I Am a Camera

source: I Am a Camera

With two shining stars such as Julie Harris (the Julie Andrews of the 50s), and Lawrence Harvey, this film was almost guaranteed to be a success. The film is not as graphic as the later, superior production, but it is fun to watch, nevertheless. Even Shelley Winters gives a decent performance for a change (oh no, my harshest critic will be offended!). The Harvey character was supposed to be gay, which the latter production made clear, but during this film period, that issue was pretty much taboo in movies. The film has a Capraesque feel to it, and yet it has a few serious moments as well. I am restricted in my use of the word recommended by my critic, but I am going to use it anyway.

In my mind this is a pale comparison to the 1972 musical "Cabaret" (based on the 1966 musical.) The actors all seemed horribly miscast, overacting, and the performance all too literary--like they know they are performing 'great literature.' In the end it all falls terribly flat. The scene in the middle of the film with Christopher getting a massage, electro-shock treatment--is comedy genius. In one brief moment--as the burly mustachioed masseuse gives Christopher a massage, Christopher is giving a mock massage to the shoulder of the masseuse. Well, I thought it was funny. The story lines, more or less match. But the Kander and Ebb music--elevated the musical to the dark realm that Christopher Isherwood intended. He wanted to portray the decadence of Germany with Hitler's rise and reflect that decadence in Sally Bowles Kit Kat Klub. Where "I am a Camera" fails, "Cabaret" succeeds. But "I am a Camera" was filmed in 1955 so allusions to homosexuality had to be veiled; it surprising that in a relatively short span of eleven years--"Cabaret" could speak directly to the topic. And not just the topic of homosexuality, but the topic of a drag queen using the men's room to take a leak; speak to that dark side of polymorphous sexuality. As an historical film that pre-dated "Cabaret"--"I am a Camera" is worth seeing, even if the film leaves much to be desired.

Of all the versions of this tale, this is by far the least notable. Who knew this story could be so DARNED CUTE…starting with the appallingly chirpy Ms. Harris. Of course, any trace of the gayness and decadence of 30's Berlin has been edited out, but in fact, any trace of the atmosphere whatsoever has been edited out. (The only vestigial evidence which remains is Shelly Winter's rather terrible German accent). This lapse is unutterably sad, considering the sexuality of Isherwood, Van Druten , even leading man Laurence Harvey. "I Am a Camera" is so bad, that it's a wonder that the story survived it. In fact, though, there was some service rendered to the original story "Sally Bowles". Some of the embellishments made it into the stage version of "Cabaret" where they then were transmuted with great style and depth into the superb film version. Also, Harris's virtually accent-less Sally Bowles proved that the nationality of the heroine was completely irrelevant, paving the way for Liza Minnelli to own the role. It is a shame that Van Druten's gayness found full flower only in his coded "Bell, Book and Candle". Knowing how cleverly he managed that, however, one feels he could have found some way to be truer to the spirit of Isherwood and his source material.

In Isherwood's preface to his "Berlin Stories" he talks about meeting Julie Harris backstage during "Camera's" Broadway run, and seeing her as the quintessential Sally Bowles. Maybe he was being gracious, but we couldn't have agreed more. Filled with witty dialogue, this film moved at a brisk pace, and yet when it was over, we felt as if we had seen an in depth slice of the demimonde life in pre-war Berlin. Harris was simply fascinating - what a beautiful smile! Highly recommended (if you can find it) for those who find this time and place irresistible. Nice details too, including quick shots of Berlin "boot-girls" (dominatrix ladies of the night) and the El Dorado, one of the city's most colorful transvestite bars (even the murals inside are spot on!)

