''Lilith'' is a 1964 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 ...

written and directed by

Robert Rossen Robert Rossen (March 16, 1908 – February 18, 1966) was an American screenwriter, film director, and producer whose film career spanned almost three decades. His 1949 film '' All the King's Men'' won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Actor and Be ...

. It is based on a novel by J.R. Salamanca and stars

Warren Beatty Henry Warren Beatty (né Beaty; born March 30, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker, whose career spans over six decades. He was nominated for 15 Academy Awards, including four for Best Actor, four for Best Picture, two for Best Director, ...

and

Jean Seberg Jean Dorothy Seberg (; ; November 13, 1938August 30, 1979) was an American actress who lived half of her life in France. Her performance in Jean-Luc Godard's 1960 film ''Breathless'' immortalized her as an icon of French New Wave cinema. Seb ...

Plot

Set in a private mental institution,

Chestnut Lodge Chestnut Lodge (formerly known as Woodlawn Hotel) was a historic building in Rockville, Maryland, United States, well known as a psychiatric institution. It was a contributing property to the West Montgomery Avenue Historic District. History ...

in Rockville, Maryland, the film tells of a trainee occupational therapist, a troubled ex-soldier named Vincent Bruce (Beatty), who becomes dangerously obsessed with seductive, artistic,

schizophrenic Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social withdr ...

patient Lilith Arthur (Seberg). Bruce is successful in helping Lilith emerge from seclusion and leave the institutional grounds for a day in the country, and later escorts her on excursions in which she is alone with him. She attempts to seduce him, and eventually Bruce tells Lilith he is in love with her, after which they begin sleeping together. He catches Lilith seducing an older female patient and witnesses her behaving inappropriately with young boys on two of her outings, incidents which greatly disturb Bruce. Bruce triggers the suicide of another patient (Fonda) out of jealousy over the patient's crush on Lilith. This brings up memories in Lilith of her brother's suicide, which she implies was due to her attempt to initiate an incestuous relationship with him. She goes on a destructive rampage in her room and winds up in a catatonic state. Bruce then presents himself to his superiors for psychiatric help.

Production

Chestnut Lodge would not permit filming on location so those scenes were done in a vacant mansion rented by the production company, Centur Productions, on the North Shore of Long Island (Locust Valley). Location shooting in Maryland was done in a private home in Rockville as well as in the downtown area, plus scenes at Great Falls on both the Maryland and Virginia sides of the Potomac River, as well as a staged carnival scene at

Barnesville, Maryland Barnesville is a town in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It was incorporated in 1888. The population was 144 at the 2020 census. History The Maryland General Assembly chartered the town of Barnesville in 1811 and named it in honor ...

. This was Rossen's last film.

Preservation

The Academy Film Archive preserved ''Lilith'' in 2000.

Cast

as Vincent Bruce *

as Lilith Arthur * Peter Fonda as Stephen Evshevsky * Kim Hunter as Dr. Bea Brice *

Anne Meacham Mary Anne Meacham (July 21, 1925—January 12, 2006) was a noted American actress of stage, film and television. Born and raised in Chicago, Meacham left to study drama at Yale University, graduating with a degree in 1947. New York stage Meacham ...

as Mrs. Yvonne Meaghan *

Jessica Walter Jessica Walter (January 31, 1941 – March 24, 2021) was an American actress who appeared in over 170 film, stage and television productions. In film, she was best known for her role as a psychotic and obsessed fan of a local disc jockey in t ...

as Laura * Gene Hackman as Norman *

James Patterson James Brendan Patterson (born March 22, 1947) is an American author. Among his works are the '' Alex Cross'', '' Michael Bennett'', '' Women's Murder Club'', '' Maximum Ride'', '' Daniel X'', '' NYPD Red'', '' Witch & Wizard'', and ''Private'' ...

as Dr. Lavrier * Robert Reilly as Bob Clayfield

Reputation

In ''

The New Biographical Dictionary of Film ''The New Biographical Dictionary of Film'' is a reference book written by film critic David Thomson, originally published by Martin Secker & Warburg Ltd in 1975 under the title ''A Biographical Dictionary of Cinema.'' Organized by personality, ...

'', David Thomson describes ''Lilith'' as "an oddity, the only one of ossen'sfilms that seems passionate, mysterious and truly personal. The other films will look increasingly dated and self-contained, but ''Lilith'' may grow."

Accolades

The film was nominated for the American Film Institute's 2002 list AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions. Jean Seberg was nominated for Best Actress—Drama Golden Globe award by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

References

External links

* * {{Robert Rossen 1964 films 1964 drama films American black-and-white films American drama films Columbia Pictures films 1960s English-language films Films based on American novels Films directed by Robert Rossen Films scored by Kenyon Hopkins Films set in psychiatric hospitals Films with screenplays by Robert Rossen 1960s American films