''Quest for Love'' is a 1971 British romantic

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

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

Ralph Thomas Ralph Philip Thomas MC (10 August 1915 – 17 March 2001) was an English film director. He is perhaps best remembered for directing the ''Doctor'' series of films. His brother, Gerald Thomas, was also a film director, probably best remembere ...

and starring

Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primeti ...

, Tom Bell and Denholm Elliott. It is based on the 1954 short story " Random Quest" by

John Wyndham John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris (; 10 July 1903 – 11 March 1969) was an English science fiction writer best known for his works published under the pen name John Wyndham, although he also used other combinations of his names ...

Plot

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

, Colin Trafford, stages a demonstration of a

particle accelerator A particle accelerator is a machine that uses electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles to very high speeds and energies, and to contain them in well-defined beams. Large accelerators are used for fundamental research in particle ...

to a number of people, including Sir Henry Larnstein and Trafford's long-time friend Tom Lewis. The demonstration goes wrong and Trafford, with his same memories, finds himself in a parallel universe with significant differences from our own: John F. Kennedy is Secretary General of a still-existent

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference th ...

Leslie Howard Leslie Howard Steiner (3 April 18931 June 1943) was an English actor, director and producer.Obituary ''Variety'', 9 June 1943. He wrote many stories and articles for ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', and ''Vanity Fair'' and was one o ...

did not die in the Second World War because it never happened, and no one ever succeeded in climbing to the peak of

Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow hei ...

. Trafford also discovers that he is a famous author, an alcoholic, and a womaniser with a beautiful wife, Ottilie. Trafford instantly falls in love with Ottilie, whereas his parallel self was constantly unfaithful to her and she is on the brink of divorcing him. With the help of Sir Henry and the physical evidence of the absence of a childhood scar, Ottilie accepts that this 'new' Trafford is not the same man she had originally fallen in love with and married. The couple fall in love once again, but Trafford then discovers that Ottilie has a terminal heart condition that is incurable in that world. Very soon she dies in Trafford's arms. At that instant he regains consciousness in a hospital bed in his original reality, where he has been for three weeks since the accident. He determines to track down Ottilie's alter ego and finds her just in time to get her to hospital for treatment of her ailment. As she recovers, Trafford goes to visit her with a bunch of her favourite flowers and introduces himself.

Cast

– Ottilie / Tracy Fletcher * Tom Bell – Colin Trafford * Denholm Elliott – Tom Lewis *

Laurence Naismith Laurence Naismith (born Lawrence Johnson; 14 December 1908 – 5 June 1992) was an English actor. He made numerous film and television appearances, including starring roles in the musical films '' Scrooge'' (1970) and the children's ghost fil ...

– Sir Henry Larnstein *

Lyn Ashley Lyn Ashley (born Lynette Rumble; 18 March 1940) is an Australian actress who worked in the United Kingdom on television during the 1960s. Early life Ashley was born Lynette Rumble in Townsville, Queensland, on 18 March 1940. She is the daughte ...

– Jennifer *

Juliet Harmer Juliet Linda Harmer (born 11 May 1941) is an English artist, children's author and actress who was best known in the role of Georgina Jones in the BBC TV series ''Adam Adamant Lives!'' (1966–67). Early career Juliet Harmer trained as a Pri ...

– Geraldine Lambert * Neil McCallum – Jimmy * Geraldine Gardner – Sylvia * Jeremy Child – Dougie Raynes * Ray McAnally – Jack Kahn *

Dudley Foster Frank Dudley Foster (7 August 1924 – 8 January 1973) was an English actor who regularly appeared in television roles. Foster was born in Brighouse, West Riding of Yorkshire. His family had established links with the theatre and a brother and ...

– Grimshaw *

Geraldine Moffat Geraldine Houser ( Moffat; born 5 September 1939) is a British former film and television actress and the mother of video game producers Sam and Dan Houser. Selected filmography * ''The Man Who Had Power Over Women'' (1970) – Lydia Blake * ...

– Stella * Simon Ward – Jeremy * David Weston – Johnny Prescott * Drewe Henley – Man *

Edward Cast Edward Raymond Cast (1925–1994) was a British stage, film and television actor. Selected filmography * '' The Dam Busters'' (1955) - Crew Member (uncredited) * ''Private's Progress'' (1956) - Intelligence Officer (uncredited) * '' The One That ...

– Jenkins *

John Hallam John William Francis Hallam (28 October 1941 – 14 November 2006) was a British character actor, who frequently played hard men or military types. Early life John Hallam was born, the son of a superintendent at London Docklands, in 19 ...

– Jonathan Keene * Angus MacKay – Dr Rankin *

Bernard Horsfall Bernard Arthur Gordon Horsfall (20 November 1930 – 28 January 2013) was an English actor of stage and screen. Early life Horsfall was born in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, and educated at Rugby School. He trained as an actor at the Webbe ...

– Telford *

Philip Stone Philip Stone (14 April 1924 – 15 June 2003) was an English actor, well known for portraying film characters such as "Pa", the father of Alex DeLarge, in ''A Clockwork Orange''; General Alfred Jodl in '' Hitler: The Last Ten Days''; Delbert ...

– Mason *

Sam Kydd Samuel John Kydd (15 February 1915 – 26 March 1982) was a British-Irish actor. His best-known roles were in two major British television series of the 1960s, as the smuggler Orlando O'Connor in '' Crane'' and its sequel ''Orlando''. He als ...

– Taxi driver

Production

Joan Collins signed in November 1970. The film was originally called ''Quest''.

Critical reception

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine LLC, in 2008. Corporat ...

'' called the film "an unusual science fiction tale that doesn't completely work but does hold interest...The story gets complicated, but the direction juggles the separate worlds without much trouble. Bell's performance makes this project work. He's believable and earnest, and brings it off with a guiding clarity"; ''

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an engine ...

'', however, called the film "puerile sci-fi romance"; but

DVD Talk DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman. History Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...

wrote, "a surprisingly effective romance with just the barest sci-fi framework...it succeeds in large part due to the two leads' believable underplaying. Bell is on the right note from the beginning of the film, never overplaying his hand...Collins, whom too many people know only from TV's ''

Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

'', is simply wonderful here, creating a fully-dimensional character."

Legacy

Joan Collins later said that, out of her entire career, she was proudest of her performances in the TV series ''Dynasty'', and the films ''

Decadence The word decadence, which at first meant simply "decline" in an abstract sense, is now most often used to refer to a perceived decay in standards, morals, dignity, religious faith, honor, discipline, or skill at governing among the members ...

'' and ''Quest for Love''.Interview with Joan Collins
/ref>

References

External links

*
''Quest for Love''
at BFI
''Quest for Love''
at Britmovie {{John Wyndham 1971 films British science fiction drama films 1971 romantic drama films 1970s science fiction drama films 1970s English-language films Films directed by Ralph Thomas Films shot at Pinewood Studios British alternative history films Films based on short fiction Films about parallel universes Films about World War II alternate histories 1971 drama films Films with screenplays by Terence Feely 1970s British films