The Entertainer

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The Entertainer

1960,

1h 37m,

Drama

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Watchlist

Watchlist

71%

14 Reviews

Tomatometer

74%

1,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

71%

Tomatometer

14 Reviews

74%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

London schoolteacher Jean Rice (Joan Plowright) returns to her seaside resort hometown at a time of personal crisis. Her father, Archie (Laurence Olivier), is a star on the music hall circuit, but, in the television age, that old-fashioned entertainment is dying out. His second wife, Phoebe (Brenda De Banzie), is openly contemptuous of her husband's many affairs, and his son, Mick (Albert Finney), is a soldier fighting in the Suez. Despite Archie's unflagging optimism, tragic events unfold.

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Penelope Houston

Sight & Sound

Jan 11, 2020

This kind of purposeful acting is something encouragingly new on the British screen; and the cinema cannot be allowed to imagine it can continue to do without it.

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Christopher Lloyd

The Film Yap

Jan 20, 2025

2/5

Christopher Lloyd finally punches his ticket to see one of his white-whale classics starring Laurence Olivier as a has-been vaudevillian, and comes away throwing tomatoes.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

Jan 7, 2023

Olivier gives his all as the gap tooth vaudevillian living in the shadow of his music hall legend father Billy Rice (Roger Livesey), spitting out pithy wisecracks and mugging pathetically for bored audiences in seaside dives.

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Clyde Gilmour

Maclean's Magazine

Oct 31, 2019

Customers who expect all British films to be either sunny or funny will get a nasty jolt, but Olivier's Archie Rice is a brilliant exploit.

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Dwight MacDonald

Esquire Magazine

Jul 16, 2019

Rarely have I seen so disorganized a film; nothing seems to lead to anything; there's a lot of fancy cutting and camera angles, but each attempt at cinematic effect merely confuses things still more.

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MFB Critics

Monthly Film Bulletin

Jan 31, 2018

The changes just aren't ruthless enough; the play's inherent difficulties haven't really been solved.

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George S

May 27, 2018

A beautiful performance by Olivier. The decline of British influence in teh world is modeled as a metaphor by the decline of a musichall performer.

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Hagrid W

Mar 31, 2018

A standout entry, with early performances by nearly unrecognizable Joan Plowright, Albert Finney and Alan Bates, this concerns not only the gradual decline of one seedy and narcissistic performer (Larry Olivier chewing scenery with abandon), but also of an entertainment style (the English music hall) and perhaps of England herself, seen from the guts outward. A glorious kitchen sink production, grime-y and livid.

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Ron R

Jan 9, 2018

Absolutely mesmerising melodrama about a music hall entertainer of mediocre ability. Must have been very near the knuckle for its time. It has laughs, tears and a mesmerising and incredible performance from Laurence Olivier.

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Tony Richardson

Director

Laurence Olivier

Archie Rice

Brenda De Banzie

Phoebe Rice

Albert Finney

Mick Rice

Joan Plowright

Jean Rice

Roger Livesey

Billy Rice

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Synopsis

London schoolteacher Jean Rice (Joan Plowright) returns to her seaside resort hometown at a time of personal crisis. Her father, Archie (Laurence Olivier), is a star on the music hall circuit, but, in the television age, that old-fashioned entertainment is dying out. His second wife, Phoebe (Brenda De Banzie), is openly contemptuous of her husband's many affairs, and his son, Mick (Albert Finney), is a soldier fighting in the Suez. Despite Archie's unflagging optimism, tragic events unfold.

Director: Tony Richardson
Producer: Harry Saltzman
Screenwriter: Nigel Kneale, John Osborne, John Osborne
Distributor: Criterion Collection, Continental Distributing Inc.
Production Co: Woodfall Film Productions
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 3, 1960, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 29, 2016
Runtime: 1h 37m
Sound Mix: Stereo, Mono
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.66:1)

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