''Darling Lili'' is a 1970 American romantic-musical spy film, written by

William Peter Blatty William Peter Blatty (January 7, 1928 – January 12, 2017) was an American writer, director and producer. He is best known for his 1971 novel, ''The Exorcist'', and for his 1974 screenplay for the film adaptation of the same name. Blatty won ...

and

Blake Edwards Blake Edwards (born William Blake Crump; July 26, 1922 – December 15, 2010) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Edwards began his career in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon began writing screenplays and radio s ...

, the latter also directing the film. It stars

Julie Andrews Dame Julie Andrews (born Julia Elizabeth Wells; 1 October 1935) is an English actress, singer, and author. She has garnered numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over seven decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Fi ...

Rock Hudson Rock Hudson (born Roy Harold Scherer Jr.; November 17, 1925 – October 2, 1985) was an American actor. One of the most popular movie stars of his time, he had a screen career spanning more than three decades. A prominent heartthrob in the Golde ...

, and

Jeremy Kemp Edmund Jeremy James Walker (3 February 1935 – 19 July 2019), known professionally as Jeremy Kemp, was an English actor. He was known for his significant roles in the miniseries ''The Winds of War'' and ''War and Remembrance'', the film ''The ...

, with music by

Henry Mancini Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini, ; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flautist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Award ...

and lyrics by

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallich ...

. This was the last full musical to have song lyrics written by Mercer.

Plot

The film is set in northern France during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, where British pilots have polite dog-fights with their German rivals. On the ground, Lili Smith is a beloved English musical star, much admired by French and British pilots. She mixes with them at Cafe Can-Can. One American, Major Larrabee, has a particular interest in her. He organises a gypsy serenade outside her window and a night-time champagne picnic. However, she is actually a German spy. She starts asking questions about his squadron. Lili's uncle, who is in constant contact, is Colonel Kurt Von Ruger, a more obvious German spy and her main contact to pass information to the German authorities. Larrabee showers her with red roses, takes her to art galleries and takes her on a row-boat. Although she is tricking him, she starts to have real feelings of love. Ironically, the French authorities think Larrabee is the spy and ask Lili to keep an eye on him. In a restaurant a fellow pilot, Lt. Carstairs, lets slip that Larrabee is also having an affair with Crepe Suzette. Lili thinks that Operation Crepe Suzette is a military plan and reports it to her uncle. The French authorities (Duvalle and Liggett) start to spy on both Larrabee and Lili. Lili deduces that Crepe Suzette is a woman. They go to Lili's bedroom with he French spying through the window. Lili accuses him of calling her "Suzette". He has actually said nothing but thinking he has, says that he said "My Pet". To escape his infidelity, he then says "Operation Crepe Suzette" is a military operation and gives her the made up details of the plan. Lili decides to believe the lie. When one of the French tells her that Crepe Suzette is a girl in a

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

show, she goes to weigh up the competition. She decides to introduce striptease into her own usually straight-laced show. When Larrabee tells the true story of his encounter with the Red Baron, she mocks him. Lili gets Larrabee and Suzette arrested for treason. While Lili is awarded the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

at a huge ceremony, Suzette happily tells the authorities all she knows. Lili's maid and chauffeur (who are having their own affair) discuss that Lili is "one step ahead of a firing squad". The maid tells her the news from the paper: that Suzette said that Larrabee had done nothing and was in love with "another woman" (i.e. Lili). An assassin (Kraus) is sent to kill Lili but fails. She goes to the authorities to confess in an attempt to save Larrabee from the firing squad. They think it is just a romantic gesture and don't believe her. Her uncle plans an escape to

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. They catch a train but Kraus tracks them down. However, Kraus is killed when a German squadron attacks the train. The British squadron (including Larrabee) fight them off. He sees Lili on he ground and tips his wing in salute. The war ends and Lili is singing in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

. In the final song, Lili sings on a dark stage surrounded by pilots looking on from the wings. Larrabee comes out and kisses her and the crowd cheers.

