Mister Buddwing (1966)

An amnesiac wanders the streets of Manhattan, trying to solve the mystery of who he is.

Director:

Delbert Mann

Writers:

Evan Hunter (novel), Dale Wasserman

Stars:

James Garner, Jean Simmons, Suzanne Pleshette

Nominated for 2 Oscars.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Garner	...	Mister Buddwing
Jean Simmons	...	The Blonde
Suzanne Pleshette	...	Fiddle
Katharine Ross	...	Janet
Angela Lansbury	...	Gloria
George Voskovec	...	Shabby Old Man
Jack Gilford	...	Mr. Schwartz
Joe Mantell	...	1st Cab Driver
Raymond St. Jacques	...	Hank
Ken Lynch	...	Dan
Beeson Carroll	...	Policeman
Billy Halop	...	Fredrick Calabrese 2nd Cab Driver
Michael Hadge	...	Counterman
Charles Seel	...	Printer
John Tracy	...	Tony

Storyline

A man wearing an expensive gray suit finds himself in Central Park in New York City not knowing who he is or how he got there. His amnesia even extends to the fact that he doesn't know how he takes his coffee. All he has on his possession are a crumpled piece of paper wrapped around a couple of pills, the paper also with a scribbled telephone number. He is also wearing a ring with a broken stone, the ring engraved from its giver with his or her monogram, G.V. The telephone number takes him to a woman who doesn't know who he is. Based on what she calls him and some item association, he begins to call himself Sam Buddwing if anyone asks him. As he wanders New York City in a daze, he believes he may be an escaped mental patient based on a newspaper story, his clothes and the monogrammed ring. But a vision of a young brunette makes him remember a woman in his life named Grace. He manages to spend time with a few women during the day, many times he believing that woman is Grace herself. ...

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Plot Keywords:

ring | park | new york city | amnesia | beer truck | 

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Taglines:

The Story of a Man Who Had to Live Twelve Years in One Day with Four Women!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 July 1966 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Buddwing

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cherokee Productions, DDD Productions, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Trivia

MGM purchased the rights to Evan Hunter's novel at galley proof stage for $200,000.

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Goofs

When Buddwing approaches Janet in the city, she sits on a park bench and the boom mic is plainly visible at the bottom of the screen.

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Connections

Edited into Voskovec & Werich - paralelní osudy (2012)

User Reviews

Moody, curious, but ultimately unenthralling melodrama

Amnesiac James Garner tries to sort out his apparently complicated past. This adaptation of Evan Hunter's book "Buddwing" (and retitled "Woman Without a Face" for its overseas release) looks terrific but is a distressingly unsatisfying soaper. Photographed by the great Ellsworth Fredericks in crystalline black-and-white on autumnal New York City locations, the movie is saddled with an annoying plot which never comes together. Full of top talent, but only Suzanne Pleshette gives off some heat as a savvy actress. The film attempts to be modern and risqué, but the writing is so ham-handed and the direction so self-consciously arty that the final result just seems alienating and unabsorbing. *1/2 from ****