Hammersmith Is Out (1972)

Director:

Peter Ustinov

Writer:

Stanford Whitmore (writer)

Release Date:

12 May 1972 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

HAMMERSMITH, master criminal and nut, is out. Watch Out !

Plot:

The Faust legend retold (loosely) and applied to a mentally disturbed patient in a hospital run by a doctor of dubious sanity himself...

Plot Keywords:

Patient | Escape | Mental Institution | Wife And Husband Lead Actors | Pact

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Elizabeth Taylor	...	Jimmie Jean Jackson
Richard Burton	...	Hammersmith
Peter Ustinov	...	Doctor
Beau Bridges	...	Billy Breedlove
Leon Ames	...	Gen. Sam Pembroke
Leon Askin	...	Dr. Krodt
Anthony Holland	...	Oldham
George Raft	...	Guido Scartucci
John Schuck	...	Henry Joe
Marjorie Eaton	...	Princess
Lisa Jak	...	Kiddo
Linda Gaye Scott	...	Miss Quim
Mel Berger	...	Fat Man
Brook Williams	...	Pete Rutter
Carl Donn	...	Cleopatra

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Norway:16 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Mexico

Company:

J. Cornelius Crean Films Inc.

Trivia:

The tenth of eleven films that Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton starred in together.

Quotes:

Doctor: That is not a car. That is a penis, mit chrome.

"It is inelegant to rob from the poor before you rob from the rich...besides, it takes far too much time."

Reworking of the Faust legend has a slovenly, nose-picking orderly at a mental institution helping a patient to escape in exchange for a life of privilege. Taking along a roadside diner waitress on his journey, the young man eventually becomes one of the most successful men in the world--but at the expense of personal happiness. Crummy-looking satirical enterprise, scattered with absurdist humor and "Cleopatra" in-jokes, has enough interest in it for about 40 minutes of its length. The quirky match-up of material and cast (a haggard Richard Burton, an overly-tanned Elizabeth Taylor, and a pitilessly miscast Beau Bridges) can't carry the poorly-paced film beyond that. Taylor, in a variety of wigs, gives the picture a little bounce in the early stages; but when she's turned into a vindictive shrew, her role seems to evaporate--and yet she hangs around without anything to do. Bridges gives a ruinous performance; attempting to play a rough-hewn rube, the well-spoken actor cannot get a grip on his role. There's no story arc showing us the passage of time, and each new episode looks like it was cooked up on the spot. Director Peter Ustinov (who has an extraneous role as a psychiatrist with a Viennese accent) flails about behind the camera, alternately rude comedy with a messy narrative structure that simply gets worse as the film progresses. * from ****