Cast

as Lili Smith/Schmidt *

as Major William Larrabee *

as Colonel Kurt Von Ruger *

Gloria Paul Gloria Paul (born 28 February 1940) is a British retired film actress and dancer. Biography Paul was born in London in February 1940. Her father was a journalist and her mother was an opera singer. She began dancing at the age of three years, an ...

as Crepe Suzette *

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 Lieutenant Carstairs, aka TC *

Michael Witney Michael Witney (born Whitney Michael Armstrong; November 21, 1931 – November 30, 1983) was an American film and television actor. Career In 1963–64, Witney's first screen-acting role was a recurring part as the first wagon master, Buck Cou ...

as Youngblood Carson *

Jacques Marin Jacques Marin (9 September 1919 – 10 January 2001) was a French actor on film and television. Marin's fluency in English and his instantly recognisable features made him a familiar face in some major American and British productions (''Cha ...

as Captain Duvalle *

André Maranne André Maranne (14 May 1926 – 12 April 2021) was a French-English actor best known for playing roles in English-language films beginning in the mid-1950s. Life and career Born André Gaston Maillol in Toulouse, France, Maranne's best known r ...

as Lieutenant Liggett *

Bernard Kay Bernard Frederic Bemrose Kay (23 February 1928 – 25 December 2014) was an English actor with an extensive theatre, television, and film repertoire. Career Kay began his working life as a reporter for the ''Bolton Evening News'', and a str ...

as Bedford the chauffeur *

Doreen Keogh Doreen Sheila Elsie Keogh (10 April 1924 – 31 December 2017) was an Irish actress of radio, stage, television and film, who was best known for roles in numerous television serials and telefilms, but most especially Concepta Riley the first ba ...

as Emma the maid *

Carl Duering Gerald Percy Fox (29 May 1923 – 1 September 2018), better known as Carl Duering, was a German-born British actor whose best-known role is as Dr. Brodsky in Stanley Kubrick's ''A Clockwork Orange (film), A Clockwork Orange''. He died in London i ...

as General Kessler *

Vernon Dobtcheff Vernon Dobtcheff (born 14 August 1934) is a British actor, best known for his roles on television and film, he has acted in numerous stage productions. Biography Dobtcheff was born in Nîmes, France, of Russian descent. He attended Ascham Prep ...

as Otto Kraus *

Laurie Main Laurence George "Laurie" Main (29 November 1922 – 8 February 2012) was an Australian actor best known for hosting and narrating the children's series ''Welcome to Pooh Corner'', which aired on The Disney Channel during the 1980s. Born in ...

as French General *

Arthur Gould-Porter Arthur Gould-Porter (4 January 1905 – 2 January 1987) was an English actor who appeared in films and on television and stage. His film and TV career spanned from 1942 to 1977, and although mainly a character actor he is remembered for his par ...

as Sgt. Wells *

Ingo Mogendorf Ingo Mogendorf (born 1940) is a German-born British actor, typically playing handsome and congenial German officers. He is best remembered as the Red Baron in a dogfight against Rock Hudson in Blake Edwards' ''Darling Lili''. He worked as a male mo ...

Baron Manfred von Richtofen Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of th ...

Production

In 1967, Blake Edwards signed a four-picture deal with

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

. The films he would make were '' Waterhole#3'', ''

Gunn Gunn may refer to: Places * Gunn City, Missouri, a village * Gunn, Northern Territory, outer suburb of Darwin * Gunn, Alberta, Canada, a hamlet * Gunn Valley, a mountain valley in British Columbia, Canada * Gun Lake (British Columbia), a Canadi ...

