''Maxie'' is a 1985 American

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by Paul Aaron, and starring

Glenn Close Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, Close has garnered numerous accolades, including two Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards ...

Mandy Patinkin Mandel Bruce Patinkin (; born November 30, 1952) is an American actor and singer, known for his work in musical theatre, television and film. He is a critically acclaimed Broadway performer, having received three Tony Award nominations, winning ...

Valerie Curtin Valerie Curtin is an American actress and screenwriter. Personal life Curtin was born in Jackson Heights, New York, the daughter of radio actor Joseph Curtin. She attended Lake Erie College. She is a cousin of TV comedian/actress Jane Curtin ...

Ruth Gordon Ruth Gordon Jones (October 30, 1896 – August 28, 1985) was an American actress, screenwriter, and playwright. She began her career performing on Broadway at age 19. Known for her nasal voice and distinctive personality, Gordon gained internati ...

and

Barnard Hughes Bernard Aloysius Kiernan Hughes (July 16, 1915 – July 11, 2006), known professionally as Barnard Hughes, was an American actor of television, theater and film. Hughes became famous for a variety of roles; his most notable roles came after mi ...

. The plot is based on the novel ''Marion's Wall'' (1973) by

Jack Finney Walter Braden "Jack" Finney (born John Finney; October 2, 1911 – November 14, 1995) was an American writer. His best-known works are science fiction and thrillers, including ''The Body Snatchers'' and '' Time and Again''. The former was the ba ...

about a woman who is

possessed Possessed may refer to: Possession * Possession (disambiguation), having some degree of control over something else ** Spirit possession, whereby gods, demons, animas, or other disincarnate entities may temporarily take control of a human body *** ...

by a very outgoing female ghost — a budding actress from the 1920s — named Maxie, who wants to fulfill her destiny.

Plot

When husband Nick Chaney and his wife Jan, somewhat staid and socially stifled, move into an old apartment house in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, they uncover a message under layers of wallpaper left by a previous tenant ("Maxie Malone lived here! Read it, and weep!"). The crazy landlady from upstairs is overwhelmed when she sees the message and tells them about an actress, Maxie Malone, who lived there in the 1920s. Maxie was a brash, young

party girl A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

who died in a car crash the morning before her big audition for a Hollywood studio. Her only movie legacy, mere minutes on film, is dug up by Nick who watches it with Jan, who goes to bed right afterwards. Nick is also headed to bed, but he is stopped by a voice which tells him to play the piece again. He thinks that it is Jan at first, but the voice materializes partially in front of him as Maxie and he plays the piece again for her. Then Maxie disappears and Nick goes to bed, dismissing the incident as a psychotic episode. The next day at work, Nick's boss (who has romantic designs on him) invites him and Jan to a party. Jan is nervous about the high society bash when Nick agrees to attend, but Maxie (who has inserted her soul into Jan's body) behaves rather differently from Jan. "Jan" gets drunk, dances seductively, and sings a vamp version of "Bye Bye Blackbird" draped over the piano, flirting with every male there. Drunk, Maxie and Nick break into an amusement park and make out on a

merry-go-round A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...

, only to be caught by a policeman, who lets them go after Nick makes up an excuse. Somehow this otherworldly possession must end, so that Jan can resume her own life. The solution lies in an audition for the lead in a new film production of Cleopatra. Paired with actor

Harry Hamlin Harry Robinson Hamlin (born October 30, 1951) is an American actor, author, and entrepreneur. He is best known for his roles as Perseus in the 1981 fantasy film '' Clash of the Titans'' and as Michael Kuzak in the legal drama series ''L.A. Law'' ...

(as himself), "Jan" dazzles everyone when Maxie takes over the role. A successful actress at last, Maxie moves on in the afterlife. She leaves Jan freer and happier, comfortable in expressing her own sexuality, thanks to sharing Maxie's irrepressible feminine spirit.

Cast

as Jan / Maxie *

as Nick *

as Mrs. Lavin *

as Bishop Campbell *

as Miss Sheffer * Googy Gress as Father Jerome *

Michael Ensign Michael Ensign (born February 13, 1944) is an American actor who mostly played very small roles. One of his most-known roles was Benjamin Guggenheim in the 1997 film ''Titanic''. Early life Ensign was raised in both the United States and Englan ...

as Cleopatra Director *

Lou Cutell Lou Cutell (October 6, 1930 – November 21, 2021) was an American actor, who was perhaps best known for his appearance as Amazing Larry in the 1985 film '' Pee-wee's Big Adventure''. Life and career Cutell was born in New York City to Sicil ...

as Art Isenberg * Michael Laskin as Commercial Director * Nelson Welch as Bartender *

Leeza Gibbons Leeza Kim Gibbons (born March 26, 1957) is an American talk show host. She is best known as a correspondent and co-host for ''Entertainment Tonight'' (1984–2000) as well as for having her own syndicated daytime talk show, ''Leeza'' (1993–20 ...

as E.T. Reporter

Production

The surviving film clip of Maxie is that of

Carole Lombard Carole Lombard (born Jane Alice Peters; October 6, 1908 – January 16, 1942) was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard 2 ...

from ''

The Campus Vamp ''The Campus Vamp'' is a 1928 American silent comedy short starring Daphne Pollard and Johnny Burke. "This early Mack Sennett comedy features a young Carole Lombard as well as the early two color Technicolor film" for a beach sequence that incl ...

'' (1928). The ending of the film differs from the novel where the audition was of a nude scene; the film changes this to a scene similar to one in ''

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

'' (1963) where Jan wears a metal snake brassiere in homage to

Theda Bara Theda Bara ( ; born Theodosia Burr Goodman; July 29, 1885 – April 7, 1955) was an American silent film and stage actress. Bara was one of the more popular actresses of the silent era and one of cinema's early sex symbols. Her femme fatal ...

in the 1917 version of the film.

Awards

Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA * 1986, Glenn Close was nominated for the

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

for Best Actress * 1986, Ruth Gordon was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival * 1986, Paul Aaron won the Silver Raven Fantasporto * 1987, Maxie was nominated for the Best Film Award International Fantasy Film Award for Best Film

Critical response

Critic

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

, in a review dated September 27, 1985, wrote, "...if Maxie had any brains, she would appear in Jan's body, take one look at the script, and decide she was better off dead."

Ebert, Roger Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

(September 27, 1985)
Maxie
''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...

''. Retrieved 2012-03-05.

References

External links

* * * * *{{AFI film, id=58186, title=Maxie 1985 films 1980s fantasy comedy films 1985 romantic comedy films 1980s romantic fantasy films 1980s ghost films 1985 independent films American fantasy comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic fantasy films American ghost films American independent films Films about actors Films about spirit possession Films about time travel Films based on works by Jack Finney Films scored by Georges Delerue Films set in 1985 Films set in San Francisco Films shot in California Aurora Productions films Orion Pictures films Films with screenplays by Patricia Resnick Films directed by Paul Aaron 1980s English-language films 1980s American films