The Legend of Lylah Clare (1968)

Director:

Robert Aldrich

Writers:

Hugo Butler (writer)
Edward DeBlasio (writer)

Release Date:

15 November 1968 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

OVERNIGHT A STAR...OVER MANY NIGHTS A WOMAN!

Plot:

A dictatorial film director (Finch) hires an unknown actress (Novak) to play the lead role in a planned movie biography of a late, great Hollywood star.

Plot Keywords:

Lesbianism | Lesbian | Actress | Possession | Beautiful Woman

Cast

Kim Novak	...	Lylah Clare / Elsa Brinkmann
Peter Finch	...	Lewis Zarken
Ernest Borgnine	...	Barney Sheean
Milton Selzer	...	Bart Langner
Rossella Falk	...	Rossella
Gabriele Tinti	...	Paolo
Valentina Cortese	...	Countess Bozo Bedoni
Jean Carroll	...	Becky Langner
Michael Murphy	...	Mark Peter Sheean
Lee Meriwether	...	Young girl
James Lanphier	...	Legman #1
Robert Ellenstein	...	Mike
Nick Dennis	...	Nick
Dave Willock	...	Cameraman
Coral Browne	...	Molly Luther

Runtime:

130 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:16 (f) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Grauman's Chinese Theater - 6925 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Associates & Aldrich Company, The

Trivia:

This was Kim Novak's last starring role in an American-made feature film.

Quotes:

Molly Luther: She's tame enough now, Lewis, but will she turn into a slut like the last one?

Movie Connections:

References The Flight of the Phoenix (1965)

Soundtrack:

Lylah

Fascinating

It's flawed, yes. It's too long, too slow, and some of the lines and situations are just incomprehensible. On the other hand, its daring in a way most films are not. It dares you to think, imagine, and just relish in the glory if this fictionally great old star. The character of Lylah Clare is based on what seems to be an amalgamation of 1930s icons, not the least of which may include Crawford, Bankhead, Dietrich, Garbo, and Harlow. Then again, she is her own creation. A great subplot concerns the battle of the studio for money-making films and the battle of the director for art. As Ernest Borgnine as the studio head says in one scene, "I don't want to make films. I want to make movies. What do you think we're making here, art?" Kim Novak is well cast and turns in a surprising star turn in a double role, as Lylah Clare and the actress who plays her in a biopic helmed by her late director and husband. The story behind Lylah's death is mysterious and the stuff of legend. Only the director, eager to make a comeback after a 20 year absence from films, seems to know the truth about what happened to Lylah, and he is silent. There are two other superb subplots to the film: one concerns the actress and her possession by the spirit of the late Lylah Clare, and the other subplot concerns the romance between the actress and the director.

The end is shocking. You might not see the eventual conclusion coming. There is terrific symbolism in the dog food advertisement at the end of the film, and the score by DeVol is appropriately lush and atmospheric.

Some of the performances are a bit stilted, as is some of the camera work. The costumes are not always historically correct, but are fetching just the same. The direction is hit-or-miss. The film is way too slow. What holds the film together is the fascinating story and Aldrich's ambition in telling it. He doesn't stop with Lylah's death, but goes on to make a broad and cynical statement about the whole movie industry as a whole. Notice how, when the Lylah's director finally has something deep and heartfelt to say to the reporter, he is cut off. And for what? A dog food commercial. Get it?

Aldrich excelled at dark Hollywood portraits, and this is one of the most intriguing and controversial. No wonder it's so hard to find.