The Betsy (1978)

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

Director:

Daniel Petrie

Writers:

Harold Robbins (novel), William Bast (screenplay)

Stars:

Laurence Olivier, Robert Duvall, Katharine Ross

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Laurence Olivier	...	Loren Hardeman Sr. I
Robert Duvall	...	Loren III / Loren Hardeman Sr.'s grandson
Katharine Ross	...	Sally / Loren II's wife
Tommy Lee Jones	...	Angelo / Car racer
Jane Alexander	...	Alicia / Loren III's wife
Lesley-Anne Down	...	Roberta(Bobby) / Loren III's mistress-Family friend
Joseph Wiseman	...	Jake / Angelo's uncle
Kathleen Beller	...	Betsy / Loren III's daughter
Edward Herrmann	...	Dan Weyman / Head of Finances
Paul Rudd	...	Loren Hardeman II / Sally's husband
Roy Poole	...	John Duncan / Head of production
Richard Venture	...	Mark
Titos Vandis	...	Angelo Luigi Perino
Clifford David	...	Joe / Manager-Loren II's gay lover
Inga Swenson	...	Mrs. Craddock

Storyline

The patriarch of a family-owned corporation hires a young race car driver to help him design a fuel efficient car in secrecy. They face resistance from the president of the company (the patriarch's grandson), who wishes to eliminate the motor car division because of bad blood between himself and his grandfather. During flashbacks, a parallel set of problems is revealed in the family's past, problems that persist into the present, and the race car driver gets deeper into the web of deception and corporate intrigue.

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Plot Keywords:

assassination attempt | bare breasts | large breasts | sex with a maid | breast feeding | 

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Taglines:

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

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 February 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

Harold Robbins' The Betsy

Filming Locations:

Ontario Motor Speedway, Ontario, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$17,685,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Harold Robbins International Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was Laurence Olivier's 50th film.

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Quotes

Lady Bobby Ayres: You want the whole f*****g empire, don't you?

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Connections

Referenced in The Ecstasy Girls (1979)

User Reviews

My brief review of the film

Vice nicely photographed, with some 360 degree shots in the mix, and acted out by a cast of competent performers, this film is satisfactory viewing overall, despite its excesses of sex and nudity. Also on the down side, the dialogue is often lame, it is often overly sentimental, has poor music choices, and the flashbacks are not fitted in with the rest of the story as best as is possible. However, some aspects of the plot are of mild interest, and the cast is reasonably good, in particular, Kathleen Beller. Still, it is mostly the wonderful work of the director of photography that keeps it worth watching. Even if quite flawed, it is worth the look: not really a great film, but one that is okay for light amusement.