Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders, The (Blu-ray Review)
- Review Date: Jun 12, 2025
- Format: Blu-ray Disc
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Director
Terence YoungRelease Date(s)
1965 (May 20, 2025)Studio(s)
Winchester Productions/Paramount Pictures (Kino Lorber Studio Classics)- Film/Program Grade: B-
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: B
Review
The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders, based on a 1722 novel by Daniel Defoe, is an exuberant, bawdy comedy that traces how an impoverished orphan in 19th century London pursues her desire to be a gentlewoman. The film was a major Paramount production with an all-star cast and impressive visuals.
The young adult Moll (Kim Novak) has snagged a job as housemaid to a wealthy family and secured their affection. Their elder son (Daniel Massey) is especially partial to her but prefers to keep her as his mistress rather than marry her. Fearing possible pregnancy, the only option she sees is to marry the drunken younger brother (Derren Nesbitt). She soon regrets her decision. When his drunken carriage driving results in an accident that tosses him face down in a stream, he drowns and Moll finds herself a widow with no fortune.
She meets an elegant gentleman (George Sanders) in a coach and learns he’s a banker and a widower. When the coach is set upon by highwayman Jemmy (Richard Johnson), Moll’s quick thinking saves some of the banker’s valuables. She takes full advantage of the banker’s gratitude and the banker takes full advantage of her favors, but her plan to marry him fails. Desperate and hungry, Moll persuades the impoverished Count (Vittorio De Sica) and his wife, Lady Blystone (Angela Lansbury) to work for them as housemaid in exchange for food and lodging.
To leave the dangerous life of highwayman, Jemmy decides to marry a rich woman and essentially become a kept man in exchange for an easier life and fewer risks. Meanwhile, Moll stealthily borrows Lady Blystone’s rich clothing at every opportunity and continues to pursue her quest to marry a wealthy man. Jemmy and Moll soon set their sights on each other, each thinking the other is an attractive, moneyed catch.
Kim Novak, looking lovely, is physically right for the role but never reflects the bawdiness the character demands. Playing Moll like an innocent who’s both surprised and overwhelmed by how amorous men become in her company, Novak employs the same, “Who, me?” expression throughout the film, failing to show that Moll has a lusty nature as well as good head on her shoulders. In a period when women were nearly powerless, Moll strives for more even if compromising her virtue is part of the process. Apart from the coach scene with the banker, Novak doesn’t really convince that Moll is smart as well as pretty. The script has her character sort of go with the flow and she doesn’t appear in charge of her own destiny. Novak hardly attempts a British accent, and her comedy turns rely more on slapstick than cleverness.
As Jemmy, Johnson is a handsome, if bland, leading man, the least interesting of the film’s male characters. The chemistry between Johnson and Novak is not especially strong and the two actors often fail to covey the physical attraction their roles demand. Johnson exhibits some swashbuckling derring-do, but his performance relies mostly on a rakish smile.
George Sanders is absolutely wonderful as the banker who, when he meets Moll, sees her as a possibly pleasant divertissement. His wooing is filled with ornate language, innuendo, and double-entendre, and his intentions are quite clear through his aristocratic air. Sanders’ way of making flowery language flow easily offers some of the best comic moments of the film. Smooth, unctuous, resplendent in wig and finery, Sanders knows how to get a laugh by underplaying and letting the writer’s words and his performance sell the humor.
De Sica is amusing as the money-strapped Count who continues to covet a lush life even though his bank account cannot support it. Angela Lansbury’s Lady Blystone floats about in fancy gowns, impeccable hairdos, and dazzling jewels to obfuscate the reality of their situation. Lansbury is adept at portraying arrogant cluelessness with perfection.
Excellent supporting performance are provided by Lili Palmer as Jemmy’s mistress and fence for his stolen goods, and scene-stealer Leo McKern as Jemmy’s sidekick and partner in crime, Squint.
