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| Modesty Blaise | |
|---|---|
&sq=crain_ford&lang=en&file=File:Modesty_Blaise_(1966_movie_poster).jpg) Theatrical release poster by Bob Peak | |
| Directed by | Joseph Losey |
| Screenplay by |
|
| Story by |
|
| Based on | Modesty Blaise by Peter O'Donnell Jim Holdaway |
| Produced by | Joseph Janni |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Jack Hildyard |
| Edited by | Reginald Beck |
| Music by | John Dankworth |
Production company | Modesty Blaise Ltd. |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
|
Running time | 119 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | £1 million[1] or $3 million[2] |
| Box office | $2.2 million (US/Canada rentals)[3] or $3 million[4] |
Modesty Blaise is a 1966 British spy comedy film directed by Joseph Losey, produced by Joseph Janni and loosely based on the comic strip of the same name by Peter O'Donnell, who co-wrote the original story upon which Evan Jones and Harold Pinter based their screenplay. It stars Monica Vitti as "Modesty", opposite Terence Stamp as Willie Garvin and Dirk Bogarde as her nemesis Gabriel. The cast also includes Harry Andrews, Clive Revill (in a dual role), Michael Craig, Alexander Knox, Rossella Falk and Tina Aumont. The film's music was composed by Johnny Dankworth and the theme song, "Modesty", sung by pop duo David and Jonathan. It was Vitti's first English-speaking role.[5][6]
The film's production saw creative clashes between director Losey and Blaise creator O'Donnell over the vision of the final film, Losey wanting to create a "pop art"-inspired spoof of the spy film craze prevalent at the time, in contrast to the relatively serious and grounded tone of the source material. As a result, the film heavily diverged from O'Donnell's comics and story outline in many ways, and includes a number of non sequitur elements including avant garde-inspired editing and production design, musical numbers and deliberate continuity errors.
Modesty Blaise was entered into the 1966 Cannes Film Festival, where it was nominated for the Palme d'Or. General critical reception was far more muted, with critics praising the visual style and off-beat tone, but criticising the divergences from the source material, convoluted plot, and perceived "style over substance" direction.[7] Critical reception continues to be mixed decades after release,[8] but the film has gained a cult following.[9]
- ^ Walker 1974, p. 302.
- ^ Caute 1994, p. 207.
- ^ "Big Rental Pictures of 1966". Variety. 4 January 1967. p. 8.
- ^ Caute 1994, p. 212.
- ^ Palmer & Riley 1993, pp. 161–162: Filmography.
- ^ Hirsch 1980, p. 239: Filmography.
- ^ "Modesty Blaise". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
- ^ Kermode, Jennie (29 May 2012). "Modesty Blaise (1966) Movie Review". Eye for Film. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
- ^ Hirsch 1980, p. 82: "The film became a cult classic among college students...".