=1&res=9E02E3DD1E31E333A05751C0A96E9C946792D6CF&oref=slogin Crowther, Bosley. "A New Agonizer; Joan Crawford Stars in 'Autumn Leaves'"] ] Lawrence Quirk in "Motion Picture Herald" and William Zinsser in the "New York Herald Tribune" commented favorably upon the film. [Quirk, Lawrence J.. "The Films of Joan Crawford". The Citadel Press, 1968.] "Autumn Leaves" was a modest box-office success, chiefly among Crawford's female fans. The actress thought highly of the film, deeming it the "best older woman/younger man movie ever made," and added, "Everything clicked on "Autumn Leaves". The cast was perfect, the script was good, and I think Bob [Aldrich] handled everything well. I really think Cliff did a stupendous job; another actor might have been spitting out his lines and chewing the scenery, but he avoided that trap. I think the movie on a whole was a lot better than some of the romantic movies I did in the past...but somehow it just never became better known. It was eclipsed by the picture I did with Bette Davis." [Quirk, Lawrence J. and Schoell, William. "Joan Crawford: The Essential Biography".]

The film has grown in stature among Aldrich fans since its 1956 premiere and is now regarded as one of the director's best films. Dan Callahan of "Slant Magazine" (June 16, 2004) wrote, "All of Aldrich's early work is intriguing, but "Autumn Leaves" is his secret gem. It's been passed over as camp because of its star, Joan Crawford, but Aldrich brings all his hard edges to this woman's picture. The collision of his tough style with the soapy material makes for a film that never loses its queasy tension." [ [http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=1131 "Slant Magazine". Callahan, Dan. "Autumn Leaves"] ]

Awards

Best Directorial Award (Aldrich), Berlin International Film Festival 1956.

ee also

*Joan Crawford filmography

References

Navbox
name = Joan Crawford
title = The 1940-1970 Films of Miss Joan Crawford
group1 = 1940-1949
list1 = nowrap| "Strange Cargo" (1940) • nowrap| "Susan and God" (1940) • nowrap| "A Woman's Face" (1941) • nowrap| "When Ladies Meet" (1941) • nowrap| "They All Kissed the Bride" (1942) • nowrap| "Reunion in France" (1942) • nowrap| "Above Suspicion" (1943) • nowrap| "Hollywood Canteen" (1944) • nowrap| "Mildred Pierce" (1945) • nowrap| "Humoresque" (1946) • nowrap| "Possessed" (1947) • nowrap| "Daisy Kenyon" (1947) • nowrap| "Flamingo Road" (1949) • nowrap| "It's a Great Feeling" (1949)
name = Joan Crawford
title = The 1940-1970 Films of Miss Joan Crawford
group2 = 1950-1959
list2 = nowrap| "The Damned Don't Cry!" (1950) • nowrap| "Harriet Craig" (1950) • nowrap| "Goodbye, My Fancy" (1951) • nowrap| "This Woman is Dangerous" (1952) • nowrap| "Sudden Fear" (1952) • nowrap| "Torch Song" (1953) • nowrap| "Johnny Guitar" (1954) • nowrap| "Female on the Beach" (1955) • nowrap| "Queen Bee" (1955) • nowrap| "Autumn Leaves" (1956) • nowrap| "The Story of Esther Costello" (1957) • nowrap| "The Best of Everything" (1959)
name = Joan Crawford
title = The 1940-1970 Films of Miss Joan Crawford
group3 = 1960-1969
list3 = nowrap| "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" (1962) • nowrap| "The Caretakers" (1963) • nowrap| "Strait-Jacket" (1964) • nowrap| "I Saw What You Did" (1965) • nowrap| "Berserk!" (1967)
group4 = 1970
list4 = nowrap| "Trog" (1970)

External links

* [http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article.jsp?cid=161062&mainArticleId=161058 TCM Spotlight] "Autumn Leaves".