BY TIM MCGLYNN
Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon (Paramount 1970) introduces
the title character, scarred by an acid attack, as she leaves the hospital and
rents a dilapidated house in small town Massachusetts. Her roommates are Arthur, an introverted
epileptic and Warren, a paraplegic who is also gay. Otto Preminger’s 1970 film, based the novel
by Marjorie Kellog, has been missing in action until Olive Films’ Blu-ray and
DVD release.
Liza Minnelli stars in this charming story as Junie Moon,
physically and emotionally damaged by a horrific encounter with a psychotic lover. Actor-Director Robert Moore (Murder By
Decree, The Cheap Detective) is Warren, who will not be limited by his
wheelchair in the pursuit of love and happiness. Ken Howard (1776, The White Shadow) is the
shy Arthur, who suffers from seizures that seem to be brought on by stress.
After renting a small bungalow from the eccentric Miss
Kellog (Kay Thompson), the three set up house and learn to survive by leaning
on each other in various times of need. Arthur is offered a job at a local fish market by Mario (James Coco),
but is fired when a nosy neighbor claims Arthur is a child molester. Mario, realizing his mistake, befriends the
trio and offers them a vacation at a seaside resort.
While on their trip to the ocean Arthur declares his love
for Junie, and Warren, much to his surprise, spends the night with a
woman. The three are befriended by a
local man played by Fred Williamson (Hammer, Black Caesar), who acts as their
host. Along the way there are comic
encounters with resort guests, hotel clerks and beachcombers. While short on plot, the movie is a wonderful
character study concerning the importance of friendship and the overcoming of
life’s obstacles.
Junie Moon is a marked departure for the usually bombastic
Preminger in that he is more laid back and subtle in his observations of
society’s problems and inequities. There
are several flashback scenes exploring each character’s history including the
use of hallucinations that Arthur experiences before his epileptic attacks.
An interesting photographic effect is utilized for one of
Arthur’s episodes depicting his humiliation at a state institution. Arthur appears in color while all of the rest
of the image is in grayscale. Today this
would be achieved rather simply with digital magic. In 1970 cinematographer Boris Kaufman (On the
Waterfront, 12 Angry Men) bathed the scene in gray scenery, paint, costuming
and make-up to achieve a very unsettling atmosphere.
Junie Moon is an enjoyable, albeit sad observation of three
supposedly damaged individuals who learn to make their way by supporting each
other. The story is cleverly bookended
with Peter Seeger onscreen performing his ballad Old Devil Time during the
opening and closing credits.
Olive’s Film’s presentation of Tell Me That You Love Me,
Junie Moon is excellent. The softer
color palette of the early ‘70s has been preserved with minimal artifacts. The clean soundtrack is in crisp mono with
all dialogue clear. Some would complain
that this edition has no extras, but I am just happy that niche companies, such
as Olive Films, are picking up the slack and releasing authorized editions of
these hard to find classics.
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