Yes, this movie was just hilarious and the acting was top notch from the whole cast. Except Shelley Winters German accent wasn't that great but then that doesn't matter as she is hardly in the film. So if you're a fan of hers beware! The two main stars of this film are Laurence Harvey and Julie Harris. Now before this film, I'd only see Miss Harris in East of Eden with James Dean and I own an audio tape of The Glass Menagerie that she did on stage with Monty Clift and Jessica Tandy, so I wasn't sure how she'd be in this role and BOY, did she impress me. How hammy was she? I love ham! ;-) Mr. Harvey, he tickled my fancy! I am now a full time Laurence Harvey fan! That hair!!! *cackles* OMG! It's almost like Burt Lancasters, that crazy messy look, it doesn't get better than that. He is young and so innocent in this film. SEE IT NOW! It's definitely in my top ten! :) I am SO glad I found a copy that is all mine! Unfortunately this movie is out of print and very hard to find on video. :( Btw, watch out for the hospital hotel room scene!!!!! It's one of the best parts! Or when Mr. Harvey has convinced himself he's ill and he's trying to get his knee to kick, you know how Doctors do with that little rubber hammer ;-) Well he does it himself and his leg kicks and it kicks the table *squeals* Check out the look on his face, so innocent!!!! I can't describe it but to all those people who say he couldn't act very well and other cockamamie comments, see this film and you will see what a GREAT actor he really was. You'll be bowled over! If you aren't, then I'm afraid there is nothing I can do for you, you're hopeless. ;-)

This British film version of the stage play I AM A CAMERA is based on Christopher Isherwood's "Berlin Stories." This is the source material for the famous musical CABARET. Julie Harris, a major stage actress of her day, reprises her 1951 Tony Award winning role as Sally Bowles. She's a far cry from the Liza Minnelli character but the basic "Sally" is all here despite the various film codes that would have blocked this story from being filmed in Hollywood. Harris is perhaps stagy but she's also quite good as the madcap and maddening Sally. Her singing number is obviously dubbed (by Marlene Dietrich no less) although Harris apparently sings for herself in other moments. Laurence Harvey (with the very ugly hair) plays Isherwood with zero charm and can't even make the character interesting. Shelley Winters does little with the role of Natalia (Marian Winters won a supporting Tony for the play), and Anton Diffring is OK as Fritz. Ron Randell plays the caddish Clive but seems a tad loud. Lee Seidl is funny as the landlady. Yet despite the overall staginess and cheap look, Harris takes center stage and she is amazing. This film was released the same year as EAST OF EDEN in which Harris gives a glowing performance as Abra. Comparing the two performances gives a good look at the talent Miss Harris possesses. These two characters couldn't be more unalike. Harris' Sally preens and prances about and growls out a very lascivious laugh. She also acts circles around the boring Harvey. Without the music and with a familiar storyline, many viewers may find little here to recommend this film, but it's a great chance to see the great Julie Harris repeating what was probably a very shocking role in 1951.

