Customer Reviews

Bunny Lake is Missing

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Ever since the gossips got wind that Reese Witherspoon might be doing a remake, audiences have rediscovered this shadowy, sumptuous period thriller that jettisons you back to the hip London of the mid 1960s.

Perfect casting (with the exception of one major player, whose identity might interfere with your first-time enjoyment, so I won't be a Spoiler) with La Lynley as the gamine supreme, Keir Dullea as her lookalike brother, Olivier as a charming detective and Martita Hunt & Noel Coward in amazing cameo performances.

Otto Preminger and Saul Bass bring marvelous mood to the pulp fiction novel by Evelyn Piper on which this was based.

Yes, it's dated...yes. modern audiences will find chuckles in the storyline holes, but all in all it is a marvelous movie beautifully presevered on DVD. But why, oh why, didn't Columbia get Carol Lynley to do a Commentary track!? This is her personal favorite credit and she has great stories share... If you get the chance to hear her speak on the subject, grab it!

Meanwhile, cuddle up with the popcorn and enjoy!

Having not seen this film since it came out in 1965, I was anxious to rediscover it. Turns out, my memory of it, after 40 years, had faded completely except for the fact that I did recall Noel Coward had a good cameo in it. (It's always fun to see people in films who are known primarily for something else. Watch Kay Thompson in FUNNY FACE for a top-drawer example of this!) The plot seems simple enough: Lynley's young daughter, Bunny, is missing on her first day of school in London. Is Lynley crazy? Does Bunny exist? Is Lynley's brother trying to protect her? What's going on? These questions are resolved somewhat jarringly at the end, but the ride is worthwhile. The black and white photography adds to the moodiness of the film, and check out the interesting Saul Bass titles. Then there's Keir Dullea as the brother. Ever since DAVID & LISA (one of my favorites), I've had trouble seeing him in most roles (my problem). He always looks to me like his nice features mask a very troubled mind underneath. This quality, however, serves him well in the BUNNY LAKE mystery. In fact, he reminds me (certainly not in appearance) of Willem Dafoe, an actor who probably can never effectively play a "normal" character. As for the acting in this picture, Lynley and Dullea aren't exactly Streep and Pacino, but they do okay. Some of the supporting performers, however, are just wonderful and really give the film a nice foundation. This picture is well worth the roughly one-hour-and-forty-five-minute run time. Wish there had been some extras on the DVD, but I'm happy someone even decided to put the thing on DVD in the first place.

Who is Bunny Lake and has she really gone missing? Perhaps the only thing missing is a bit of sanity! Without any visual evidence whatsoever, we are led to believe that Ann Lake(Lynley), a young single mother just arrived in London from America, has dropped her 4-year-old daughter Bunny off at a private school, leaving her under the supervision of the school cook. After meeting a couple of movers at her new flat, she returns to pick up her daughter to find that the child has gone missing, but no one, including us, can recall ever seeing the child. At this point, her overbearing brother Stephen(Dullea) literally bulldozes his way through the school delivering accusatory blows against the staff under the auspices of looking for answers. The police are brought in and an investigation ensues under detective Newhouse(Olivier) but instead of answers, only more questions surface: Is Stephen's "in your face" overprotection a facade or diversion? Does it have something to do with Ann having had an imaginary playmate called "bunny" as a child? Director Preminger presents us with a bizarre cast of characters all suspicious and therefore suspect: Wilson the nice-old-man/sadomasochist; Ada Ford the philosophical and sinister co-founder of the school; and of course the two principles, shell-shocked Ann and hypertense Stephen. Laurence Olivier delivers a subtle but calculating performance as the detective, and seems to be the only sane presence for most of the film. The music is a bit too jumpy at times but remains effective. The title sequences by Saul Bass are highly inventive and brilliantly set the stage for the film to follow.

You know something is not right about this American brother (Keir Dullea) and sister (Carol Lynley) when they move into a 1960s London flat together. She cries endlessly, they comfort each other too lovingly, and she sits chatting on the bathtub while he's naked in it. But give Otto Preminger his due. The director has cleverly set up the plot and character twists and turns so that just how screwed up they actually are is almost believable. Of course, having an A-list supporting cast certainly helps.

Clive Revill and top-billed Laurence Olivier are the cool detectives who investigate the sister's claim that her child is missing on its first day in school. Mind you, we nor anyone else has seen the little girl; indeed, given the couple's behavior, whether the child exists at all is doubtful. Anna Massey and the incomparable Maritita Hunt operate the school, and no less a personage than the chi-chi playwright Noel Coward shows up as a seedy busybody pervert who voiceovers for the BBC. The casting director gets a gold star for this one.

Preminger is incapable of making a dull movie. His thriller is only slightly dated and has enough suspense and narrative thrust to mitigate the red herrings and occasional overacting. The jazzy score, the widescreen black-and-white cinematography, even the evocative Saul Bass titles (oddly rendered here in small screen), are first rate. The surprise ending only makes sense if you have not been paying attention. A remake is rumored, so try to catch this first DVD transfer to see how they change it. They always do, you know.

This is a classic movie from 1965 and I loved it then and I still think it is great.
Laurence Olivier's performance as the Scotland Yard Inspector is of course superb, but Noel Coward is great as the outrageous, lecherous landlord. "Bunny Lake is Missng" is one of those movies where you suspect everyone and it keeps you guessing until the end. I highly reccomend it and I hope that the upcoming remake is as good.

