Billy Liar - Criterion Collection
by John Schlesinger
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Ethel Griffies, Julie Christie, Mona Washbourne, Tom Courtenay, Wilfred PicklesDirector: John Schlesinger
Brand: Image Entertainment
Cinematographer: Denys N. Coop
Editor: Roger Cherrill
Producer: Jack Rix
Producer: Joseph Janni
Writer: Keith Waterhouse
Writer: Willis Hall
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled)
Format: Anamorphic, Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 98 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2001-07-10
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Criterion
Movie Reviews of Billy Liar - Criterion Collection
Movie Review: I'd be lying if I said I didn't like it...
Summary: 4 Stars
It's a little immature and it seems to go no where for a while, but in the end `Billy Liar' proves itself well worth the journey; that's for sure. Thanks in part to a very engaging performance by Tom Courtenay and a ravishing supporting role by a young and beautiful (and very charming) Julie Christie, `Billy Liar' is funny and just plain fun.
William Fisher is a dreamer, a big dreamer. He wants to be a famous screenwriter, but at times his aspirations tend to get ahead of him, so much so that he can't help but fudge things a little bit in order to at least make it look like he isn't all talk. So, with that said, Billy has a bit of a problem. He has two fianc?s who know nothing of the other, a fictitious job awaiting him in London and a dream world in his head where he is King and all know and respect him. Billy's parents Geoffrey and Alice don't know what to do with their son. He seems defiant and set in his ways despite all they say and do. Rita and Barbara (his two ladies) are fed up with Billy's procrastinating and just want to be married, but Billy prefers to drift off into his head where responsibilities are non-existent and everything is as it should be.
The film, like I said, can seem to be running in circles for a spell. It doesn't have a clear target for a good portion of the running time, but merely watching Billy talk himself in and out of various predicaments, but as the film draws to a close and Billy is reunited with the spitfire Liz everything starts to fall into place and we see just where Billy is headed.
Tom Courtenay is flawless as Billy, giving his character enough naivety to make his immaturity tolerable, never absurd. Funny note; he sounds a lot like Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow. His two loves, played by Gwendolyn Watts and Helen Fraser, are a tad annoying, but Julie Christie more than makes up for their lack of charm. She portrays Liz with this undeniable endearing quality. I only wish there was more of her in the film. She has a small scene in the center of the film and then doesn't show up again until the near end, but her performance is the biggest and brightest in the film.
As the film draws to a close the subject of responsibility and honesty begin to make their mark, and the entirety of `Billy Liar' makes more sense. This is a funny and witty and in the end intelligent film. It could have used a little more direction in the center of the film, but it works quite well in the end, and is definitely one that should not be missed.
Summary of Billy Liar - Criterion Collection
Tom Courtenay gives a flawlessly nuanced performance as Billy Fisher, the underachieving undertaker's assistant whose constant daydreams and truth-deficient stories earn him the nickname "Billy Liar." Julie Christie is the handbag-swinging charmer whose free spirit just might inspire Billy to finally move out of his parents' house. Deftly veering from gritty realism to flamboyant fantasy, Billy Liar is a dazzling and uproarious classic.Art House & International DVD Video
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