Lady L (1965)

Lady L is an elegant, elderly lady who recalls the past loves and lusty adventures she has lived through.

Director:

Peter Ustinov

Writers:

Romain Gary (novel), Peter Ustinov

Stars:

Sophia Loren, Paul Newman, David Niven

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sophia Loren	...	Lady Louise Lendale / Lady L
Paul Newman	...	Armand Denis
David Niven	...	Dicky, Lord Lendale
Marcel Dalio	...	Sapper (as Dalio)
Cecil Parker	...	Sir Percy
Philippe Noiret	...	Ambroise Gérôme
Jacques Dufilho	...	Bealu
Eugene Deckers	...	Koenigstein
Daniel Emilfork	...	Kobeleff
Hella Petri	...	Madam
Jean Wiener	...	Krajewski
Roger Trapp	...	L'inspecteur de police Dubaron
Jean Rupert
Joe Dassin	...	Un inspecteur de police
Jacques Legras	...	Un inspecteur de police

Storyline

Today Lady Louise Lendale (Sophia Loren) is eighty-years-old and she tells her long time admirer, British poet Sir Percy (Cecil Parker), all about her eventful life. In the beginning, she was a young laundress working in "Le Mouton Bleu", a renowned Paris whorehouse. There, she met Armand (Paul Newman), both a charming man and a bomb-throwing anarchist, and it wasn't long before she became his mistress. One day, while Armand was away in Switzeland, working for a revolutionary movement aiming to murder a Russian Prince, Louise met the second man in her life, a British Lord she soon called Dicky (David Niven). The latter offered to marry her. In exchange, he would save Armand from the police's grip. She accepted on the condition she could still see Armand.

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Plot Keywords:

anarchist | paris france | foreign language adaptation | love triangle | brothel | 

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Taglines:

Bigany...British Style!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

In this film, Paul Newman plays an anarchist who plans to assassinate Prince Otto of Bavaria. Sir Peter Ustinov would later be present at an assassination himself, that of India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984.

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Quotes

Lady Louise Lendale: How can you afford it?
Dicky, Lord Lendale: Well, how can I put this, I have - independent means.
Lady Louise Lendale: And no wife? I thought you said...
Dicky, Lord Lendale: I had, alas, I had a wife. A magnificent figure of a woman. But, I couldn't take her home. Her Majesty wouldn't hear of a gypsy at the Court of St. James. Maybe she was right. England would have killed Dolores. All that soap and chlorinated water and no rhythm in the whole wretched country - except for the snoring in the clubs.

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Crazy Credits

The part of LENDALE CASTLE was played by CASTLE HOWARD, Yorkshire, thanks to the kindness of Mr. George HOWARD.

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Connections

Referenced in MGM 40th Anniversary (1964)

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Soundtracks

Mazurka No.23, Op.33-2
(uncredited)
Composed by Frédéric Chopin

User Reviews

Moments of Quality Surrounded By Silliness

This film is not rated very highly, but the reviews here are mostly positive. Perhaps that is due to the enjoyment people receive seeing older films with actors they enjoy.

Sophia Loren plays Lady Lendale, an octogenarian recounting some memories from her wacky past. She had been married to Lord Lendale (David Niven) until his death in 1924. Before that she was involved with Armand Denis (Paul Newman), an anarchist whose only goal in life was to destroy things owned by those with money or position.

The portion of the film that starts with the meeting of Lord and Lady L is enjoyable. Niven plays a unique character. He seeks love, and desires a woman who is not the usual society bore. Loren, as she opens to his strange concept of love, is an interesting foil to his intelligent perspective. Their relationship is the highlight of the film.

Newman is out of place here, filling a silly role. After Lord L leaves the story, things devolve into a pointless collection of sight gags, on par with "The Apple Dumpling Gang".

Details

Country:

UK France Italy

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 December 1965 (UK)

Also Known As:

Lady L

Filming Locations:

Fondation Ephrussie de Rothschild, Villa Ile-de-Frances, Cap Ferrat, Alpes-Maritimes, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Compagnia Cinematografica Champion, Les Films Concordia, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min 109 min (TCM print)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1