''Inside Daisy Clover'' is a 1965 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

based on

Gavin Lambert Gavin Lambert (23 July 1924 – 17 July 2005) was a British-born screenwriter, novelist and biographer who lived for part of his life in Hollywood. His writing was mainly fiction and nonfiction about the film industry. Personal life Lam ...

's 1963 novel of the same name, directed by

Robert Mulligan Robert Patrick Mulligan (August 23, 1925 – December 20, 2008) was an American director and producer. He is best known for his humanist dramas, including ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' (1962), '' Summer of '42'' (1971), ''The Other'' (1972), '' Same ...

and starring

Natalie Wood Natalie Wood ( Zacharenko; July 20, 1938 – November 29, 1981) was an American actress who began her career in film as a child and successfully transitioned to young adult roles. Wood started acting at age four and was given a co-starring r ...

. It follows a

tomboy A tomboy is a term for a girl or a young woman with masculine qualities. It can include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and actively engage in physical sports or other activities and behaviors usually associated with boys or men. W ...

becoming a

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

actress and singer.

Plot

In 1936

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to i ...

, Daisy Clover is a tomboy, living with her eccentric mother in a ramshackle trailer. Wishing to become an actress, Daisy submits a recorded song to studio owner Raymond Swan. Swan puts her under contract for five years and makes arrangements to hide her mother away in a mental institution. Daisy meets and spends time with fellow actor Wade Lewis. Raymond fears that the romance will interrupt Daisy's job. Wade asks Daisy to marry him. She agrees and the ceremony is held at Raymond's house. During the honeymoon, Wade drives off and leaves Daisy in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. When Daisy returns to California, an extremely intoxicated Melora Swan (Raymond's wife) reveals to her that she had an affair with the closet homosexual Wade. Raymond tells Daisy about Wade's orientation, as he'd informed Melora. Raymond and Daisy begin an affair. Daisy takes her mother out of the care home and spirits her away to a house on the beach. When her mother unexpectedly dies, Daisy suffers a nervous breakdown. Unable to work, she spends her days at home under the care of a private nurse. Becoming impatient with Daisy's long recovery, Raymond tells her she must finish her contract and pending film. After Raymond and the nurse leave the house, Daisy attempts suicide, only to be foiled by constant interruptions. She ultimately decides to live and leave everything behind. Before leaving, she turns on the oven's gas which causes the house to catch fire and explode. As she walks away on the beach, a passing fisherman asks her what has happened. Daisy replies, “Someone declared war.”

Cast

as Daisy Clover *

Christopher Plummer Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage, and television. He received multiple accolades, inc ...

as Raymond Swan (AKA "The Prince of Darkness") *

Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award from four nominations, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, the Cec ...

as Wade Lewis * Ruth Gordon as Lucile Clover *

Roddy McDowall Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...

as Walter Baines *

Katharine Bard Katharine Bard (October 19, 1916 – July 28, 1983) was an American actress. She appeared in the films ''The Decks Ran Red'', '' The Interns'', ''Johnny Cool'', ''Inside Daisy Clover'' and ''How to Save a Marriage and Ruin Your Life''. She appear ...

as Melora Swan * Peter Helm as Milton Hopwood * Betty Harford as Gloria Clover Goslett * John Hale as Harry Goslett *

Harold Gould Harold Vernon Goldstein (December 10, 1923 – September 11, 2010), better known as Harold Gould, was an American character actor. He appeared as Martin Morgenstern on the sitcom ''Rhoda'' (1974–78) and Miles Webber on the sitcom ''The Golden ...

as Cop on Pier *

Ottola Nesmith Ottola Nesmith (December 12, 1889 – February 7, 1972) was an American actress who appeared in more than 100 films and television shows. Selected filmography * '' Still Waters'' (1915) - Drasa La Rue * '' Rich Man, Poor Man'' (1918) - Mr ...

