MovieChat Forums > Lili (1953) Discussion > Why is this movie so unknown? It's on an...

Why is this movie so unknown? It's on an 'obscure movie' game

posted 16 years ago by thecallalilies
20 replies | jump to latest

Why is this movie so unknown? I found out about it on a game on the B/W board, to choose the best obscure movies. All the movies have less than 1000 IMDb votes. The game is still running if you want to see it:
http://www.imdb.com/board/bd0000002/thread/98382656?d=98988678#9898867 8

I saw it as a child, but all I could remember was the one song (hi lili hi lili hi lo). I saw it again today and I was enchanted. It's a perfect little movie.

I don't know why it's not better known. It was nominated for many awards and won a few. It has something that would appeal to every age group (the sexual innuendos would go over a child's head). It has charm, drama, romance, music, comedy and even some suspense. I want to tell everyone I know about it!

... are in bloom again

[–] sunsetb460 16 years ago

Is it really that unknown? I think classic movie lovers should know it. Younger generations would like it too if they had a chance to see it. Now that it's on Netflix more people can see it. I'd like to see what else is on that list.

[–] thecallalilies 16 years ago

If you like classic movies you should check out the game. He posted a link to the whole list. Some of the other musicals were Bells are Ringing, Pajama Game, and Hans Christian Anderson.

... are in bloom again

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] DrakeStraw 14 years ago

Now that it's on Netflix more people can see it.

It's not there today. I went to NetFlix to rate it (*****) after seeing it on TCM and it came up in the saved section. I suppose it was available for instant viewing two years ago.

--
Drake

FYI

[spoiler][/spoiler]

[–] vanityfair_713 15 years ago

I think perhaps part of the reason is that there is no available DVD today (or VHS for that matter).

He said it's all in your head, and I said, so's everything--
But he didnt get it.

[–] anantiquemoon 15 years ago

One can still find it sometimes on VHS on ebay and amazon

[–] 15 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Death_to_Pan_and_Scan 15 years ago

Because there are NO car chases, nobody gets decapitated, there is no infidelity, corruption or incest, nor drugs. That's why. It belongs to a gentler, more innocent era. It's another age.

Yes, let us not forget the 1950s and earlier when there was no infidelity, corruption or drugs in movies *cough*
Apparently you don't watch TCM very much and have never heard of film noir.

The movies were however toned down in some types of subject matter thanks to a few religious extremists and it wasn't just the sanitizing of sex that concerned the appointed censors, it was also political thought being infantilized. You should read DVD Savant's review of those pre-code dvd boxsets released in recent years, he dispels some of people's delusions on the subject.

Personally, I'm less concerned with movies depicting reality without ridiculous censorship than I am with movies lacking decent plots or being overrun by CG, which Hollywood seems to think is an acceptable substitute for good screenplays and interesting characters.

As a Leslie Caron fan (though not a fan of the undeserving Oscar Best Picture inner "Gigi" despite the nice cinematography and art direction), I will be catching this on TCM tonight, with fingers crossed in hopes that it will not disappoint.

I will agreee that it's a relatively obscure film these days, but the clips I've seen (on a Leslie Caron docu I caught on TCM a while back) didn't make it look terribly interesting. I'm more annoyed by the lack of dvd releases for other overlooked movies like Nic Ray's oddball western "Johnny Guitar" or Leo McCarey's "Make Way for Tomorrow" (allegedly a vague inspiraion for Yasujiro Ozu's masterpiece "Tokyo Story") or Meryvn LeRoy's "They Won't Forget" or some of the other Lubitsch comedies ("Bluebeard's Eighth Wife" is finally coming in November, I missed a revival theatrical showing of it earlier this year) or Orson Welles' "Chimes of Midnight" or Rene Clair's "I Married a Witch" or "Island of Lost Souls" (the 1920s version of Island of Dr. Moreau) or the British comedy "The Wrong Box" or any number of notable films noir. I'm going to try to suppress a rant about the inaccessibility of Kevin Brownlow's longer and correct aspect ratio restoration of Abel Gance's "Napoleon" (allegedly a masterpiece, though I wonder if ZI'll ever see it). It was only very recently that Kirk Douglas' favorite of his own films got a dvd release ("Lonely Are the Brave").

Here's a good list of movies not available on dvd or badly needing remastering:
http://www.dvdsavant.com/s2489mia.html

[–] Death_to_Pan_and_Scan 15 years ago

Okay, so I watched it and it was pretty much as I'd guessed from that clip: basically AWFUL.

By the finish of her impromptu song with the puppets, I was almost ready to turn it off, but decided to endure it and it got a little better, but not much. I found it a bit insulting to find Leslie Caron in a movie this far beneath her at this point in her career. Luckily, I did stick around to watch (from the same director) "The Glass Slipper" afterwards and found it to be a rather entertaining and cute movie, though a bit silly at times (though, as Cinderella re-envisionings go, I still prefer "Ever After" even with Drew Barrymore's terrible attempt at an accent). I'd rather see The Glass Slipper on dvd than Lili, though if we really want to go back into wants, I'd really like to see separate boxsets for unreleased (to dvd) films of both Myrna Loy and William Powell (their many films working together are already available on dvd). Glass Slipper is no masterpiece, but I'm surprised to see it rate lower on this site than Lili.