I have just seen this delightful classic again after many years, the next to last film directed by Henry Cornelius, who died three years later at the age of only 45 (the same age at which the film's male star Larry Harvey was also to die in 1973). Three future directors were in the crew: Jack Clayton (Associate Producer), Guy Green (cinematographer), and Clive Donner (editor). This film is based upon the autobiographical story 'Goodbye to Berlin' by the well-known British author Christopher Isherwood, which was first turned into a play by John van Druten, then made into this film, then turned into a musical, 'Cabaret', and finally filmed as 'Cabaret', which brought the amazing Liza Minelli to world attention, with her voice which can shatter a glass at the distance of a mile. Isherwood appears as a character in the film under his own name. He was gay, but in those days that was illegal and could land him in prison, so he disguises his proclivities under the description of being what he calls 'a confirmed bachelor'. This is the key to his Platonic relationship with the wildly eccentric, wacky, promiscuous, ever-cheerful and thoroughly unique character whom he calls Sally Bowles. The portrait of Sally Bowles in this film is a tour-de-force by the young Julie Harris, who sweeps every scene into a magical and captivating web of sparkling personal charm. What a vehicle for an actress with plenty of charm of her own! It is one of the great cinematic performances of the 1950s. Isherwood is played to perfection by the young Lawrence Harvey, in a finely-judged performance which never allows the comedy to go over the edge, and even the moments of farce bordering on slapstick remain somehow 'almost believable'. Larry is so funny at portraying a wimpish hypochondriac. What an irony, considering the total lack of hypochondria shown by his bravery and stoicism in the last year of his life as he died from terminal stomach cancer and behaved with such dignity and lack of complaint. I knew him well in the last three years or so, and he was a generous, warm, and modest person. He adored his little girl Domino, now alas also tragically dead.This film was his finest early performance, to be followed by his spectacular work in 'Room at the Top' (1959), 'Summer and Smoke' (1961) and 'The Manchurian Candidate' (1962). Larry was often undervalued in his lifetime because he was too handsome, was often cast as a cad, and glamour boys are not always accepted as good actors, but many of the finest actresses played opposite him, and they were in no doubt of his abilities, and he was a strong lead in many of the most important films of his time. If he had lived beyond middle age, he would have gone from strength to strength and become a 'grand old man' of the screen. Sitting in his house in Hampstead one day, he gave me a glass of his usual white wine from a huge barrel which he had brought from some foreign cellar. I said he always gave me such delicious wine, what was it? He proudly answered that it was a Sancerre which he had chosen himself at the vineyard in France and had shipped over specially. He then added with extreme wistfulness: 'You know, I've been waiting for four years for someone to comment on it and ask me what it is, and you are the first person who has ever done so.' What mattered to him was to be recognised for having taste in wine,and his more glamorous friends had denied him that satisfaction. In this film, Anton Diffring gives a touching early performance as an earnest young man (later he was to have to play Nazi officers far too much, poor fellow), and the young Shelley Winters plays a rich German Jewish girl, in her usual noisy but effective manner, but it was not too difficult, as she was a noisy Jewish girl herself anyway. This film has such an air of joie de vivre about it, that it is pure delight.

In this film Julie Harris reprises her Tony award-winning performance as Sally Bowles bumming in 1920s Berlin. I loved Julie and envied Sally and her carefree ways, but I was young then. While the film may not be "important," it does tell us something about life and culture based upon Christopher Isherwood's evocation of fun-loving pre-Hitler Berlin. It's about a world and time long vanished & highly lamented by aging romantics such as I. So temper your critical faculties and just enjoy a stunning performance by Julie Harris who has won more Tony Awards (5) than any other actress.

I only watched this film because I was determined to spot Patrick McGoohan in an early film role. I watched Laurence Harvey as the aimless, charming character he plays, thinking of his breakthrough role as the surly grasping man at the top. Good old Anton Diffring flashing his gnashers in all their gap-toothed glory. Shelley Winters as an innocent rather than a Vamp. It was all jolly good stuff. I kept wondering where I'd seen the Sally Bowles character before. My McGoohan moment came and went, he went through a gamut of emotion, exercising his foreign accent in his entrance, quite keen, then looking thoroughly bemused as his part became slapstick, not to say fed up by the last you saw of him. I almost packed the film up at that point, but decided I might as well see the end. It had become a little surreal by then so I was curious to see how they would wrap it up. In what I would guess would have been the theatrical Third Act, it all became clear. The affable nonsense of the earlier scenes was all thrown into focus by the stark, grim realisation that evil was about to take over the world. The characters each found their own ways to escape or avoid it and I was pleased for all of them. It was in these final scenes that it suddenly dawned on me who Sally Bowles was. She was the timid, tragic victim in one of my favourite ever films: 'The Haunting'. The actress I was always confusing in my mind with Deborah Kerr, as a fragile feminine beauty. Some readers may now be remarking 'What a dork! It says Julie Harris on the cover!' But I didn't remember this person as Julie Harris. The name meant nothing. I remembered her as poor Eleanor and Eleanor has haunted me for years. I prefer to believe that, rather than me being an unobservant dork, it is a tribute to the talent of Ms Harris that for most of this movie I simply didn't recognise her. Anyhow, the point is that, but for my compulsion to watch a movie just to see an early bit-part of one favourite, I would never have seen a starring role of another. I find a certain peace in the discovery.