BUtterfield 8 (1960)

Very Cool!!!

An absolute waste of money

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

I love BUTTERFIELD 8 but agree it's more good than great -- or, as the phrase goes, "great trash".I don't mind Eddie Fisher, but Harvey is too sleazy (and not in a good way) for my tastes in the role. I always recast him in my head with James Mason. I also believe Taylor very much deserved her Oscar for this, even if she didn't think so (and her bitterness stems from the fact MGM forced her to do the movie after telling Mike Todd she wouldn't have to make anymore pictures she didn't like before her contract expired in 1960). She's fabulous in this. Her "I loved it!" confessional scene is kind of jaw-dropping... And I can watch her to-period "tragic" car accident till I'm blue in the face from howling like a hyena. It's laugh-out-loud funny.Part of why the picture almost works is of course the era, that fresh, haunted, end-of-the-world, early-early-'60s thing going for it, albeit in Ektachrome or whatever the hell they were using... Funny how the pastels of the late-'50s/early-'60s were so much more vibrant: I loved the soft blue phone and the soft pink phone set against the pink bathroom tile -- those sooooo bring back childhood memories... It's hard to describe the look that these had from that period; they were almost child's playhouse floating-on-a-cloud colors. And the cars which were easter egg colors and even primary colors. Every car color has been so muted for decades now -- you never see a primary color for a car anymore.Semi-great sudser, lifted to a level of art by a defiant Taylor.

This really is the definition of a "guilty pleasure". It is also sort of symbolic of Hollywood in the late 50's/early 60's and an ironic one in the career of Elizabeth Taylor's. Who would believe that two years after one of Hollywood's biggest scandals (with Taylor as the "other woman") she would play "the other woman" in a melodramatic soap opera? Nobody will ever accuse Laurence Harvey of being Eddie Fisher or Dina Merrill of being Debbie Reynolds, although the later is closer as her character is as noble on screen as the press made Debbie out to be in real life. Perhaps this is one of the reasons Taylor hated the film so much because it was a bit of a parallel, and maybe she was sick of the subject....But, I digress. Looking much like Maggie in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" in the opening scene wearing nothing but a slip, her character of Gloria is a slightly aging New York party girl. They say when Broadway babies say goodnight, it's early in the morning, and when Taylor wakes up, she finds everything around her in a shambles. Her dress is destroyed, she can't find a cigarette she likes, and Harvey has left her money, she later finds out, to replace the dress. Several years before the code changed, this opening scene is still pretty racy. So with no other way to get home, Taylor simply "borrows" a mink coat from Harvey's closet which is later revealed to belong to his wife Dina Merrill. Taylor is livid by the "insult". It is obvious that Taylor is not a prostitute, but she's not Donna Reed, either. (Unless it's Reed in "From Here to Eternity"!) You know right from the start that Taylor is one complex, neurotic woman. She obviously has a job (it seems wearing her outfits from some design firm around town to get them seen it appears), but for the women who know her (with the exception of naive mother Mildred Dunnock), Taylor isn't someone you leave alone with your husband. Susan Oliver is one of those women, the girlfriend of Taylor's pal, Eddie Fisher. In the early 30's, pre-code films like this were "warnings" to young ladies heading to the big city, but by 1960, the world was wise enough not to cry "danger, danger!" when showing us Gloria's plight. Taylor really isn't doing anything here she hadn't done in her recent successes, but her one key scene (unleashing her soul to Eddie Fisher about her past) is magnificent and perhaps what voters remembered when they voted her the Oscar. There is no doubt how this will end, but the lavish filming makes this truly fun to watch.I don't see this film being done in Louis B. Mayer's day at MGM, but with the permissiveness of this era, "BUtterfield 8" is not at all shocking. Harvey does what he can to make the louse of a husband likable. Some people may find Dina Merrill's wealthy socialite too good for words, but I truly empathized with her. She could have used her financial standing to be more controlling, but then she'd be labeled just another "rich bitch", which she certainly was not. I find this made her the most likable character in the film, although Kay Medford's brief scenes as the owner of the cheap road motel were filled with heart, humor and wisdom as well. Dunnock, too, was excellent as the close-eyed mother, and Betty Fields offers some amusing moments as her witty friend who pretends to hate Taylor but you know instantly actually can't help but like her. This is one of those lavish soap operas (much like "A Summer Place" and "From the Terrace") that you can't help but enjoy in spite of its triteness.

John O'Hara loved writing about bad girls, and "Butterfield 8," adapted from his novel, is no exception. Elizabeth Taylor stars as Gloria, a model/slut who sleeps around and keeps up the good girl illusion with her mother (Mildred Dunnock). Her mother's friend (Betty Field) has Gloria's number (Butterfield 8), but doesn't say anything to her mother. Gloria then falls in love with an unhappily married man (Laurence Harvey) -- but is it too late for her? Meanwhile, her childhood friend Steve (Eddie Fisher) is there to take care of her and listen to her confessions. His girlfriend (Susan Oliver) doesn't like it. I was reminded watching the film of Carrie Fisher's comment about her father: "When Mike Todd died, Eddie flew to Liz's side. Eventually, he got around to her front." The only reason to sit through this soapy, dated drama is Elizabeth Taylor, at the height of her beauty. And she's very good, despite people (and her) thinking her Oscar was a sympathy award.The film moves slowly, but Taylor keeps it interesting. She was a true movie star in the very best sense. When she was on the screen, you couldn't take your eyes off of her.

Reluctant prostitute Elizabeth Taylor (as Gloria Wandrous) wakes up beautifully naked in her trick's bed. After scrounging around for a cigarette and scotch, she dons a slinky slip and brushes her teeth. When she finds $250 for services rendered, Ms. Taylor gets disgusted and saunters off in the mink coat belonging to the wife of wealthy bed-mate Laurence Harvey (as Weston Liggett). "I borrowed something spiteful and elegant," Taylor tells platonic pal Eddie Fisher (as Steve Carpenter). Mr. Fisher worries Taylor has become "boozed up and burned out." Fisher tinkers on the piano, but doesn't get a song to sing.A self-admitted "slut of all time," Taylor is sick of being mistaken for one. She calls herself a model, and really wants to settle down with someone like Mr. Harvey. "I've been with a man - a whole week," she excitedly tells mother Mildred Dunnock. Harvey is married, however, unhappily to beautiful country club blonde Dina Merrill (as Emily). Ms. Merrill (later Mrs. Robertson) never handled golf clubs at the "Maidstone Club" the way she wields her rifle in "Butterfield 8". Taylor (then Mrs. Fisher) was a triple crown movie queen when this film was released - with big celebrity, box office, and critical acclaim.Everyone, including the star, felt Taylor won the 1960 "Academy Award" for "Best Actress" because she nearly died during a health crisis. But, Taylor is undeniably excellent in this film. She also won the year's "Film Daily" award, and was nominated or mentioned by many critics and organizations, before her near-death experience. With Taylor's beautiful bust filling the screen, "Butterfield 8" is unabashedly trashy, but the star and production values are strong. This was the last in a string of consistently fine performances from Taylor. Her long-awaited next outing, "Cleopatra" (1963), initiated a series of ups and downs.******* Butterfield 8 (11/4/60) Daniel Mann ~ Elizabeth Taylor, Laurence Harvey, Eddie Fisher, Dina Merrill