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Billy Liar

1963 · 98 min

A bittersweet, funny-sad character study of a dreamer trapped by his own lies, with a sharp eye for everyday life.

Directed by
John Schlesinger
Genres
Comedy, Romance, Drama
Tagline
one guy ... three girls ... one ring!
Overview
A young Englishman dreams of escaping from his working class family and dead-end job as an undertaker's assistant. A number of indiscretions cause him to lie in order to avoid the penalties. His life turns into a mess and he has an opportunity to run away and leave it all behind.

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Directed by
John Schlesinger
Genres
Comedy, Romance, Drama
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • melancholicstrength 2 of 3
  • satiricalstrength 2 of 3
  • whimsicalstrength 2 of 3
  • warmstrength 1 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • identity
  • family
  • isolation
  • coming-of-age
  • deception
Places
  • small town
  • home
  • workplace
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
  • nonlinear
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language mild
  • Violence mild
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action1
Horror0
Humour6
Realism8
Romance4
Tension4
Darkness4
Complexity5
Emotional weight6

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Cast

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Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
comedy, romance, drama
Directed by
John Schlesinger
Written by
Keith Waterhouse, Willis Hall
Starring
Tom Courtenay, Julie Christie, Wilfred Pickles, Mona Washbourne, Ethel Griffies, Finlay Currie, Gwendolyn Watts, Helen Fraser
Music
Richard Rodney Bennett
Cinematography
Denys N. Coop
Runtime
98 min
Country
United Kingdom
Languages
English

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