''The V.I.P.s'' (also known as ''Hotel International'') is a 1963 British

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film in

Metrocolor Metrocolor is the trade name used by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) for films processed at their laboratory. Virtually all of these films were shot on Kodak's Eastmancolor film. Although MGM used Kodak film products, MGM did not use all of Kodak's proc ...

and

Panavision Panavision is an American motion picture equipment company founded in 1953 specializing in cameras and lenses, based in Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk as a small partnership to create anamorphic projection lenses during ...

. It was directed by

Anthony Asquith Anthony William Landon Asquith (; 9 November 1902 – 20 February 1968) was an English film director. He collaborated successfully with playwright Terence Rattigan on ''The Winslow Boy'' (1948) and '' The Browning Version'' (1951), among oth ...

, produced by

Anatole de Grunwald Anatole "Tolly" de Grunwald (25 December 1910 – 13 January 1967) was a Russian British film producer and screenwriter. Biography De Grunwald was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, the son of a diplomat (Constantin de Grunwald) in the se ...

, and distributed by

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

. The film was written by

Terence Rattigan Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan (10 June 191130 November 1977) was a British dramatist and screenwriter. He was one of England's most popular mid-20th-century dramatists. His plays are typically set in an upper-middle-class background.Geoffrey Wan ...

, with a music score by

Miklós Rózsa Miklós Rózsa (; April 18, 1907 – July 27, 1995) was a Hungarian-American composer trained in Germany (1925–1931) and active in France (1931–1935), the United Kingdom (1935–1940), and the United States (1940–1995), with extensi ...

. It has an all-star cast, including

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable pe ...

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...

Louis Jourdan Louis Jourdan (born Louis Robert Gendre; 19 June 1921 – 14 February 2015) was a French film and television actor. He was known for his suave roles in several Hollywood films, including Alfred Hitchcock's ''The Paradine Case'' (1947), '' Lette ...

Elsa Martinelli Elsa Martinelli (born Elisa Tia; 30 January 1935 – 8 July 2017) was an Italian actress and fashion model. Life and career Born Elisa Tia in Grosseto, Tuscany, she moved to Rome with her family. In 1953, she was discovered by Roberto Capuc ...

Maggie Smith Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (born 28 December 1934) is an English actress. With an extensive career on screen and stage beginning in the mid-1950s, Smith has appeared in more than sixty films and seventy plays. She is one of the few performer ...

Rod Taylor Rodney Sturt Taylor (11 January 1930 – 7 January 2015) was an Australian actor. He appeared in more than 50 feature films, including ''The Time Machine'' (1960), ''One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (1961), '' The Birds'' (1963), and ''In ...

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

, and

Margaret Rutherford Dame Margaret Taylor Rutherford, (11 May 1892 – 22 May 1972) was an English actress of stage, television and film. She came to national attention following World War II in the film adaptations of Noël Coward's '' Blithe Spirit'', and Osca ...

, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress as well as the

Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture The Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture is a Golden Globe Award that was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association in 1944 for a performance in a motion picture released in the previous year. The for ...

. Costumes by

Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin (, , ), born Pietro Costante Cardino (2 July 1922 – 29 December 2020), was an Italian-born naturalised-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometric shap ...

Plot

The film is set within Terminal 3 of

London Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the Airports of London, London airport sys ...

during a fog. As flights are delayed, the VIPs (

very important people ''Very Important People'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British television sketch comedy, sketch show starring Morgana Robinson, Terry Mynott, Francine Lewis and Liam Hourican. The series comprises six episodes and was broadcast on Chann ...

) of the title play out the drama of their lives in a number of slightly interconnected stories. The delays have caused serious hardship for most of the characters and have plunged some of them into a deep personal or financial crisis. The central story concerns famed actress Frances Andros (

) trying to leave her husband, millionaire Paul Andros (

), and fly away with her suitor Marc Champselle (

). Because of the fog, Andros has the opportunity to come to the airport to persuade his wife not to leave him. The Duchess of Brighton (

) is on her way to Florida to take a job, which will pay her enough money to save her historic home. Meanwhile, film producer Max Buda (

) needs to leave London, taking his newest protégée Gloria Gritti (

) with him, by midnight if he is to avoid paying a hefty tax bill. Les Mangrum (

), an Australian businessman, must get to New York City to prevent his business from being sold. His dutiful secretary, Miss Mead (

), is secretly in love with him. It being a matter of great urgency, she decides to approach Paul Andros and ask him to advance a sum of money that will save Mangrum's company. Buda spots a poster picturing the Duchess's home. She is offered a sum of money if she will permit Buda to use it as a location in a film, enough to keep the house she loves. Andros, meanwhile, about to lose the woman he loves, is spared a possible suicide at the last minute when he and his wife reconcile.