The "Bunny" is Carol Lynley's daughter. The little girl was dropped off at her new London school one morning. When mom arrives to pick her up, she has vanished without a trace! A frantic Lynley receives no help form the stodgy school staff. Are they merely inept, truly uncaring or protecting their jobs? Something serious has obviously happened! Laurence Olivier is perfect as the polite, calm and suitably skeptical police inspector. LO maintains that mien though the film. Keir Dullea is over the top, at least early on, as Lynley's protective brother, demanding investigative action. The "exact nature" of the Dullea/Lynley relationship is never explained. The key difference is that she maintains credibility throughout while he decidedly does not. This reviewer was reminded of 2 similar cinematic situations: 1) "The Third Man" where Joseph Cotton searches postwar Vienna for his friend Harry Lime/Orson Welles while dealing with a skeptical British officer played by Trevor Howard. 2) The lesser known and highly recommended "Dangerous Crossing" where Jeanne Crain hunts about an ocean liner for hubby Carl Betz, receiving similar skepticism from the ship's crew. The problem from this viewer's perspective is that "Bunny Lake" virtually derails late in the film. Some of the final scenes are almost surreal; greatly muddling what had been a serious, solid investigative movie. Does Bunny turn up? A good review won't divulge resolutions! This reviewer thought the ultimate "resolution" was made anticlimactic by the film's late twist. Others reviewers will disagree. Nearly all should agree that BLM showcases a campy mid-60s London when the "British Invasion" was at full throttle.

Otto Preminger deft direction and quality acting performances by the respected Laurence Olivier, Carol Lynley and Keir Dullea helped make the psychologically gripping "Bunny Lake is Missing" a lesser known classic of intrigue.

A young and attractive Carol Lynley playing Ann Lake has recently arrived in England with her 4 year old daughter Bunny. She is moving into an apartment with her nurturing but domineering brother Steven played by Dullea. They've registered the young child for nursery school and Lynley arrives early and is told to leave the child in the day room assured that the school's cook will keep an eye on her.

When Lynley returns to retrieve Bunny we find out that she's disappeared without a trace. Pretty soon the chaotic school full of toddlers is turned upside down at the urging of the crass and obnoxious Dullea who eventually calls the police.

At this point we are treated to the entrance of Olivier playing police Superintendent Newhouse who in a cool level headed manner assumes control of the investigation. In his impeccable acting style Olivier interrogates all the main and peripheral characters in the film. He comes to the conclusion that the upset Lynley might be delusional and imagining the very existence of the child.

The plot thickens as we get to more intimately become acquainted with the characters. We soon realize that there are deeper psychological ramifictions permeating through disappearance of the child. Special mention should be made of the role played by the eminent Noel Coward who is very effective playing the annoying, scurrilous alcoholic writer Horation Wilson, the lecherous landlord of the Lake's apartment.

The story's premise is interesting. I wanted to know what happened to the missing little girl. I thought I had the ending figured out, but I was wrong. Olivier was fantastic, as was the female star, but the male star was icky and uncompelling. The movie was about twice as long as it needed to be. At times, it dragged painfully (I kept thinking haven't I seen this scene before...in this very same movie?) I expect to remember it because it was so unique, but I can't say I would ever sit through it again. I would recommend it only to fans of really old thrillers as long as their expectations were properly set.

In 1965 Otto Preminger produced a now forgotten movie - Bunny Lake Is
Missing. I first saw this film in 2005, or so, and wonder why I had not
ever heard of this psychological thriller before. Bunny Lake was filmed in black and white and portrays the city of London in a dark gray and black moodiness which enhances the story of a missing child and a frantic mother trying to find her. There are effective portrayals here by since deceased actors - Laurence Olivier, Martita Hunt and a special appearance by Noel Coward.

Carol Lynley plays Bunny's mother, a transplanted American who has
just placed her small daughter in a day school who turns missing.
Or so she claims. She has a very over- protective brother portrayed by Kier Dullea, whom audiences may remember as the astronaut "Dave" in 2001. I remember Dullea in the 1962 classic David and Lisa too.

Some say this film is "dated" but I don't think so. Of course there
have been more than forty since Bunny Lake was made and few people seem
to value a black and white film these days. There were so many good
classics before black and whites virtually ceased to be made by the late 1960's.

Apparently there will be a remake soon, which need not spoil the
appreciation of this forgotten thriller. There will be no Olivier or
Coward (or Martita Hunt) in the remake. Therefore this 1965 version
need not be ignored by those who like a classic and well-make film.

And it's filmed in glorious black and white, which is always a big plus in my book. The basic story: A young mother (played by Carol Lynley, who is probably best remembered for "The Poseidon Adventure"--but "Bunny" is her best performance) believes that her daughter, Bunny Lake, has disappeared from her new school. Laurence Olivier plays the police detective investigating the strange case, and Keir Dullea plays Carol's brother. Is poor Carol telling the truth or is she just plain crazy? Is Bunny just a figment of her wild imagination or does she really exist? These are the intriguing questions you'll be asking yourself while watching the very entertaining "Bunny Lake is Missing". Don't miss it!