Entertainer

Laurence Olivier shocked audiences accustomed to seeing him in Shakespeare or period romances when he joined forces with the two defining figures of Great Britain's Angry Young Man cadre, director Tony Richardson and playwright John Osborne, by starring as third-rate vaudevillian Archie Rice in the latter's lacerating play. The arrogant, hypocritical, and lecherous performer is playing out the remainder of his days leading a revue at a moribund seaside resort. In the pathetic quality of his singing, acting, and humor, the declining Archie is clearly intended by its author as a symbol of post-WWII England. Yet he still has enough energy to make life as miserable for his family as it is for him. He cajoles his son, Frank (Alan Bates), into volunteering to fight in Suez, against his will; bilks his dying father for the budget for his next show; and cheats on his alcoholic wife, Phoebe (Brenda de Banzie), with beauty contest winner Tina Lapford (Shirley Anne Field). When his daughter arrives unexpectedly, Ar...