Cast

as Frances Andros *

as Paul Andros *

as Marc Champselle *

as Gloria Gritti *

as The Duchess of Brighton *

as Miss Mead *

as Les Mangrum *

as Max Buda *

Linda Christian Linda Christian (born Blanca Rosa Henrietta Stella Welter Vorhauer; November 13, 1923 – July 22, 2011) was a Mexican film actress, who appeared in Mexican and Hollywood films. Her career reached its peak in the 1940s and 1950s. She played Mara ...

as Miriam Marshall *

Dennis Price Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose Price (23 June 1915 – 6 October 1973) was an English actor, best remembered for his role as Louis Mazzini in the film ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1949) and for his portrayal of the omnicompetent valet Jeeves ...

as Commander Millbank *

Richard Wattis Richard Wattis (25 February 1912 – 1 February 1975) was an English actor, co-starring in many popular British comedies of the 1950s and 1960s. Early life Richard Cameron Wattis was born on 25 February 1912 in Wednesbury, Staffordshire, the ...

as Sanders *

David Frost Sir David Paradine Frost (7 April 1939 – 31 August 2013) was a British television host, journalist, comedian and writer. He rose to prominence during the satire boom in the United Kingdom when he was chosen to host the satirical programme ' ...

as Reporter * Ronald Fraser as Joslin *

Robert Coote Robert Coote (4 February 1909 – 26 November 1982) was an English actor. He played aristocrats or British military types in many films, and created the role of Colonel Hugh Pickering in the long-running original Broadway production of ''My Fai ...

as John Coburn *

Michael Hordern Sir Michael Murray Hordern CBE (3 October 19112 May 1995)Morley, Sheridan"Hordern, Michael Murray (1911–1995)" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, online edition, May 2009, accessed 22 July 2015 was ...

as Airport Director *

Martin Miller Martin Miller may refer to: *Martin Miller (actor) (1899–1969), Czech actor *Martin Miller (cricketer, born 1940), English cricketer *Martin Miller (cricketer, born 1972), English cricketer *Martin Miller (footballer) (born 1997), Estonian footbal ...

as Dr. Schwutzbacher *

Lance Percival John Lancelot Blades Percival (26 July 1933 – 6 January 2015), known as Lance Percival, was an English actor, comedian and singer, best known for his appearances in satirical comedy television shows of the early 1960s and his ability to impro ...

as B.O.A.C. Official *

Joan Benham Joan may refer to: People and fictional characters *Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters *:Joan of Arc, a French military heroine *Joan (surname) Weather events *Tropical Storm Joan (disambiguation), multiple ...

as Miss Potter *

Peter Sallis Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

as Doctor *

Stringer Davis James Buckley Stringer Davis, generally known as Stringer Davis (4 June 1899 – 29 August 1973), was an English character actor on the stage and in films, and a British army officer who served in both world wars. He was married to actress Marg ...

as Hotel Waiter *

Clifton Jones Clifton Jones (born 26 July 1937, St. Andrew, Jamaica) is a Jamaican actor known for his roles in British television. Career He played the role of Jo's boyfriend in the original Theatre Workshop production of Shelagh Delaney's '' A Taste of H ...

as Jamaican Passenger *

Moyra Fraser Moyra Fraser (3 December 1923 – 13 December 2009) was an Australian-born English actress and ballet dancer, who is best known for playing Penny in the long-running sitcom '' As Time Goes By''. Her sister was the actress Shelagh Fraser. She mar ...

as Air Hostess Uncredited Cast *

Duncan Lewis Major General Duncan Edward Lewis (born 3 August 1953) is an Australian military officer, diplomat and intelligence chief. From 2014 to 2019, he was the Director-General of Security of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO). Pr ...

as Hotel Receptionist * Raymond Austin as Rolls-Royce Chauffeur * Cal McCord as Visitor * Virginia Bedard as Knebworth House visitor * Jill Carson as Air Hostess *

Ann Castle Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in th ...

as Lady Reporter * Rosemary Dorken as Airport Announcer * Betty Trapp as Waitress * Maggie McGrath as Waitress *

Lewis Fiander Lewis Ernest Fiander (12 January 1938 – 24 May 2016) was an Australian film, stage, and television actor. Biography Fiander was born in Melbourne to Mona Jane (née King) and Walter Lewis Fiander, and educated at Trinity Grammar School, Ke ...

