"Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool" (2017)

[GoogaMooga]

NOW STREAMING: "Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool" -- (Paul McGuigan, 2017) -- There is much to like in this tragic romance. I'm not sure about the title or the choice of Elvis Costello over the end credits, but on the whole I was quite entertained and went along with the premise, that an ageing Hollywood star could have an affair with a much younger stage actor from Liverpool. Not quite "Harold and Maude", but Gloria Grahame was 55 when she met 26-year-old Peter Turner and had a passionate fling with him. Annette Bening plays Gloria Grahame with great sensitivity and vulnerability, and it's hard not to compare the film with Billy Wilder's classic "Sunset Boulevard". I think it helps if you are familiar with Gloria Grahame's key films and know about Nick Ray, but the sudden disclosure of a certain rumor in the middle of the film is explained adequately enough that it doesn't matter if you haven't heard it before. McGuigan has the mean older sister drop the "bomb" in such a way that it fits dramatically and adds a little bite. It also happens to be a rare peek into Grahame's Hollywood past. The filmmakers wisely chose José Feliciano's extended "California Dreamin'", as his version gives a fresh slant to the whole thing. Had they gone Papa John, it would have cost more and been too obvious. Feliciano bends and shapes the song to evoke both joy and pathos, which the film has in abundance.