'', ''Mr Lucky'' and ''Darling Lili''. Julie Andrews signed to play the lead in ''Darling Lili''. Production was to start late in 1967. Executive producer Owen Crump began shooting second unit in 1967. Edwards courted British comedian

Benny Hill Alfred Hawthorne "Benny" Hill (21 January 1924 – 20 April 1992) was an English comedian, actor, singer and writer. He is remembered for his television programme ''The Benny Hill Show'', an amalgam of slapstick, burlesque and double ente ...

for a supporting role in the movie. During the audition, he asked Hill if he could do a Paris accent. Being a perfectionist, Hill asked Edwards if he wanted an east side or west side accent, but Edwards was not impressed by his attention to detail and recast the role with another actor.

suffered continual interference from

Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. The following busin ...

executives while making ''Darling Lili'', and it was eventually edited by the studio largely without his input. The director later satirized the problems he faced in the film '' S.O.B.'' (1981), which was also distributed by Paramount theatrically. Edwards later claimed ''Darling Lili'' was budgeted at $11.5 million but ended up costing $16 million. He said half the cost was due to second unit filming in Ireland and he had pleaded with Paramount not to shoot in Europe due to the weather, but the studio insisted. Problems with the

May 1968 protests in France Beginning in May 1968, a period of civil unrest occurred throughout France, lasting some seven weeks and punctuated by demonstrations, general strikes, as well as the occupation of universities and factories. At the height of events, which ...

led to much of the planned Parisian shooting to be done in Brussels, Belgium. RAF SE

''Darling Lili'' made use of

Lynn Garrison Lynn Garrison (born April 1, 1937) is a Canadian pilot and political adviser. He was a Royal Canadian Air Force fighter pilot in the 403 City of Calgary Squadron, before holding jobs as a commercial pilot, film producer, director and mercenary. ...

’s aviation facility at Weston Aerodrome in Leixlip, Ireland. This collection of World War I replica fighter aircraft, facilities and support equipment was originally put together in support of

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

’s 1966 film ''

The Blue Max ''The Blue Max'' is a 1966 British war film directed by John Guillermin and starring George Peppard, James Mason, Ursula Andress, Karl Michael Vogler, and Jeremy Kemp. The film was made in DeLuxe Color and filmed in CinemaScope. The plot is a ...

''. The aerial fleet included a Caudron 277, two Fokker DR 1s, three

Fokker D VII The Fokker D.VII was a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the second half of 1918. In service with the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the D.VII qui ...

s, two Se 5as and two Pfalz D IIIs (all full-scale replicas). In addition, the studio contracted with Slingsby Aircraft Ltd to build six 7/8th scale SE 5s (the "Mini SE 5").Bodington 2009 p. 32. The Paramount production utilized the assembled aircraft for thousands of flying hours and accumulated hundreds of hours of aerial footage. Pilots were drawn from the

Irish Air Corps "Watchful and Loyal" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = ''see list of wars'' , decorations = , battle_honours = , battle_honours_label = , fl ...

and civilian circles. Charles Boddington and

Derek Piggott Alan Derek Piggott (27 December 1922 – 6 January 2019) was one of Britain's best known glider pilots and instructors. He had over 5,000 hours on over 153 types of powered aircraft and over 5,000 hours on over 184 types of glider. He was honou ...

did many of the more spectacular stunts.

Music

The original score for ''Darling Lili'' was composed by

. He and

wrote the title tune, as well as "Whistling Away the Dark" and "Your Good-Will Ambassador". Songs from the era were performed in the film, including "

It's a Long Way to Tipperary "It's a Long Way to Tipperary" (or "It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary") is an English music hall song first performed in 1912 by Jack Judge, and written by Judge and Harry Williams, though authorship of the song has long been disputed. It ...

", "

Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit-Bag "Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit-Bag, and Smile, Smile, Smile" is the full name of a World War I marching song, published in 1915 in London. It was written by Welsh songwriter George Henry Powell under the pseudonym of "George Asaf", and s ...

", " Keep the Home Fires Burning", and "

Mademoiselle from Armentières "Mademoiselle from Armentières" is an English song that was particularly popular during World War I. It is also known by its ersatz French hook line, 'Inky Pinky Parlez Vous,' or the American variant 'Hinky Dinky Parlez-vous' (variant: ''Parlay ...

