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(More customer reviews)For anyone who admires glamorous films that have style and class and a bit of an old fashioned feel about them then "Ash Wednesday" is a viewing experience to cherish. It is without a doubt my favourite of Elizabeth Taylor's later day performances and while not a huge blockbuster upon its release in 1973 it certainly contains a great performance by this legendary actress and a rare opportunity to admire her breathtaking beauty in magnificent settings.
"Ash Wednesday" tells the rather sad story of Barbara Sawyer (Elizabeth Taylor) a wealthy woman from Detroit who is entering that difficult period of her life when her visual charms are fading and her equally ageing husband (Henry Fonda)is experiencing his own late midlife crisis and looking elsewhere to help make him feel young again. Driven by a desire to please her husband and save her marriage she travels to Italy and undergoes extensive plastic surgery in the vain hope that all their marital problems will evaporate. What she realises is that time has moved on and both of them have changed over time and now have different needs and directions to go off in. "Ash Wednesday" contains a beautifully restrained performance from Elizabeth. She is in turn afraid of the consequences of the surgery, joyful at the superb results, apprehensive about her husband's feelings towards her and developing a growing confidence in her ability to once again be an interesting and attractive woman in her own right. Often accused of allowing herself to become locked into variations of her Oscar winning performance as Martha in "Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf" here Elizabeth takes on a whole different type of character and one which suits her perfectly. Barbara is no shrieking harridan, just a woman rediscovering herself and learning a bit about life and how it works in the process.
One of the main attractions of this film is having a unique opportunity to view the last real appearance by Elizabeth Taylor in a glamorous role . For those of you like myself that haved loved Elizabeth Taylor for years and like to see her in roles where she is at her most beautiful then "Ash Wednesday" is the film for you. Never in her 1970's roles has she looked so beautiful as here, exquisitely gowned by Valentino and the legendary Edith Head to perfection. The film was shot largely on location in the famed Italian Ski Resort of Cortina and the vista's depicted in the film are stunning and really contribute to the overall splendid look of the film. Indeed "Ash Wednesday" is a literal feast for the eyes in so many ways. Elizabeth's teaming with Henry Fonda is an interesting one and came about just as the famed Taylor/Burton collaborations on screen where coming to an end and each was pursuing projects individually. Fonda has only a small role in the last half of the film and his character while world weary and intelligent is a bit of a disappointment considering the lengths that Barbara has gone to try and please him. One standout in the supporting cast is Keith Baxter as David the much facelifted high fashion photographer who befriends Barbara in the hospital and eventually gives her the courage to face up to a new life. He is at times funny, caring and a hive of energy and his work contrasts very nicely with Elizabeth's beautiful underplaying of her role. Also effective is Helmut Berger as Barbara's admirer at the ski resort. Judged the most beautiful man in films around this time Berger had the right combination of good looks and style to be totally at home in the role of the eternal playboy who has no real purpose to his life.
Most controversial of all in regard to "Ash Wednesday" were the very explicit surgery scenes that were incorporated into the film. Supposedly showing Barbara going under the knife for a total face and body lift they in actual fact were real surgery scenes of an operation taking place. They certainly are not for the faint hearted and for the parts that Elizabeth Taylor had to appear in an insurance policy of next to a million dollars was taken out on her face.
"Ash Wednesday" is an old fashioned romantic story lovingly put together. Up against the fad for disaster movies then in vogue this film really couldn't compete at the box office but I have real affection for it and enjoy it time and again. The sight of Elizabeth Taylor in all her old style movie queen splendour is a sight to behold and indeed it points back to the days of old Hollywood when actresses were made to resemble goddesses. Enjoy "Ash Wednesday" for a trip down memory lane to film making as it used to be.
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