Bunny Lake Is Missing (1965)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Otto Preminger

Writers:

Marryam Modell (novel)
John Mortimer (writer) ...

Release Date:

3 October 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

No one admitted while the clock is ticking!

Plot:

A woman reports that her young daughter is missing, but there seems to be no evidence that she ever existed.

Plot Keywords:

School | Police | Abduction | England | Disappearance

Awards:

Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Laurence Olivier	...	Supt. Newhouse
Carol Lynley	...	Ann Lake
Keir Dullea	...	Steven Lake
Martita Hunt	...	Ada Ford
Anna Massey	...	Elvira Smollett
Clive Revill	...	Sergeant Andrews
Lucie Mannheim	...	The Cook
Finlay Currie	...	Doll-maker
Rod Argent	...	Himself (as The Zombies)
Paul Atkinson	...	Himself (as The Zombies)
Colin Blunstone	...	Himself (as The Zombies)
Hugh Grundy	...	Himself (as The Zombies)
Chris White	...	Himself (as The Zombies)
Noel Coward	...	Horatio Wilson (as Noël Coward)
Adrienne Corri	...	Dorothy

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (f) (cut version) | West Germany:16 (f) (original version) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Cannon Hall - 14 Cannon Place, Off East Heath Road, Hampstead, London, England, UK

Company:

Wheel Productions

Trivia:

Columbia Pictures wanted Otto Preminger to cast Jane Fonda as Ann Lake, who was eager to play the role, but Preminger insisted upon using Carol Lynley.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): The little girl of the title, Felicia "Bunny" Lake, is supposed to be an American just arrived in England by ocean liner, yet she speaks with a distinctly English accent.

Quotes:

Doll-maker: [holding a damaged doll that he is trying to repair] I've got a near fatality here.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Flightplan (2005)

Soundtrack:

Just Out of Reach

More surprising than the outcome is how well Carol Lynley holds her own against Laurence Olivier!

Carol Lynley does some fabulous work here as American woman newly arrived in England whose little daughter is apparently kidnapped from school on her first day. The catch is, nobody knows the child and Lynley is having trouble proving she even exists! Terrific mystery from director Otto Preminger, an uneven filmmaker who does strong work just up to the finale (which is somewhat anti-climactic). Laurence Olivier is the police inspector on the case and he's very smooth, cunning and yet sympathetic to Lynley. There are some mod overtures which seem misplaced, and Noël Coward has a gratuitous bit as Carol's drunken landlord (and BBC celebrity!), yet the film does have many sharp bits of minute detail, intriguing and funny supporting characters, terrific cinematography and locations. Does it all add up? No, but it's inscrutable fun nevertheless. *** from ****