The Betsy (1978)

Director:

Daniel Petrie

Writers:

William Bast (writer)
Walter Bernstein (writer)

Release Date:

9 February 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

The Harold Robbins people. What you dream...they do!

Plot:

The aging, retired founder of an auto giant comes out of retirement to try to develop a safe, fuel-efficient car.

Plot Keywords:

Flashback | Nude Swimming | Auto Industry | Gay Interest | Bestseller

Cast

Laurence Olivier	...	Loren Hardeman
Robert Duvall	...	Loren Hardeman III
Katharine Ross	...	Sally Hardeman
Tommy Lee Jones	...	Angelo Perino
Jane Alexander	...	Alicia Hardeman
Lesley-Anne Down	...	Lady Bobby Ayres
Joseph Wiseman	...	Jake Weinstein
Kathleen Beller	...	Betsy
Edward Herrmann	...	Dan Weyman
Paul Rudd	...	Loren Hardeman Jr.
Roy Poole	...	John Duncan
Richard Venture	...	Mark Sampson
Titos Vandis	...	Angelo Luigi Perino
Clifford David	...	Joe Warren
Inga Swenson	...	Mrs. Craddock

Also Known As:

Harold Robbins' The Betsy

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | USA:R | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

Detroit, Michigan, USA

Company:

Harold Robbins International Company

Trivia:

The "assembly line" scenes for BMC were actually filmed at the AMC (American Motors Corporation) plant located at Kenosha, Wisconsin. In several shots you can catch glimpses of a 1978 Gremlin, Pacer, and Concord being built and painted. The plant was destroyed by Chrysler in the early-'90s. Also, some shots of contemporary "BMC" automobiles are actually badly redecorated Fords; a Granada and LTD are among the unfortunate victims of a very hideous restyle.

Quotes:

Angelo Perino: That's the trouble with parents - always ask when they shouldn't; never ask when they should.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Ecstasy Girls (1979)

plenty of rewinding and fast-forwarding...

As decadently bad as the book and premise of this movie is, there was something somewhat entertaining in this mawkish soap-opera put to film,which is why I bought this film once(that's right!). Maybe it was the sex scenes-Ms.Down and Mr.Jones' love scene was particularly well done and seductive-or the full body shot of Ms.Beller(I'm guessing full body shots,pubes and all,were somewhat rare in mainstream cinema in 1978),but the plotlines of conflict inside and outside of the Hardemann family over three generations were at least nominally interesting. Still,I found the pacing dreadfully slow and ,hence,the subject line of my review. I imagine why Sir Larry took this roll,as well as many others in the late 70s and early 80s(I'm surprised the guy from Cincinnati who reviewed the film didn't mention "Clash of the Titans"!)was because not too many dignified leading man roles were being afforded to stately older English theatre-trained actors at the time and he had to take what he could get. Five out of ten stars.