''Misunderstood'' is a 1983 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. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Jerry Schatzberg Jerry Schatzberg (born June 26, 1927) is an American photographer and film director. After establishing himself as a successful celebrity photographer, he transitioned to making feature films. He is best known for his films ''The Panic in Needle ...

, based on the 1869 novel ''Misunderstood'' by

Florence Montgomery Florence Montgomery (1843–1923) was an English novelist and children's writer. Her 1869 novel ''Misunderstood'' was enjoyed by Lewis Carroll and George du Maurier, and by Vladimir Nabokov as a child. Her writings are pious in tone and set in f ...

. This film stars

Henry Thomas Henry Jackson Thomas (born September 9, 1971) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor and had the lead role of Elliott Taylor in the film '' E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), for which he won a Young Artist Award and rece ...

as a young boy who struggles with family, friends, and relationships after his mother's death. The novel ''Misunderstood'' had previously been adapted by

Luigi Comencini Luigi Comencini (; 8 June 1916 – 6 April 2007) was an Italian film director. Together with Dino Risi, Ettore Scola, and Mario Monicelli, he was considered among the masters of the "commedia all'italiana" genre. His daughters Cristina Comencin ...

as the 1966 Italian film '' Incompreso'' which starred

Anthony Quayle Sir John Anthony Quayle (7 September 1913 – 20 October 1989) was a British actor. He was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his supporting role as Thomas Wolsey in the film '' Anne of the Thousand Days'' (1969). He also played impor ...

Plot

Ned Rawley is an American shipowner established in Tunisia where his business thrives and monopolizes him. He lives in a beautiful villa with his two sons, Miles and Andrew, who are cared for by a newly arrived housekeeper because their mother has just died in a hospital abroad. The father decides to hide this tragedy from the youngest, inventing an extended trip for his mother. For the older one, he continues to treat him as a "man", revealing to him the disappearance of his mother but remaining cold with him, being afraid to express his feelings. He does not realize that his son lacks affection and suffers from the absences and the harshness of education imposed on him by his father who transfers all his attentions to the youngest. Finally, it is only during an accident caused by Andrew that the father and son will get closer.

Cast

Production

Prior to the casting of

Gene Hackman Eugene Allen Hackman (January 30, 1930 – ) was an American actor. Hackman made his credited film debut in the drama ''Lilith (film), Lilith'' (1964). He later won two Academy Awards, his first for Academy Award for Best Actor, Best Actor for ...

, director

had considered

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...

for the role of Ned Rawley. Initially intended to be shot in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, Tarak Ben Ammar convinced Schatzberg to instead film in his home country of

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

. Due to creative differences two endings with Schatzberg preferring a tragic conclusion, while Ben Ammar presided over a more “upbeat” version during editing and inserted flashbacks into Schatzberg’s cut. This resulted in

Susan Anspach Susan Florence Anspach (; November 23, 1942 – April 2, 2018) was an American stage, film and television actress who had roles in films during the 1970s and 1980s such as ''Five Easy Pieces'' (1970), ''Play It Again, Sam (film), Play It Aga ...

's performance as Lilly Rawley being substantially reduced and only appearing in flashbacks despite being envisioned as a more prominent character. Further revisions to the film were made by MGM/UA without the involvement of Schatzberg or Ben Ammar.

Release

''Misunderstood'' was released in Japan by

Toho is a Japanese entertainment company that primarily engages in producing and distributing films and exhibiting stage plays. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. ...

-Towa on December 10, 1983. It was released in the United States on March 30, 1984.

Reception

Box office

Made on a budget of $10 million, the movie was also relying on A-List success of

and

, the latter of whom was a successful child star who appeared in several blockbusters during that era. But the film flopped at the US box office, opening at number 11 with $916,967 in 741 screens, and went on to gross just $1,525,532 in its entire domestic run.

Critics

Critics were mixed on the film, with many praising the acting while also criticizing it for being too restrained in its approach to the subject matter.
Janet Maslin's New York Times Review

References

Citations

Sources

External links

* * * 1983 films 1983 independent films 1983 drama films American drama films American independent films American remakes of Italian films Films about brothers Films about children Films about dysfunctional families Films based on British novels Films directed by Jerry Schatzberg Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films with screenplays by Barra Grant United Artists films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films English-language drama films English-language independent films {{1980s-US-film-stub