Madame X (1966)

When her lover is killed, the wife of a wealthy man is convinced to fake her own death, which leads her into greater depths of depravity until fate reunites her with her long-lost son, who is unaware of her real identity.

Director:

David Lowell Rich

Writers:

Jean Holloway (screenplay), Alexandre Bisson (play)

Stars:

Lana Turner, John Forsythe, Ricardo Montalban

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lana Turner	...	Holly Parker
John Forsythe	...	Clay Anderson
Ricardo Montalban	...	Phil Benton
Burgess Meredith	...	Dan Sullivan
John Van Dreelen	...	Christian Torben
Virginia Grey	...	Mimsy
Warren Stevens	...	Michael Spalding
Carl Benton Reid	...	The Judge
Teddy Quinn	...	Clay Anderson Jr. as a Boy
Frank Maxwell	...	Dr. Evans
Kaaren Verne	...	Nurse Riborg (as Karen Verne)
Joe De Santis	...	Carter (as Joe DeSantis)
Frank Marth	...	Det. Combs
Bing Russell	...	Police Sgt. Riley
Teno Pollick	...	Manuel Lopez

Storyline

A woman married to a wealthy socialite, is compromised by the accidental death of a man who had been romantically pursuing her, and is forced by her mother-in-law to assume a new identity to save the reputation of her husband and infant son. She wanders the world, trying to forget her heartbreak with the aid of alcohol and unsavory men, eventually returning to the city of her downfall, where she murders a blackmailer who threatens to expose her past. Amazingly, she is represented at her murder trial by her now adult son, who is a public defender. Hoping to continue to protect her son, she refuses to give her real name and is known to the court as the defendant, "Madame X."

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Plot Keywords:

trial | accidental death | assumed identity | europe | based on play | 

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Taglines:

There was always a man... there was never a name!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish German

Release Date:

6 June 1966 (UK)

Also Known As:

Bilinmeyen Kadin

Filming Locations:

Greystone Park & Mansion - 905 Loma Vista Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ross Hunter Productions, Universal Pictures, Eltee

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Movie was featured in episode 13 of season 4 of Girls of the Playboy Mansion where Hugh Hefner shows his three girlfriends where the Mansion was featured in the movie.

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Goofs

During Holly's murder trial, an expert witness testifies that she is addicted to absinthe, a type of liquor that has been outlawed throughout the entire world because it causes insanity. In reality, absinthe was sold in a number of European countries at that time (mid-sixties) and in years since has become legally available in even more countries.

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Quotes

Clayton 'Clay' Anderson: [to his mother while decorating Christmas tree] Mother, there aren't enough icicles on your side.

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Connections

Version of Madame X (1916)

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Soundtracks

Swedish Rhapsody
by Willy Mattes (as Charles Wildman)

User Reviews

Lana's best performance!

"Madame X" is one of the best movies I have ever seen. I would recommend it to every movie goer, not just Lana's fans. She manages to portray to perfection a very, very complex character, and she certainly deserved an Oscar. I liked in particular her scenes with another fine actor, John Van Dreelen, who shared with Lana some very nice, romantic moments. The actor actually said in an interview that his chemistry with Lana was as good on-screen as it was off-screen, and this does a lot of good to the film. I also bought the magnificent book "Madame X", by Michael Avallone, which was published in 1966. I recommend it to everyone, because it was adapted after the original screenplay of Jean Holloway. Thanks to the book, I managed to discover the scenes that were cut from the film, such as the scene where Holly is trying to get a job at an expensive French shop, and also a scene where Christian, the pianist (Van Dreelen), is giving her a hint that they should marry, because the whole press was discussing about them during his concert tour. So, in order to avoid gossip and scandal, he thought they ought to marry. This was his first proposal to her, while they were driving an automobile - and that is why in one of the sequences with them in the car, Lana's character seems preoccupied about something. The novel reveals that she was very much in love with this artist, who became her God or guardian angel, but whom she had to leave, so that neither he, nor her first husband (played by John Forsythe) would find out who and where she really is. A great book and a great film! I bought the original DVD from France and it was an excellent purchase. The music is also superb, and the soundtrack was released separately in 1967. I only wish there were kept more scenes from "Madame X", because the film is much too short to understand the complexity of the plot. Still, I highly recommend it, even if it is a very sad film, a real tear-jerker.