IMO:
The Glass Slipper 6/10
vs.
Lili 3/10 (slightly below Zack Snyder's pretty-empty CGI action-fest "300", but probably above the 2nd Transformers movie which I have no interest in ever seeing)

----------
'Life is Beautiful' is to Holocaust movies what 'Twilight' is to vampire movies.

[–] Forlorn_Rage 15 years ago

I guess I can understand why you wouldn't like it (I love it btw), but 3 is way too harsh. There are a lot of movies (especially some today) which deserve a 3, but not "Lili." (perhaps a "5" or "6" at least)

[–] GataGris 10 years ago

I'm totally agree with you. I begin to watch it thinking that it was not less than a little masterpiece, but... really? the handicapped orphan, the daydreaming with a married man, the psychotic boss, the sinister puppets... Well, you can say a lot of things about the plot, but I found it quite disturbing.

[–] BubblingCauldron 8 years ago

I can understand your opinion, but to me this movie is far from being "awful".

Yes, it's not as famous, colourful, big-budgeted as "An american in Paris" or "Daddy long legs" or "Gigi", and it can be considered a minor movie.
But, even if the story is simple and the setting is just a poor carnival, I think that Leslie Caron and Mel Ferrer did great.
It's not simple to play such a naive character and miss Caron was so fragile, desperate, childish with some strength the same time. Mel Ferrer is the "angry man" such full of hate for his life that he's unable to show love in a normal way, so he's jealous, envious, unpleasant, mean, even cruel and yet fragile too. He can express his true feelings and his good side only through the puppets, and he's so "naked" in these moments.

I watched the movie so many times that I know even the tiniest gaze and gesture, and I LOVE how they acted. The entire cast did a good job.
And the music through the movie is so delicate.
For all these reasons, the movie is one of my favourite, it leaves some bittersweet sensations in me.

[–] fcalderp 14 years ago

How about "Sirens of Atlantis" or the Brithish version of "39 Steps" with Kenneth More? Actually, the handcuffs make more sense with Kenneth More and Taina Elg. It's like the class' nerd being handcuffed to the Prom Queen in the middle of nowhere! A dream come true. I remember the effect being very sexy. I saw that film as a child. Never seen it again. Donat and Carrol don't need the handcuffs. It would be like handcuffing Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint in North by Northwest.

I saw Chimes at Midnight once and did not understand a word, except "I've heard the chimes at midnight".

I also woul like a DVD of A Certain Smile.

[–] sim7396 14 years ago

No car chases, true, but the movie touches some very deep, adult, topics: there's an attempted rape, someone almost commits suicide, and infidelity was just around the corner. The magician (who is married) could have taken advantage of the girl, but he restrained himself, for a while, until temptation is too strong and he's about to kiss Lili when the puppeteer appears and interrupts him in the nick of time. More than "an innocent time," I'd say this movie corresponds to a time when audiences were not dumbed down, and therefore you could have rape, suicide, infidelity, etc., in a movie without having to be graphic.

[–] rtms1988 14 years ago

Because there are NO car chases, nobody gets decapitated, there is no infidelity, corruption or incest, nor drugs. That's why. It belongs to a gentler, more innocent era. It's another age.

I watched this movie yesterday, I found it in Youtube and I love it and I think that movie is so unknown, because there is no sex, drugs, rock 'n' roll and blood.
Ridiculous, this is unfair.

Roberta Trevisan
"Film lovers are sick people"
"Till The Angels Say Amen"

[–] Sheila_Beers 12 years ago

Sheila Beers
I too regret that this wonderful film is not very well known in spite of the all-star cast. Those who love the film may want to know there is a stage version of the musical. In fact, my own high school featured it for the spring musical in the early 1970s when my sister was in the high school chorus. Besides "Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo," a song from the film, that stands on its own, is "Love Makes the World Go Round." Some have mentioned Lili's awareness of evil as the hallmark of her coming of age. Since she is a French girl orphaned in World War II, one can only guess what she might have seen and experienced during the war. Her background is hinted at only vaguely, and I believe current day audiences would appreciate the implications about Lili's life before she finds a home with the circus troupe. I do hope the same high school, which my son now attends, will choose to present "Lili" next spring.

[–] LindaY 12 years ago

It may be less known today, but certainly when I was a kid in the 1960s and early 1970s, you could see it at least once a year on television during Christmas vacation, and occasionally it was released to children's matinees on the big screen along with LASSIE COME HOME, NATIONAL VELVET, and GYPSY COLT during summer vacation. I watched it whenever it was on TV.

[–] akapellaakademy865 10 years ago

I'm glad for the comments here -- I saw it in a theater when it came out (I graduated high school in 1954) and have been hoping to see it again. I watch TCM faithfully, especially love the 1930s, Busby Berkeley and Barbara Stanwyck.

But I';ve been imagining somebody owns the picture and won't share it with the world. I have Netflix and will look for it again. Thanks commenters. I've searched the DVDs on line for years to no result.

[–] CJay 10 years ago

this is your lucky day akapella: amazon has the dvd ready to ship for under 20 bucks. read somewhere else (forget who said so) lili was streaming NF recently too.

ps: 4 days ago, same day as you posted, was Leslie's 73rd B'day.

----
'Dr Horrible's Singalong Blog'(last words): "Don't worry. Captain Hammer will save us."

[–] PopperTheKungFu-Dragon 7 years ago

I had no idea this movie was obscure. I certainly heard a lot of people talking about it before I watched it, but then its IMDB, nothing is obscure here, lol.

Poorly Lived and Poorly Died, Poorly Buried and No One Cried