Tony Richardson's rousing adaptation of Fielding's classic comic novel, a sharp change of pace for a director of choleric contemporary fare, stars Albert Finney as the eponymous swordsman. A foundling whose mother is thought to be a housemaid (Joyce Redman), he's raised by her employer, the aptly named Squire Allworthy (George .. Read more
| Starring | Albert Finney, Susannah York, Diane Cilento, Joan Greenwood |
|---|---|
| Director | Tony Richardson |
| Genres | Action/Adventure, Comedy, Drama |
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Tony Richardson's rousing adaptation of Fielding's classic comic novel, a sharp change of pace for a director of choleric contemporary fare, stars Albert Finney as the eponymous swordsman. A foundling whose mother is thought to be a housemaid (Joyce Redman), he's raised by her employer, the aptly named Squire Allworthy (George Devine). He grows up to be a lively young man, loved by all except Allworthy's legitimate heir, the dour, envious Blifil (David Warner). Although Tom is in love with Sophie Western (Susannah York), his unusual susceptibility to the sight of a pretty foot leads him into a dalliance with the accommodating Molly Seagrim (Diane Cilento). Despite this lapse, Sophie still rejects the efforts of her father (Hugh Griffith) and Allworthy to arrange a marriage with Blifil because of her love for Tom. Thus, Allworthy feels obliged to send the lad away, which only briefly dampens Tom's spirits, since he's soon at a country inn, engaging in a famously libidinous eating scene with a woman met en route, who may or may not be a relative. Perhaps the director's finest two hours, despite its enormous critical and commercial success he considered it a failure. While its excellent cast, lively score, and unusually realistic art direction deserve praise, it's likely that Richardson saved the film in the editing room, emphasizing the farcical elements of the story with rapid intercutting, and adding amusingly ironic voice-over narration, ending up with one of the most entertaining costume dramas ever put on celluloid.
| Starring | Albert Finney, Susannah York, Diane Cilento, Joan Greenwood, Hugh Griffith, Edith Evans, Joyce Redman, David Tomlinson, David Warner |
|---|---|
| Director | Tony Richardson |
| Studio | MGM ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 57 mins |
| Certificate |  |
| Collections | Best Picture Oscar Winners |
| Genres | Action/Adventure, Comedy, Drama |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Dubbed | German |
| Hearing-impaired | English, German |
| Subtitles | DVD: Hungarian |
| Released | Production year: 1963 To Rent: DVD: not available |
Fantasia on Old England, at some distance from the original novel, with the director trying every possible jokey approach against a meticulously realistic physical background. Despite trade fears, the Hellzapoppin style made it an astonishing box-o
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Bawdy classic
A classic of British cinema from Woodfall Films who had previously made social realism films. Some of the *innovations* like the actors talking and winking at ... read more »
[Highly rated reviewer]
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Finney at his best
Just superb. If yuou have never seen it, book it now.
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LackLustre
A five-star film with a five-star cast: young gonnabees like Albert Finney, Susannah York and David Warner, plus old stalwarts like Edith Evans, Joan Greenwood ... read more »
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Quality fun
Tom Jones is just wonderfully enjoyable with a complex amusing storyline. Delicious quirky sixties film techniques are sparingly used to great effect and the ... read more »
It was in Breakfast of Champions that Kurt Vonnegut imagined life on a planet devoid of all plants and animals save humanoids. These humanoids took pleasure in (to our minds) an exotic, even aberrant form of pornography. It wasn't the sexual act that repelled and transfixed them. It was images of food and eating. For an hour and a half, the movie camera barely strayed from close ups of lips, teeth, and bobbing Adam's apples as a family pigged out over a simulated meal. At the film's climax,... Read more
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