The most fun I ever had watching a movie was in college, winter quarter 1963, at the Alps Theater. The movie was Tom Jones.
Tom Jones was loaded with excellent British actors in top form, and it won four Academy Awards, including best picture.
It was the perfect film for an auditorium full of college students — a clever version of Henry Fielding’s bawdy novel about a roguish young Englishman in the 1740s. In the theater, it was 2 hours of hooting, whooping, and stomping.
Albert Finney, Diane Cilento.
This was Albert Finney’s first film. I read that he turned down the lead in Lawrence of Arabia to do it.
I’m reminded of this because I watched it on TV recently. Do yourself a favor and see it.
I found this comment about the film:
“Tom Jones” is a low budget, low tech, high quality film that must win the award for the “Most with the Least.” The photography is beautiful, not because it used a dozen half million dollar cameras, it is beautiful because it is good photography. The acting wins out, and casts of thousands would only serve to clutter the stage. See this film whenever, wherever and as often as you possibly can.
One of my favorite quotes from the movie is from Squire Western (Hugh Griffith) after his daughter Sophie (Susannah York) refuses to marry the repulsive Mr. Blifil (David Warner)…
Damn me, what a misery it is to have daughters when a man has a good mare and dogs.
Hugh Griffith, Dame Edith Evans.
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