Julie Christie has been getting attention, as well as early Oscar buzz for her role in Away from Her. For those unfamiliar with Christie’s earlier films, I recommend Billy Liar, the film that first brought her serious attention. Although she has a small part, Julie Christie portrays a young woman not to different from her offscreen life, living by her own rules for herself. The image of Christie walking down the street, swinging her purse, epitomized the new spirit emerging in England, just before The Beatles took over the world.

The film is about a young man who works for an undertaker, but has dreams of a more creative life. Billy frequently escapes into vivid fantasies. There is an inkling of creativity when a local band performs a song Billy wrote. The free spirited Liz, played by Christie, encourages Billy to leave northern England to try their luck in London. Based on a novel and play, director John Schlesinger’s film was a major hit in England, but did not do so well in the U.S. Fortunately, this did not prevent Schlesinger and Christie from making their next collaboration, Darling, a box office hit worldwide that propelled Christie to the top ranks of actresses and won her an Oscar.

The DVD has commentary by Christie, Schlesinger and Billy Liar star Tom Courtenay. Schlesinger reveals that Christie was not the first choice as Liz, and was cast after the film was shooting. Christie discusses how she never intended to be a film actresses, prefering the stage. The DVD also includes excerpts from a 1993 documentary on British films of the Sixties, featuring the Billy Liar stars, director and authors.

What makes Julie Christie different from many beautiful, blonde actresses is the sense of intelligence that she was always able to project. Ambivalent about stardom, Christie only took parts in films that interested her. This also explains why a listing of films starring Julie Christie is chock full of classics by some of the great filmmakers like Robert Altman, Richard Lester, Joseph Losey, Nicolas Roeg and Hal Ashby. Billy Liar stands as a showcase for introducing Julie Christie, one of the all-time great movie stars.

Popularity: 1% [?]