Alfie Darling

Infobox_Film
name = Alfie Darling


image_size = 150
director = Ken Hughes
producer = Dugald Rankin
writer = Ken Hughes
starring = Alan Price
Jill Townsend
Paul Copley
Joan Collins
Sheila White (actress)
Annie Ross
Hannah Gordon
Roger Lumont
Rula Lenska
Minah Bird
music = Alan Price
cinematography = Ousama Rawi
editing = John Trumper
distributor = Cinema National
released = 1976
runtime = 102 minutes
country = UK
language = English
preceded_by = Alfie
amg_id = 1:83380
imdb_id = 0072623

"Alfie Darling" (aka "Oh, Alfie!") is a 1975 British film. It is the sequel to the 1966 film "Alfie". This time Alan Price takes over Michael Caine's role of Alfie.

It based on the novel of the same name by Bill Naughton (who wrote the play the first film was based on). [cite book| title=Alfie Darling| author=Bill Naughton| date=1972-04-12| publisher=Ballantine Books| isbn=0345225902 ]

Plot

After experiencing a failure in the ending of the last film, Alfie - now working as a 1970s' cross London-France HGV driver alongside Bakey (Paul Copley) - decides to get back to his old self. And his new occupation provides new opportunities to do so. The film starts as Bakey drives the truck through customs in France, while Alfie has sex with an English hitchhiker (Vicki Michelle) in the back until the customs' officer catches her topless.

When arriving to their destination, he spots a woman (Jill Townsend) in a sports car. They get in a race until the police breaks it. Alfie soon finds comfort by flirting with the married waitress Louise (Rula Lenska), who takes him to her apartment. During the night, her husband returns from his fishing trip, but outside Bakey horns the truck in advance.

Alfie later catches up with the woman from the race and learns her name is Abby and that she is a sophisticated magazine editor. When she turns him down, he decides he met his match in her. He proceeds to stalk her until another car chase finally leads her to agree to a date. Alas, when Alfie finally gets his wish, he can't perform and just leaves her apartment in anger.

This failure causes him to use his little black book to contact various women who have casual relationship with him. However, some of these encounters lead him to trouble. He faces the consequences of an encounter with Norma (Sheila White) and the wrath of the husband of older Fay (Joan Collins), when said husband discovers Alfie's wallet under their bed.

With Fay's encouragement, Alfie apologizes to Abby about leaving her apartment like that and asks her for a proper dinner. He tells her what he never says to his lovers - he loves her and wants her to marry him. She agrees. She then has to take a quick work related flight.

While Abby leaves for the airport, Alfie is left bed-bound due to back pains. When his usually alienated older neighbor, Claire (Annie Ross), hears from another neighbor that Alfie can't move, she lets herself in his apartment serving him tea. When Alfie comments Claire put on a noticeable perfume, Claire reveals her true emotions by suddenly entering his bed and taking her top off to take advantage of his immobile situation. She ignores his protests but, luckily for him, her attempts to mount him while sitting astride him fixes his back and so he manages to run away before she manages to make an actual intimate contact.

Now healed, Alfie manages to catch Abby before the flight and they schedule to marry the following morning. Alas, in the following morning, Alfie awaits her in the airport after missing the news, which announceed that her plane crashed without any survivors. After catching up with that news, Alfie drives up to the crash site and cries over the wreckage.

References

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