as Dolores *

Edna Holland Edna Milton Holland (September 20, 1895 – May 4, 1982) was an American actress. Her stage, screen and television lasted from the beginning of the 20th century to 1965. Holland was the daughter of comedian Edmund Milton Holland and actress ...

as Cynara

Reception

Upon its release, the film was a

box office A box office or ticket office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a wicket. By extension, the term is fre ...

and critical failure. However, the film later gained a cult following when it was shown on television and released on home video. The '' New York World-Telegram and The Sun'' found much to criticize: "

he film He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

conducts a spectacular travesty of some of Hollywood's preposterously lush nooks without stirring any notable amount of mirth. And it follows Hollywood's predatory smothering of an impulsive, endearing Cinderella without stirring much sentiment or sympathy... Oh! This pathetic innocent is hurt, hurt, hurt but no one cares, cares, cares so long as her picture is finished and rolls in dough, dough, dough... The makers of the picture do not care to make themselves altogether clear but there are hints of the depravity of its Hollywood in fleeting insinuations of dope and homosexuality. The orgies of sex and liquor are much more explicitly presented... atalie Woodseems about to become the movie's biggest dubbing job since Rita Hayworth made her long series of musicals, coming equipped with a different voice for nearly every picture." At the time of the film's release, homosexuality was a highly taboo subject in American society and, prior to the 1960s, one of the topics the Hollywood Hays Code expressly prohibited. Redford reportedly insisted that his character, gay in the original novel, have some interest in women. Likewise the studio, fearful of the potential controversy, insisted that the film only acknowledge the character's bisexuality through a few bits of dialogue. Despite these limitations, the film is generally recognized for one of the early depictions of a gay or bisexual character in American cinema who is not ashamed of his sexuality and does not commit suicide.

Soundtrack

Wood's singing voice was dubbed by session singer

Jackie Ward Jackie Ward (born Jacqueline McDonnell, 1941), better known as Robin Ward, is an American singer, regarded as a "one-hit wonder" of 1963 million-selling song "Wonderful Summer". However, using her real name she was highly accomplished and s ...

with the exception of the introduction to the song '' You're Gonna Hear from Me'' (by

Dory Previn Dorothy "Dory" Veronica Previn ( Langan; October 22, 1925 – February 14, 2012) was an American lyricist, singer-songwriter and poet. During the late 1950s and 1960s, Previn was a lyricist on songs intended for motion pictures and, with her t ...

and

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

, who composed the score). The song was later recorded by

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (born December 12, 1937), known professionally as Connie Francis, is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Called the “First Lady of Rock & Roll” ...

in English for the album ''

Movie Greats Of the 60s ''Movie Greats of the 60s'' is a studio album recorded by American entertainer Connie Francis. The album features songs from the soundtracks of then current and/or recent motion pictures. Background The recording of the featured songs spanned a ...

'' (1966) and one year later in Spanish as ''Ya te hablarán de mi'' for the Spanish version of the album, '' Grandes Éxitos del Cine de los Años 60;'' by

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles ch ...

for the album '' The Windows of the World'' (1967); by Scott Walker on his début solo album ''

Scott Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Sask ...

'' (1967); and by

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers awar ...

on '' The Movie Album'' (2003). Wood's vocal recordings, completed for other songs, were unused and unheard on commercial recordings until the ''

Film Score Monthly ''Film Score Monthly'' is an online magazine (and former print magazine) founded by editor-in-chief and executive producer Lukas Kendall in June 1990 in music, 1990 as ''The Soundtrack Correspondence List''. It is dedicated to the art of Film sco ...

'' was released in April 2009.

Accolades

References

External links

* * * * * {{Robert Mulligan 1965 films 1960s musical drama films 1965 LGBT-related films 1965 romantic drama films American LGBT-related films American musical drama films American romantic drama films 1960s English-language films Films scored by André Previn Films about actors Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles Films based on British novels Films directed by Robert Mulligan Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe-winning performance Films set in the 1930s Films set in Los Angeles LGBT-related musical drama films Warner Bros. films LGBT-related romantic drama films 1960s American films