The Female Animal

Director: Harry Keller Harry Keller

Overview

Harry Keller, the man who directed the extra scenes in Orson Welles' Touch of Evil, receives solo directorial credit in The Female Animal. Hedy Lamarr stars as Vanessa Windsor, a beautiful but ageing film star whose life is saved on the set by handsome extra Chris Farley (George Nader). Falling in love with Chris, Vanessa finds herself in competition with her own adopted daughter Penny (Jane Powell). Meanwhile, poor Chris struggles to become his "own man," and not merely the sexual plaything of two predatory females. Stealing the film from the nominal stars are Jan Sterling as a fading beauty with romantic notions of her own, and James Gleason as a crusty but likeable agent.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/17/2015
UPC:	0025192317446
Original Release:	1958
Source:	ALLIED VAUGHN
Language:	English
Time:	1:24:00
Sales rank:	40,016

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Hedy Lamarr	Vanessa Windsor
Jane Powell	Penny Windsor
Jan Sterling	Lily Frayne
George Nader	Chris Farley
Jerry Paris	Hank Lopez
Gregg Palmer	Piggy
Mabel Albertson	Irma Jones
James Gleason	Tom Maloney
Richard Cutting	Dr. John Ramsay,Dr. John Ramsay
Ann Doran	Nurse
Yvonne Peattie	Hairdresser
Max Showalter	Charlie Grant
Douglas Evans	The Director
Aram Katcher	Mischa Boroff
Almira Sessions	Landlady
Isabel Dawn	Masseuse
Richard Avonde	Lily's Gigolo
Laurie Mitchell	Manicurist
Walter Kelly	Motion Picture Assistant Director
Bob Wegner	Coffee-Wagon Attendant
H.J. Salter	Composer

Technical Credits

Robert Hill

Harry Keller	Director
Robert Hill	Screenwriter
Albert Zugsmith	Producer

Editorial Reviews

The Female Animal is a muddled, tepid variation on a Sunset Boulevard theme. Unlike that classic, Female has no soul and precious little imagination; it's a pale imitation that gets lost in its own soap operatics, and while it does provide some enjoyment, it ultimately ends up as a disappointment. This is especially so because Hedy Lamarr turns in a performance that is at moments quite interesting and indicates a great deal of potential; one keeps getting the feeling that if the script had been stronger and if she had been given more incisive direction, she could have created a portrait that would have been quite impressive. Unfortunately, the weak script keeps getting in the way, as it also does for co-star Jane Powell. Powell is too old for her part here, but she gives it a good shot, and has one or two scenes that are quite good. George Nader is fairly unimpressive, but James Gleason does much better as the agent. However, the only truly successful performance is from Jan Sterling, whose secondary part of a has-been actress is delineated with a chilling accuracy that is entirely engrossing. Nothing else in Animal is as good as Sterling, but that combined with Lamarr's game attempt make it worth a glance from devoted fans of behind-the-scenes Hollywood flics.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler