There's A Girl In My Soup
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''There's a Girl in My Soup'' is a 1970 British
romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...
film directed by Roy Boulting and starring
Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show''. Sellers featured on a number of hit comi ...
and
Goldie Hawn Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, producer, dancer, and singer. She achieved stardom and acclaim for playing lighthearted comedic roles in film and television. In a career spanning six decades, she has received ...
. Terence Frisby wrote the screenplay based on his 1966 stage play of the same name.


Plot

Robert Danvers is a vain, womanizing and wealthy host of a high-profile television cooking show. He meets Marion, a no-nonsense 19-year-old American
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
who has just broken up with her British rock musician boyfriend Jimmy. After a halting start, they begin an affair, and she accompanies him on a trip to a wine-tasting festival in France, where she embarrasses him by getting extremely drunk, but they enjoy their time together on the coast in the South of France. However, when they return to London, Marion makes up with Jimmy and turns down a desperate proposal of marriage from Danvers. Throughout the film, Danvers' favourite line with women is: "My God, but you're lovely" – which, in the final scene after Marion has gone back to Jimmy and Danvers has made a date with another woman, he says to his own reflection.


Cast

*
Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show''. Sellers featured on a number of hit comi ...
as Robert Danvers *
Goldie Hawn Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, producer, dancer, and singer. She achieved stardom and acclaim for playing lighthearted comedic roles in film and television. In a career spanning six decades, she has received ...
as Marion * Tony Britton as Andrew Hunter * Nicky Henson as Jimmy *
Diana Dors Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 19314 May 1984) was an English actress and singer. Dors came to public notice as a Bombshell (slang), blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Mamie Van ...
as John's wife * Judy Campbell as Lady Heather *
John Comer John Comer (1 March 1924 – 11 February 1984) was a British comic actor. He was best known for his roles in ''Coronation Street'' as Mr Birtles, then as a taxi driver, and later as Wilf Jones, in ''Emmerdale Farm'' as Ernie Shuttleworth, Les ...
as John, the porter * Gabrielle Drake as Julia * Nicola Pagett as Clare * Geraldine Sherman as Caroline * Thorley Walters as manager of the Carlton Hotel * Ruth Trouncer as Gilly Hunter * Françoise Pascal as Paola * Christopher Cazenove as Nigel * Raf De La Torre as Monsieur Le Guestier


Production

The film is based on the stage comedy '' There's a Girl in My Soup'', written by Terence Frisby, produced by Michael Codron, directed by Bob Chetwyn and starring Donald Sinden, Barbara Ferris and
Jon Pertwee John Devon Roland Pertwee (; 7 July 1919 – 20 May 1996), known professionally as Jon Pertwee, was an English actor. Born into a theatrical family, he became known as a comedy actor, playing Chief Petty Officer Pertwee (and three other roles) in ...
. Cordon said an invester was Nat Cohen. It ran for six and a half years in the West End, from 1966 to 1973, including three years at the
Globe Theatre The Globe Theatre was a Theater (structure), theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 at Southwark, close to the south bank of the Thames, by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It was ...
(now The Gielgud), breaking records to become London's longest-running comedy. This record was later broken by '' No Sex Please, We're British'' and then '' Run for Your Wife''. Columbia and Nat Cohen of Anglo Amalgamated bought the film rights in 1966 for £100,000. Mike Frankovich produced the film and John Boulting directed. Goldie Hawn signed in January 1969. The movie introduced Christopher Cazenove, who later co-starred on ''
Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...
'', and Nicola Pagett, who played Elizabeth Bellamy on '' Upstairs, Downstairs''. Diana Dors's performance was one in a series of supporting roles that revived her career. A novelisation of the film, written by Raymond Hitchcock, was published in 1971.
Goldie Hawn Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, producer, dancer, and singer. She achieved stardom and acclaim for playing lighthearted comedic roles in film and television. In a career spanning six decades, she has received ...
was unhappy that she was coerced into doing a nude scene for this film. "It was my first nude scene in a movie and I didn't want to do it. I was getting out of bed and putting on a coat and the director finessed me into doing it nude. There was absolutely no reason on earth for me to get out of that bed naked. Roy Boulting, the director, told me he'd clear the set and he really played on my insecurities, making me feel that it was my duty as an actress to trust him. I gave in, and, in retrospect, it was the conduct of somebody who didn't want to stomp off the set and be labeled as a bitch."


Release

The film had its world premiere at the Astor Theatre in New York City on 14 December 1970.


Reception


Box office

''There's a Girl in My Soup'' ranked as the seventh most profitable film at the British box office in 1970.


Critical response

'' Variety'' found the film "a delightful surprise: a rather simple legit sex comedy (by Terence Frisby) transformed into breezy and extremely tasteful screen fun." Roger Greenspun in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', dismissed the film as "without illumination or wit or good humor or good sense", and concluded "The only performance to praise is that of Tony Britton, who, as Danvers's very much married publisher and friend, achieves a level of sophisticated pleasantness that actually, suggests comedy. Peter Sellers, on the other hand, is at his least inventive. And Goldie Hawn, who I think might be fun in another part, mostly indulges in bad habits with her too-expressive eyes. In fairness, both Miss Hawn and Mr. Sellers are handicapped by roles in which any attempt at a characterization must seem an imposition."
Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune'' who co-hosted a movie review television series alongside colleague Roger Ebert. Siskel started writing for the '' ...
of the ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
'' gave the film 1.5 stars out of 4 and wrote that Sellers had "his first decent role in several years" and gave a "completely sympathetic performance", but "no amount of humor is able to wake up the film's tired story premise." Kevin Thomas of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' was positive, writing "Escapist entertainment it assuredly is, yet Frisby has wisely provided enough quiet moments between his gags to allow his characters to become real enough to care about." Tom Milne of ''
The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...
'' stated that Sellers was "hopelessly miscast" and that the film "would have been much better served by a straight romantic lead." The website Allmovie comments that "''Soup'' was different in its day, as the heroine of the piece was not a
Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress and singer. She began her career as a big band singer in 1937, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, "Sentimental Journey ...
-type eternal virgin, but a sexual being who not only gives herself freely to a man but is upfront and unapologetic about her willingness. The movie has little going for it beyond this premise, and it wanders rather aimlessly, if agreeably, before abruptly resolving its insignificant conflicts." ''The
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...
Guide to Films'' gave the film 2/5 stars, writing: "This is a very tame version of a sex comedy that ran and ran on both sides of the Atlantic. Roy Boulting directs without much enthusiasm for his tale of womanising TV celebrity Peter Sellers, who is knocked off his stride by a chance encounter with dippy waif Goldie Hawn. Content to cruise through his meagre helping of wisecracks, the miscast Sellers still teams well with Hawn, who also has some funny scenes with ditched boyfriend Nicky Henson."


Awards

Frisby's script won The
Writers' Guild of Great Britain The Writers' Guild of Great Britain (WGGB), established in 1959, is a trade union for professional writers. It is affiliated with both the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds (IAWG). History The u ...
Award for Best Screenplay in 1970. Goldie Hawn was nominated for Best Actress at the
BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...
's for her work in this and '' Cactus Flower''.


References


External links

* * {{Boulting brothers 1970s English-language films 1970 films 1970 romantic comedy films British romantic comedy films Columbia Pictures films Films about infidelity Films directed by Roy Boulting Films set in France Films set in London 1970s British films English-language romantic comedy films