The Party’s Over ** (1965, Oliver Reed, Clifford David, Ann Lynn, Louise Sorel, Katherine Woodville, Eddie Albert) – Classic Movie Review 10,415

Director Guy Hamilton’s 1965 black and white drama The Party’s Over is a now faded and tame, perhaps rather offensive and daft-seeming exposé of London beatnik culture, which means well and has its positive side, but trivialises and exploits its very interesting subject matter. The story and screenplay are by Marc Behm.

Melina (Louise Sorel), the daughter of an American industrialist (Eddie Albert) intermingles with the beatnik low-life of 60s swinging London, and dies a tragic death at a party. Albert despatches her upstanding American fiancé Carson (Clifford David) over to London to try to find out the truth.

As Moise and Libby, the promising young Oliver Reed and Ann Lynn are notable in this then controversial melodrama best known (at the time) for an infamous necrophiliac party scene. Moise is the beatnik leader who has a girlfriend but sleeps around and desires Melina, who is playing hard to get.

When homosexuality was still illegal in the UK, the character Hector (Roddy Maude-Roxby) is openly gay, and there are positive images of lesbians too.

John Barry (music) and Mike Pratt (lyrics)’s theme song ‘Time Waits For No Man’ is sung by Annie Ross.

Although it was made in 1962, censorship problems over the necrophilia theme prevented its release in the UK till 1965 and in the US till 1966.

Hamilton, executive producer Jack Hawkins and producers Peter O’Toole and Anthony Perry had their names removed from the credits in protest at the censorship of the film.

Katherine Woodville married Eddie Albert’s son Edward Albert in 1979. He died on 22 September 2006. She died on 5 June 2013.