Director Terence Young has crafted a colorful, star-studded adaptation of Defoe’s novel with stunning production design. Because the Production Code was still in force, the film isn’t overly graphic with Moll’s exploits. Bed curtains and discreet camera pans leave some of the “action” to our imagination. There’s a lot of her tumbling in and out of beds, Moll’s legs flailing, and lots of lascivious looks from the men she encounters. Language reflects the upper-class background of the men and her simpler, serving-girl speech. This is a lush production that never fully satisfies, primarily because Novak seems to be holding back in a role that calls for broader playing. Even with Code restraints, director Young could have gotten more edginess from her performance.
The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders was shot by director of photography Ted Moore on 35 mm film with Panavision cameras and spherical lenses, finished photochemically, and presented in the aspect ratio of 2.35:1. The Blu-ray features a new HD master sourced from a 4K scan of the original camera negative. Clarity and contrast are very good, with a dazzling color palette, featuring bold reds, creamy yellows, and vibrant greens. Earth tones are featured in outdoor scenes. Costumes are beautiful and reflect luxury and privilege. Moll’s costumes reflect a poor, working girl. Production design, courtesy of Joan Bridge and Elizabeth Haffenden, reflects cost and care. Costumes of the wealthy are standouts.
The soundtrack is English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio. English subtitles are an available option. Dialogue is clear and distinct. As a titled, penniless Italian noble, De Sica uses his Italian accent to advantage. Novak’s often breathy delivery is overdone. Sanders’ manner of speaking is slow, somewhat condescending, and subtle. He never overreaches for a joke. Sound effects include ambient crowd noise at a formal ball, horses’ hooves, carriage wheels on cobblestone streets, gun shots, and bodies shuffling around in bed. John Addison’s score often captures the tone of the film better than the scenes themselves. His music has a lilt and a joyful quality to it. In a chase sequence, the score transitions to fast-paced accompaniment to the exciting visuals.
Bonus materials on the Blu-ray release from Kino Lorber Studio Classic include the following materials:
- Audio Commentary by David Del Valle and Daniel Kremer
- Trailer (3:38)
- Thoroughly Modern Millie Trailer (2:39)
- Irma La Douce Trailer (3:53)
- Man’s Favorite Sport Trailer (1:59)
- For Love or Money Trailer (2:25)
- The Mirror Crack’d Trailer (2:48)
Audio Commentary – Film historians David Del Valle and Daniel Kremer start off by saying that The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders was made because of the success of Tom Jones, released two years earlier. It incorporates many tropes of Tom Jones, including silent movie sequences, speeded-up scenes, bawdiness, off-screen narration, and the breaking of the fourth wall, and has often been called “the female Tom Jones.” Both films shared the same composer, John Addison. Moll Flanders has a more polished, studio look than Tom Jones, which is grittier, grimier and edgier. The London streets and the costumes in Moll Flanders look too clean to seem authentic. Director Terence Young had a “primal need” to make the film look good. Young had directed a number of period films as well as the James Bond pictures. For the American release of Moll Flanders, 59 cuts were made. It was released on VHS in 1992 in a degraded, pan-and-scan version in a 107-minute expurgated version. In the Defoe original, there’s an episode of incest between the brothers. This and other aspects of the novel didn’t make it into the film. Reviews were unkind to Kim Novak, whom critics felt was miscast. Novak had been groomed at Columbia Pictures by studio head Harry Cohn to be the heir apparent to Rita Hayworth. When Cohn died, Novak’s career stalled. She wasn’t a driven actress and may have been a reluctant movie star. Claire Ufland, who plays young Moll, had a tragic life. She was sexually abused by three different men and committed suicide at the age of fifteen. The commentators speak knowledgeably about other films released during the 60s and offer gossipy tidbits about some stars’ personal lives.
The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders has a wide range of characters but few are developed fully, leaving us wanting to know more about them. By referring to characters without proper names, Defoe and the screenplay by Denis Cannas and Roland Kibbee keep them at a distance, focusing major attention on Moll. But often in the film, some of those characters, like the Banker, Lady Blystone, and Squint, are more interesting than Moll. Apart form these shortcomings, lush production design and a fine supporting cast make the movie a romp.
- Dennis Seuling