Julia (1977)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Fred Zinnemann

Writers:

Lillian Hellman (novel)
Alvin Sargent (writer)

Release Date:

20 January 1978 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

The story of two women whose friendship suddenly became a matter of life and death.

Plot:

At the behest of an old and dear friend, playwright Lillian Hellman undertakes a dangerous mission to smuggle funds into Nazi Germany.

Plot Keywords:

Nazi | Writer | 1930s | Female Bonding | Smuggling

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 17 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

Jane Fonda	...	Lillian Hellman
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Julia
Jason Robards	...	Dashiell Hammett
Maximilian Schell	...	Johann
Hal Holbrook	...	Alan Campbell
Rosemary Murphy	...	Dorothy Parker
Meryl Streep	...	Anne Marie
Dora Doll	...	Woman Passenger
Elisabeth Mortensen	...	Girl Passenger
John Glover	...	Sammy
Lisa Pelikan	...	Julia (younger)
Susan Jones	...	Lillian (younger)
Cathleen Nesbitt	...	Grandmother
Maurice Denham	...	Undertaker
Mark Metcalf	...	Pratt

Runtime:

117 min

Country:

USA

Language:

French | German | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Indonesia:Dewasa | Iceland:12 | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Central Station, Strasbourg, Bas-Rhin, France

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Faye Dunaway turned down the role of Julia.

Goofs:

Plot holes: The plot of the entire film revolves around the restrictions in pre-WWII Nazi Germany on the import of foreign (such as American) currency. There was no such restriction. Stable foreign currency was welcomed in an era when extreme inflation was a recent memory.

Quotes:

Dashiell Hammett: [after reading Lillian's play] You better tear this up. It's not that it's bad, it's just not good enough, not for you.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Decade Under the Influence (2003)

the gathering storm of Nazism

Jane Fonda and Vanessa Redgrave continued their streak of formidable roles with "Julia". Lillian Hellman (Jane Fonda) was childhood friends with affluent Julia (Vanessa Redgrave). Julia has since abandoned her wealth and devoted her life to fighting Fascism. She is currently helping the resistance movements in Europe. Lillian decides to bring some American currency to help Julia in her struggles. While in Europe, she can certainly see the imprint of Nazism.

This movie does a masterful job not only showing the takeover by the Nazis, but it also puts some other things in perspective. Since I saw it a few days before the US invaded Iraq, I got the feeling of a similarity in that way. Maybe the fact that someone in my dormitory was playing a somber song on the piano (it may have been the "Schindler's List" theme music) also contributed to that. But either way, the perfect direction, script, cinematography, and performances by Fonda and Redgrave, plus Jason Robards Jr as Dashiell Hammett and Maximilian Schell as Julia's friend Johann, make this a perfect movie.