Release

The film had its premiere at the

Cinerama Dome Pacific Theatres' Cinerama Dome is a movie theater located at 6360 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California. Designed to exhibit widescreen Cinerama films, it opened November 7, 1963. The original developer was William R. Forman, founder of Pac ...

in Los Angeles on June 23, 1970 before opening to the public the following day. The film's distribution was badly managed by Paramount executives and ''Darling Lili'' barely got a release in most of the United States.

Reception

Despite setting box-office records at

Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Nicknamed "The Showplac ...

, the film was a commercial failure. Budgeted at $25 million, ''Darling Lili'' grossed only $5 million in the US (the equivalent of $31,061,597.94 in 2016 dollars) with rental sales of $3.2 million ($20,157,287.37 in 2016 dollars). On

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film has an approval rating of 40% based on 5 reviews, with an average score of 4.80/10.

Accolades

Despite being a financial failure, the film was nominated for a number of awards and was a modest success with critics.

Director's cut

In 1991, at the behest of Michael Schlesinger, then the head of Paramount's Repertory division, Edwards was invited to recut ''Darling Lili'' to his original intentions. This director's cut was 29 minutes shorter than the original release. A fully restored, new Dolby SR 35mm print premiered at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival and was attended by Edwards and Andrews; the U.S. premiere was at the

Directors Guild The Directors Guild of America (DGA) is an entertainment guild that represents the interests of film and television directors in the United States motion picture industry and abroad. Founded as the Screen Directors Guild in 1936, the group merge ...

theater in Los Angeles shortly thereafter, again with both in attendance. Then, after a brief domestic theatrical reissue, it was released to home video and television; this version was released on Region 1 DVD. The original roadshow version, complete with overture and exit music, has aired on

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

as well as receiving commercial release on Region 2 DVD in Europe.

''Darling Lili: 50th Anniversary''
Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched on March 9, 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. ...
doll (2023)

Barbie (

fashion doll) I'll Give You Three Guesses dress 1990s-style doll.

''Darling Lili's Magical Christmas''

''Darling Lili's Magical Christmas'' at the

Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi is the world's largest indoor theme park in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, owned and developed by Miral Asset Management at a cost of $1 billion. The park features characters from Warner Bros.'s franchises, such as Lo ...

was released December 2023.

Characters

* Lili Smith *

Bugs Bunny Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...

(''

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series ''Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation.

'') *

Lola Bunny Lola Bunny is a ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon character portrayed as an anthropomorphic female rabbit created by Warner Bros. Pictures. She is generally depicted as Bugs Bunny's girlfriend. She first appeared in the 1996 film ''Space Jam''. Develop ...

(''

'') *

Daffy Duck Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon fictional character, character created for Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett. Styled as an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic American black duck, black ...

(''

'') *

Tweety Tweety is a yellow canary in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons. The name "Tweety" is a play on words, as it originally meant "sweetie", along with "tweet" being an English onomatopoeia for th ...

(''

'')

References

Notes Bibliography * Boddington, Matthew. "Shooting Lili: Flying for the Silver Screen." ''Aeroplane'', Volume 37, No. 8, August 2009. * Wojcik, Pamela Robertson, ed. ''New Constellations: Movie Stars of the 1960s'' (Star Decades: American Culture/American Cinema). Piscataway Township, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 2011. .

External links

* * * * {{Blake Edwards 1970 films 1970s English-language films Films directed by Blake Edwards Films with screenplays by Blake Edwards 1970s romantic musical films Paramount Pictures films World War I spy films World War I aviation films Films with screenplays by William Peter Blatty Films scored by Henry Mancini Cultural depictions of Manfred von Richthofen American romantic musical films 1970s spy films American spy films Spy romance films 1970s American films

Plot

Cast

Production

Music

Release

Reception

Accolades

Director's cut

''Darling Lili: 50th Anniversary'' Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched on March 9, 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. ... doll (2023)

See also

''Darling Lili's Magical Christmas''

Characters

References

External links

''Darling Lili: 50th Anniversary''
Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched on March 9, 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. ...
doll (2023)