Lolita (1997)

Director:

Adrian Lyne

Writers (WGA):

Vladimir Nabokov (novel)
Stephen Schiff (screenplay)

Release Date:

25 September 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

A forbidden love. An unthinkable attraction. The ultimate price.

Plot:

A man marries his landlady so he can take advantage of her daughter.

Plot Keywords:

Forbidden Love | Lolita | Love | Landlady | 14 Year Old

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Jeremy Irons	...	Humbert Humbert
Melanie Griffith	...	Charlotte Haze
Frank Langella	...	Clare Quilty
Dominique Swain	...	Dolores 'Lolita' Haze
Suzanne Shepherd	...	Miss Pratt
Keith Reddin	...	Reverend Rigger
Erin J. Dean	...	Mona
Joan Glover	...	Miss LaBone
Pat Pierre Perkins	...	Louise (as Pat P. Perkins)
Ed Grady	...	Dr. Melinik
Michael Goodwin	...	Mr. Beale
Angela Paton	...	Mrs. Holmes
Ben Silverstone	...	Young Humbert Humbert
Emma Griffiths Malin	...	Annabel Lee (as Emma Griffiths-Malin)
Ronald Pickup	...	Young Humbert's Father

Also Known As:

Lolita (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for aberrant sexuality, a strong scene of violence, nudity and some language.

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

USA | France

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Canada:18 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Ontario) | Iceland:16 | Argentina:18 | Australia:R | Brazil:14 | Chile:18 | France:-12 | Germany:18 (w) | Hong Kong:III | Italy:VM14 | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Peru:18 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:R(A) | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Austin High School - 3500 Memphis Avenue, El Paso, Texas, USA

Company:

Guild

Trivia:

Hospital scenes filmed in Austin High School in El Paso, Texas.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Reflected in the car window as the car rolls away.

Quotes:

Charlotte Haze: I asked you to make your bed. Didn't I?
Lolita: No. You asked me if I'd made my bed.

Movie Connections:

References The Other Love (1947)

Soundtrack:

I Wonder, I Wonder, I Wonder

A powerfully moving adaptation

Briefly put, this film is a quite brilliant adaptation of the novel. While staying pretty faithful to the original source, Stephen Schiff's screenplay fleshes out the primary characters and their relationship, which plays out as a taboo but reserved love story. Maintaining the central themes, the plot is reduced to the essence of the major players and the linear events of the book. It's almost impossible to adapt a long book into the confines of a single average-length movie, but Schiff captures most of the important moments quite well and humanizes the characters who could have come off as bizarre depictions from Humbert's narrative.

Lyne's movie is at once haunting, compelling, and beautifully photographed. For all the controversy, it is a mature, reflective, and subtle film. "Lolita" is a challenging piece of work that sublimely reflects the pathos of the story and manages to retain bits of the complex humor of Nabokov. This "Lolita" abandons the notion of being a complete social satire and works as an essentially dramatic portrayal of a doomed, inappropriate romance that is ultimately a sad, tragic tale.

The performances are remarkable, especially those of Jeremy Irons and Dominique Swain. Irons is utterly perfect as the ill-fated wretch, Humbert Humbert. So understated but evocative with every move and gesture, he is the definitive Old-World European whose obsession bristles beneath his timorous demeanor. He evokes an incredible amount of sympathy for the character. Swain delivers an on-target portrayal of the flowering nymphet who toys with her burgeoning sexuality but hasn't overcome her fundamental brattiness. Swain elicits both allure and pity as the wayward character whose immaturity in mindset and behavior does not excuse her complicity in her affairs. Despite what some critics may have written, Melanie Griffith is fine in the small role as Lolita's overbearing mother. She is comically obtuse, and her veneer hits all the right, grating notes. Frank Langella rounds out the cast as the mysterious Quilty. He is appropriately shady, vague, and sinister when he appears from time to time, slowly revealing himself.

This is a real winner on many levels and should be up for several awards including best picture, director, actor, actress, and adapted screenplay. Showtime should be congratulated for its smart acquisition. I hope the movie finds its way to the largest possible audience.