A Severed Head (1970)

Antonia, the pampered wife of Martin Lynch-Gibbon, an upper class wine merchant, tells her husband that she is in love with their best friend, the psychiatrist Palmer Anderson. Palmer and ... See full summary »

Director:

Dick Clement

Writers:

Iris Murdoch (novel), Iris Murdoch (play),

Stars:

Lee Remick, Richard Attenborough, Ian Holm

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lee Remick	...	Antonia Lynch-Gibbon
Richard Attenborough	...	Palmer Anderson
Ian Holm	...	Martin Lynch-Gibbon
Claire Bloom	...	Honor Klein
Jennie Linden	...	Georgie Hands
Clive Revill	...	Alexander Lynch-Gibbon
Ann Firbank	...	Rosemary Lynch-Gibbon
Rosamund Greenwood	...	Miss Seelhaft
Constance Lorne	...	Miss Hernshaw
Robert Gillespie	...	Winking Patient
Katherine Parr	...	Receptionist
Nerys Hughes	...	Nurse
Anne Jameson	...	Woman at Party (as Ann Jameson)
Yvette Rees	...	Woman at Party

Storyline

Antonia, the pampered wife of Martin Lynch-Gibbon, an upper class wine merchant, tells her husband that she is in love with their best friend, the psychiatrist Palmer Anderson. Palmer and Antonia want to deal with the situation in a civilized way, by remaining friends with Martin. Meanwhile Martin tries to keep his mistress, Georgie Hands, a secret, but Palmer's sister, Honor Klein, who taught Georgie at Oxford, tells Palmer and Antonia about her. Furthermore, Honor introduces Georgie to Martin's womanizing brother, Alexander. This is just the beginning of the various liaisons.

---

Plot Keywords:

friend | psychiatrist | mistress | sex | black comedy | 

---

Taglines:

Martin and Antonia are an ideal couple. Devoted. But not to each other. Georgie loves Martin. Palmer loves Antonia. And all's well. Until Alexander grabs Georgie ... and Honor snags Palmer.

---

Genres:

Comedy

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

December 1970 (UK)

Also Known As:

Amantes Infieis

Filming Locations:

Edgware Road, Paddington, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Winkast Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

There was considerable difficulty in finding a director for this film. The film was actually shot in the Spring of 1969, but it was not until early 1971 that it was seen in its native Britain.

---

Connections

Referenced in McCloud: Top of the World, Ma! (1971)

User Reviews

The title is AWFUL but the film is .........

I had to watch this film recently and expected to see HORROR film. A SEVERED HEAD!? h-e-l-l-o? Only to find out this is a comedy... I THINK? Very dry, very British. The confusing title would be explained at the end of the film as the character Honor quotes: "Go back to reality Martin,... I am an object of terrible fascination to you, A Severed Head such as primitive tribes used putting a morsel of gold on it tong to make it out of prophecies, as real people you and i do not exist for one and other" I know, huh? I didn't get the correlation either. Seeing there are only 3 user comments I feel bad for so many films like this. So many thousands of films that took so long to make and so many actors gave great performances only to fall into the abyss of obscurity. Worth watching though if only for Lee Remick who is absolutely stunning and quite a skilled dead pan comic.