as Third Reporter * John Blythe as Barman *

Richard Briers Richard David Briers (14 January 1934 – 17 February 2013) was an English actor whose five-decade career encompassed film, radio, stage and television. Briers first came to prominence as George Starling in ''Marriage Lines'' (1961–66), but ...

as Meteorological Official *

Richard Caldicot Richard Caldicot (7 October 1908 – 16 October 1995) was an English actor famed for his role of Commander (later Captain) Povey in the BBC radio series ''The Navy Lark''. He also appeared often on television, memorably as the obstetrician del ...

as Hotel Representative *

Reginald Beckwith William Reginald Beckwith (2 November 190826 June 1965) was an English film and television actor, who made over one hundred film and television appearances in his career. He died of a heart attack aged 56. Beckwith was also a film critic and ...

as Head Waiter *

Terence Alexander Terence Joseph Alexander (11 March 1923 – 28 May 2009) was an English film and television actor, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British TV drama '' Bergerac'', which ran for nine series on BBC One between 1981 and 1991. ...

as Captain * Frank Williams as Assistant to Airport Director *

Clifford Mollison Clifford Lely Mollison (30 March 1897 – 4 June 1986) was a British stage, film and television actor. He made his stage debut in 1913. He was married to the actress Avril Wheatley. His younger brother was the actor Henry Mollison. Mollison ac ...

as Mr. River the Hotel Manager *

Gordon Sterne Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...

as Official *

Joyce Carey Joyce Carey, OBE (30 March 1898 – 28 February 1993) was an English actress, best known for her long professional and personal relationship with Noël Coward. Her stage career lasted from 1916 until 1987, and she was performing on television ...

as Mrs. Damer *

Angus Lennie Angus Wilson Lennie (18 April 1930 – 14 September 2014) was a Scottish film and theatre character actor with a 50-year career span. His numerous credits include the character of Flying Officer Archibald Ives in '' The Great Escape'', and ' ...

as Meteorological Man *

Peter Illing Peter Illing (4 March 1899 – 29 October 1966) was an Austrian-born British film and television actor. Selected TV series * ''Deadline Midnight'' (1961) as Captain Dnieprovsky * ''The Saint'' (1962) as Inspector Buono Filmography * ''The Silv ...

as Mr. Damer

Production

Script

According to a biography of Rattigan, the idea of the film originated with the writer's experience of a flight delay due to fog at London Airport; and one of the story lines is drawn from the true story of actress

Vivien Leigh Vivien Leigh ( ; 5 November 1913 – 8 July 1967; born Vivian Mary Hartley), styled as Lady Olivier after 1947, was a British actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, for her definitive performances as Scarlett O'Hara in ''Gon ...

's attempt to leave her husband, actor

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...

, for the actor

Peter Finch Frederick George Peter Ingle Finch (28 September 191614 January 1977) was an English-Australian actor of theatre, film and radio. Born in London, he emigrated to Australia as a teenager and was raised in Sydney, where he worked in vaudeville ...

, but Leigh got trapped in the VIP lounge at

Heathrow Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...

due to fog.

Casting

Asquith intended for

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

to play Taylor's role, remembering the box-office success of ''

The Millionairess ''The Millionairess'' is a 1960 British romantic comedy film directed by Anthony Asquith, and starring Sophia Loren and Peter Sellers. Set in London, it is a loose adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's 1936 play of the same name. Plot By the t ...

'' (1960) he did with Loren in the main role. However, Taylor, scared by the appeal Loren had for Burton, persuaded Asquith to hire her instead; "Let Sophia stay in Rome", she told him. This was the first time Australian actor

had played an Australian character on film. Terence Rattigan allowed him to Australian-ise some of the dialogue.

, Rutherford's husband, appears in a tiny role as a sympathetic hotel waiter in a scene with her. Raymond Austin, a

stuntman A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...

and a friend of Burton, appears in the film as Andros's driver. Television personality

portrays a reporter interviewing the VIPs at the airport.

Filming

The film was shot entirely at

MGM-British Studios MGM-British was a subsidiary of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer initially established (as MGM London Films Denham) at Denham Film Studios in 1936. It was in limbo during the Second World War; however, following the end of hostilities, a facility was acquired ...

, Borehamwood, Herts., with a few establishing shots filmed at what was then known as London Airport, later Heathrow. The terminal set was one of the largest ever constructed in the UK.

