(This review pertains to the UK Region 2 DVD release).
By Tim Greaves
I
first encountered Lionel Jeffries’ 1973 melodrama Baxter! during the summer of 1978 on what I believe to be its one
and only British television airing by the BBC. Its conspicuous absence on video
in the UK – and, until 2014, DVD – meant that, for me, some 36 years elapsed
between viewings. A small, and in many respects not particularly memorable
film, it nevertheless stayed with me over the intervening years for, I think, two
reasons. The first was its unexpectedly dark nature, which completely caught me
off guard given the family friendly nature of the director’s previous films, The Railway Children and The Amazing Mr Blunden; best remembered
for his myriad of on-screen performances, Baxter!
was in fact the third of only five projects which positioned Jeffries on the
other side of the camera. The second reason that solitary viewing remained
lodged in my psyche was a narrative jolt towards the end involving the demise
of a key character (which the 16 year-old me found extremely upsetting).
Baxter! tells
the tale of the titular character (played by Scott Jacoby), an American boy who
arrives in London with his insensitive mother (Lynn Carlin) in the wake of her
acrimonious separation from his father (Paul Maxwell). His Christian name is
Roger, unfortunate given the fact he suffers from a speech impediment which
prevents him from pronouncing his R’s, yet he treats his handicap with good
humour. At first Baxter appears to fit in well at school, where he makes easy friends,
and quickly ingratiates himself with other residents in the vicinity of his
home, among them a chef, also named Roger (Jean-Pierre Cassel), his girlfriend
Chris (Britt Ekland) and the irritatingly extrovert teenager ‘Nemo’ (Sally
Thomsett). But it gradually becomes apparent that Baxter’s lonely childhood – starved
of affection by his bickering, self-occupied parents – has scarred him badly.
Can the intervention of school therapist Dr Clemm (Patricia Neal) save the poor
lad before calamity descends?
Michel
Audiard’s script handles the maudlin subject matter with care ensuring that it
steers clear of becoming depressing, though it should be noted that anyone
looking for a happy ending is watching the wrong movie. The engaging narrative notwithstanding,
the chief appeal of Baxter! for this
reviewer is the marvellous assembly of players. Cassel’s amiable chef almost steals
the show (the scene in which the two Rogers prepare an evening meal together is
a standout) and Carlin is suitably despicable, while Ekland is gorgeousness
incarnate; one can’t help falling a little bit in love with her. There’s a nice
turn too from Paul Eddington as a sarcastic teacher. Only Neal is a little
disappointing with a role she never seems quite comfortable in. But this is
really Scott Jacoby’s film; a slightly cocky but innately witty teenager,
“Woger†has the audience in his pocket within the first few scenes and the
actor’s performance when Baxter succumbs to a severe case of anxiety carries immense
emotional heft. (As an aside, it’s sobering to note that Jacoby was 16 when the
film was shot – he can now see 60 on his horizon!)
Capped
with an infectious Michael J. Lewis score, in summation Baxter! may not exactly be the experience one expects of a Lionel
Jeffries film, but it’s a worthwhile one just the same. The film’s patient admirers
have finally been rewarded, for after 41 years the film surfaces on DVD in the
UK as a constituent of Network Distributing’s ongoing “The British Filmâ€
collection. The pleasing transfer is accompanied by an original theatrical trailer
and a bountiful gallery of promotional stills.
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