Duffy (film)
Duffy | |
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Directed by | Robert Parrish |
Screenplay by | Donald Cammell Harry Joe Brown Jr. |
Story by | Donald Cammell Harry Joe Brown Jr. Pierre de la Salle |
Produced by | Martin Manulis |
Starring | James Coburn James Mason James Fox Susannah York |
Cinematography | Otto Heller |
Edited by | Willy Kemplen Alan Osbiston |
Music by | Ernie Freeman |
Production company | Martin Manulis Productions |
Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 101 minutes |
Countries | United Kingdom United States |
Language | English |
Duffy is a 1968 British-American comedy crime film directed by Robert Parrish and starring James Coburn, James Mason, James Fox and Susannah York.[1] Originally called "Avec-Avec", French for "with-it", according to 1967 press reports, Columbia Pictures changed the title of the movie, despite the protests of the stars.[2]
Plot
[edit]Duffy is a cunning aristocrat of criminals who is hired by Stefane, a young playboy, to hijack a boat carrying several million dollars of his father's fortune. The plot succeeds, with a little help from Segolene, Stefane's girlfriend, but also with an unexpected, sudden turn of events.
Cast
[edit]- James Coburn as Duffy
- James Mason as Charles
- James Fox as Stefane
- Susannah York as Segolene
- John Alderton as Antony Calvert
- Guy Deghy as Captain Schoeller
- Carl Duering as Bonivet
- Tutte Lemkow as Spaniard
- Marne Maitland as Abdul
- André Maranne as Inspector Garain (credited as Andre Maranne)
- Julie Mendez as belly dancer
- Barry Shawzin as Bakirgian
Production
[edit]It was shot at Shepperton Studios and on location in Almería. The film's sets were designed by the art director Philip Harrison.
Critical response
[edit]The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "When hippydom gets the Midas touch from Hollywood finance, it's predictable that the result should be embarrassing, if not downright painful. Instead of developing an interesting plot or giving the characters plausibility, Robert Parrish's film moves jerkily through a succession of set pieces – like the white Mediterranean beach-club where everyone is coloured brown and drinks Cinzanos out of tall glasses, or Duffy's pad filled with pop-art assemblages. The waves of percussive sub-Nashville music merely add to the unfortunate impression of watching an advertisement for an international brand of tipped cigarette. Only James Coburn as Duffy is a cool enough actor to be able to remark "Just do your thing, baby" and get away with it. The rest of the cast – even James Mason as Calvert – succumb to the palpable inanity of the script."[3]
References
[edit]- ^ "Duffy". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
- ^ Coburn Burning Brightly, The Pittsburgh Press, 13 October 1967. At Google Newspapers
- ^ "Duffy". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 35 (408): 178. 1 January 1968 – via ProQuest.
External links
[edit]
- 1968 films
- 1960s crime comedy films
- 1960s heist films
- British crime comedy films
- British heist films
- Columbia Pictures films
- Films about dysfunctional families
- Films directed by Robert Parrish
- Films set in the Mediterranean Sea
- Films set in Tangier
- Films set in London
- Films shot in Almería
- Films shot at Shepperton Studios
- Seafaring films
- 1968 comedy films
- 1960s English-language films
- 1960s British films
- 1960s British comedy film stubs