''Amy'' is a 1981 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Vincent McEveety Vincent Michael McEveety (August 10, 1929 – May 19, 2018) was an American film and television director and producer. Career Vince McEveety directed numerous Emmy Award-winning television series, including ''The Untouchables'', '' Gunsmoke ...

and starring

Jenny Agutter Jennifer Ann Agutter (born 20 December 1952) is a British actress. She began her career as a child actress in 1964, appearing in '' East of Sudan'', ''Star!'', and two adaptations of '' The Railway Children''—the BBC's 1968 television seria ...

. It was produced by

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October 1 ...

, distributed by Buena Vista Distribution, and written by Noreen Stone.

Plot

In 1913, Amy Medford (

) leaves her possessive, wealthy husband ( Chris Robinson) to begin a new life teaching speech to deaf students in the rural Appalachian Mountains at a school for blind and deaf children. Though encountering resistance from those who question whether it’s even possible to teach speech to children with hearing-impairments, Amy becomes close to the staff and children, building a new life for herself and gaining the personal strength she will need to stand up to the domineering husband who is not content to let her live her own life.

Cast

as Amy Medford * Barry Newman as Dr. Ben Corcoran *

Kathleen Nolan Kathleen Nolan (born Joycelyn Schrum, September 27, 1933) is an American actress and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. From 1957 to 1962, she played Kate McCoy, a housewife, on the television series ''The Real McCoys''. Early years B ...

as Helen Gibbs * Chris Robinson as Elliot Medford *

Lou Fant Lou Fant (December 13, 1931 – June 11, 2001) was a pioneering teacher, author and expert on American Sign Language (ASL). He was also an actor in film, television, and the stage. Natively bilingual in ASL and English, he often played roles rela ...

as Lyle Ferguson *

Margaret O'Brien Angela Maxine O'Brien (born January 15, 1937) is an American film, radio, television, and stage actress, and is one of the last surviving stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema. Beginning a prolific career as a child actress in feature ...

as Hazel Johnson *

Nanette Fabray Nanette Fabray (born Ruby Bernadette Nanette Theresa Fabares; October 27, 1920 – February 22, 2018) was an American actress, singer, and dancer. She began her career performing in vaudeville as a child and became a musical-theatre actress dur ...

as Malvina * Lance LeGault as Edgar Wanbuck *

Lucille Benson Lucille Benson (July 17, 1914 – February 17, 1984) was an American character actress. Biography Personal life Born in Scottsboro, Alabama, on July 17, 1914, Benson was adopted by her aunt, Mrs. John Benson, after her mother died of tuber ...

as Rose Metcalf * Jonathan Daly as Clyde Pruett * Lonny Chapman as Virgil Goodloe * Brian Frishman as Mervin Grimes * Jane Daly as Molly Tribble * Dawn Jeffory as Caroline Chapman * Peggy McCay as Mrs. Grimes *

Len Wayland Len or LEN may refer to: People and fictional characters * Len (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Lén, a character from Irish mythology * Alex Len (born 1993), Ukrainian basketball player * Mr. Len, American hip hop DJ *Le ...

as Mr. Grimes *

Virginia Vincent Virginia Vincent (May 3, 1918 – October 3, 2013) was an American film, television and theatre actress. She was known for playing the role of "Jennie Blake" in the 1958 film ''The Return of Dracula''. Vincent died in October 2013, at the ...

as Edna Hancock *

Norman Burton Norman Burton (December 5, 1923 – November 29, 2003) was an American actor. He was occasionally credited as Normann Burton. Early life Born in New York City, Burton was a student of the Actors Studio. After early work on stage, he broke in ...

as Caruthers * Otto Rechenberg as Henry Watkins * David Hollander as Just George * Cory 'Bumper' Yothers as Wesley Moody * Alban Branton as Eugene * Ronnie Scribner as Walter Ray * Michelle Downey as Essie * Carson Sipes as Dwayne * Diana Boyd as Loretta * Flavia Fleischer as Iris * David Jacob Weiss as Glenn * Oscar Arturo Aguilar as Chester * Kevin van Wieringen as Owen Corner * Seamon Glass as Mr. Watkins * Nancy Jeris as Mrs. Watkins * Randy Morton as Teenage Boy * Lance Gordon as Referee * John Arndt as Mr. Pool * Rick Foster as Football Player * Elisha Rapson as Blind Girl

Production

''Amy'' was originally filmed as a television movie titled ''Amy on the Lips'', and was the first television movie that Disney Studios made for an adult audience. Nanette Fabray and Louise Fletcher were interested in the role of “Malvina,” a teacher of deaf children. Fabray, who played the part, was hearing impaired, and Fletcher’s parents were deaf. The deaf children in the film, except for Brian Frishman, were students from the California School for the Deaf in Riverside, California. Dawn Jeffory, who was cast as Caroline Chapman, had a real-life role as a guest instructor at the school, and was helpful to director Vincent McEveety in working with the children. Lyle Ferguson, the school superintendent, was played by Lou Fant, a son of deaf parents, who helped establish the National Theatre for the Deaf. In January 1981, it was announced the film's title would be changed to ''Amy'' and given a theatrical release as Walt Disney Productions felt the film was “so powerful” it warranted a theatrical release.

Educational film

In 1982, Disney Educational Services excerpted a sequence from the film for educational use, entitled ''Amy-on-the-Lips''.

Release

The film was released on a

double bill The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatres would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown. Opera use Opera ho ...

on a re-release of '' Alice in Wonderland''.

Home media

Disney released a manufactured-on-demand DVD of the film as part of their "Disney Generations Collection" line of DVDs on June 26, 2011.

References

External links

*
''Amy'' DVD
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Amy (Film) 1981 drama films 1981 films American drama films Films about deaf people Films about educators Films directed by Vincent McEveety Films set in 1913 Walt Disney Pictures films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films Films about disability