Prudence and the Pill (1968)

The conflicting and comical attempts by a wealthy London banker and his mistress, together with four other couples, to avoid pregnancy by using contraceptive pills.

Directors:

Fielder Cook, Ronald Neame (uncredited)

Writers:

Hugh Mills (screenplay), Hugh Mills (novel)

Stars:

Deborah Kerr, David Niven, Robert Coote

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Deborah Kerr	...	Prudence Hardcastle
David Niven	...	Gerald Hardcastle
Robert Coote	...	Henry Hardcastle
Irina Demick	...	Elizabeth Brett
Joyce Redman	...	Grace Hardcastle
Judy Geeson	...	Geraldine Hardcastle
Keith Michell	...	Dr. Alan Huart
Edith Evans	...	Lady Roberta Bates
David Dundas	...	Tony Bates
Vickery Turner	...	Rose the Maid
Hugh Armstrong	...	Ted the Chauffeur
Peter Butterworth	...	Chemist
Moyra Fraser	...	Woman in Tea Shop
Annette Kerr	...	Gerald's Secretary
Harry Towb	...	Racetrack Official

Storyline

Prudence Hardcastle (Deborah Kerr) is on the pill. So is her sister-in-law, but someone has been swapping aspirin for their pills. Is it the teenage niece, the maid, the chauffeur, a lover, Prudence's husband Gerald (David Niven), or all of the above?

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Plot Keywords:

hot | sex scene | farce | name in title | female name in title | 

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Taglines:

CAUTION: This Motion Picture Should Be Kept Out Of The Reach Of Children!

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Fielder Cook wanted the motor racing scenes at Brands Hatch to be filmed with the cars going in the opposite direction to the conventional direction at that track.

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Quotes

Gerald Hardcastle: Well, Ted, you can take it from me that in the entire history of this world no man never yet had any pleasure out of a woman without having to pay it for.

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Soundtracks

Something In The City
Written by Bernard Ebbinghouse
Performed by The Bernard Ebbinghouse Orchestra

User Reviews

Tired players stuck on a contraceptive carousel

The sexually-estranged wife of a London banker (named Hardcastle!) is suspected of infidelity by her hypocrite husband, who is cheating himself with a French lass. He replaces his spouse's contraceptive pills ("Thenol") with aspirin--to catch her in the act, I guess--an idea he gets after his sister-in-law tells of a scheme by her teenage daughter to avoid pregnancy before marriage by swapping out her own mother's pills in the same fashion. Hugh Mills adapted his smirking play for the screen, and might have been astonished to find most of the female roles filled by matronly women (married to very mature men). This is a blue-haired attempt at keeping up with the youth explosion in cinema circa 1968, but the material is highly unsuitable for its stars. Deborah Kerr, David Niven, Robert Coote (awful!) and Joyce Redman look embarrassed to be involved; Edith Evans, as the potential mother-in-law for sexually-active Judy Geeson, is the only cast member to rise above the juvenile plotting. Director Fielder Cook left the project midway after a disagreement with the producers, to be replaced by Ronald Neame. * from ****

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 May 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

Prudence and the Pill

Filming Locations:

Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$3,570,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century-Fox Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1