Reaction

Box office

Critical reaction to the film was mixed. It nevertheless did extremely well at the box office, helped by the enormous publicity attached to Burton and Taylor's ''

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 ...

'', which was out on release. The film grossed $15,000,000 domestically, earning $7.5 million in U.S. theatrical rentals on a budget of $4 million. In addition to its North American success, it was one of the 12 most popular films in Britain in 1963. It had admissions of 765,804 in France.

Critical

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

of ''The New York Times'' praised ''The V.I.P.s'' as "a lively, engrossing romantic film cut to the always serviceable pattern of the old multi-character '

Grand Hotel A grand hotel is a large and luxurious hotel, especially one housed in a building with traditional architectural style. It began to flourish in the 1800s in Europe and North America. Grand Hotel may refer to: Hotels Africa * Grande Hotel Beir ...

,' and some of the other people in it are even more exciting than the top two stars. Louis Jordan, for instance." ''Variety'' called the film "a smooth and cunning brew with most of the ingredients demanded of popular screen entertainment. It has suspense, conflict, romance, comedy and drama ... Its main fault is that some of the characters and by-plots are not developed enough though they and their problems are interesting enough to warrant separate pix. But that is a risk inevitable in any film in which a number of strangers are flung together, each with problems and linked by single circumstance." Philip K. Scheuer of the ''Los Angeles Times'' wrote "They can say it's in the tradition of MGM's ''Grand Hotel'' and ' Dinner at Eight' all they want; to me it's a grounded '' High and Mighty''. And I do mean grounded—not only at London airport, but in the writing, directing, and some of the acting as well."Scheuer, Philip K. (13 September 1963). "VIPs Liz, Burton Grounded by Film". ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

''. Part IV, p. 11. Richard L. Coe of ''The Washington Post'' called it "very good fun—sleek, adroit and enjoyable." ''

The Monthly Film Bulletin ''The Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 to April 1991, when it merged with ''Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those with a ...

'' wrote "''The V.I.P.s'' is a pretty little cinematic souffle that melts in the mind, but its flavour is spicy and sweet." The team of Asquith, De Grunwald and Rattigan later produced another

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsThe Yellow Rolls-Royce ''The Yellow Rolls-Royce'' is a 1964 British dramatic composite film written by Terence Rattigan, produced by Anatole de Grunwald, and directed by Anthony Asquith, the trio responsible for '' The V.I.P.s'' (1963). Apparently adapting an idea fro ...

'' (1964). Robert Murphy disapproved of both films, remarking that "Asquith spent his last years making increasingly banal prestige productions like ''The V.I.P.s'' and ''The Yellow Rolls-Royce''".

Novelization

Slightly in advance of the film's release, as was the custom of the era, a paperback novelization of the screenplay was published by

Dell Books Dell Publishing Company, Inc. is an American publisher of books, magazines and comic books, that was founded in 1921 by George T. Delacorte Jr. with $10,000 (approx. $145,000 in 2021), two employees and one magazine title, ''I Confess'', and s ...

. The author was renowned crime and western novelist

Marvin H. Albert Marvin H. Albert (January 22, 1924 – March 25, 1996) was an American writer of mystery, crime and adventure novels including ones featuring Pete (Pierre-Ange rench: Stone Angel Sawyer, a French-American private investigator living and wo ...

, who also made something of a cottage industry out of movie tie-ins. He seems to have been the most prolific screenplay novelizer of the late '50s through mid '60s, and, during that time, the preeminent specialist at light comedy, though he adapted a few drama scripts as well. ''The V.I.P.s'' is what's known as an "inferred novelization" because, although screenwriter Terence Rattigan is not given attribution anywhere on or in the book, the copyright is assigned to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Whether this omission was an editorial error, or a marketing ploy to make Albert's novel seem to be the film's source material (with or without the complicity of Rattigan) is unknown.

In popular culture

The theme music was used as the intro to the Flemish children's TV series ''

Johan en de Alverman Johan en de Alverman (''Johan and the Alverman'') was a Flemish children's TV series, broadcast on the BRT (now the VRT) between 1965 and 1966. Together with '' Captain Zeppos'', it is considered to be one of the classics of Flemish children's t ...

''.

References

;Bibliography * * *

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vips, The 1963 films 1963 drama films British anthology films British drama films Films scored by Miklós Rózsa Films directed by Anthony Asquith Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award-winning performance Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe-winning performance Films produced by Anatole de Grunwald Films set in airports Films set in London Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films with screenplays by Terence Rattigan Films shot at MGM-British Studios 1960s English-language films 1960s British films