Butley Movie Review 1974

Bates, in a tour de force performance, is Ben Butley, a bitter, gay professor who wants to make everone as miserable as he is, including his ex-wife, a recently-published collegue, and his protege and former lover. He verbally abuses and insults anyone who crosses his path as his life disintegrates before his eyes. Butley is about as unsymathetic as you can get, but Bates's performance saves the day. The rest of the cast does an admirable job keeping up. Pinter's film directing debut.

Distribution

Movies Unlimited, 3015 Darnell Rd., Philadelphia, PA 19154, Phone: (215)637-4444, Toll-free: 800-668-4344, Fax: (215)637-2350, Email: movies@moviesunlimited.com, URL: http://www.moviesunlimited.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 127 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Divorce

Screenplay

Simon Gray

Cast

Alan Bates, Jessica Tandy, Richard O'Callaghan, Susan Engel, Michael Byrne, Georgina Hale, Simon Rouse, John Savident, Oliver Maguire, Susan Wooldridge

Cinematography

Gerry Fisher

Director

Harold Pinter