''Promise Her Anything'' is a 1965

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...

film directed by

Arthur Hiller Arthur Hiller, (November 22, 1923 – August 17, 2016) was a Canadian television and film director with over 33 films to his credit during a 50-year career. He began his career directing television in Canada and later in the U.S. By the late ...

and starring

Warren Beatty Henry Warren Beatty (né Beaty; born March 30, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker. His career has spanned over six decades, and he has received an Academy Award and three Golden Globe Awards. He also received the Irving G. Thalberg Memor ...

and Leslie Caron. The screenplay by

William Peter Blatty William Peter Blatty (January 7, 1928 – January 12, 2017) was an American writer, director and producer. He is best known for his 1971 novel ''The Exorcist (novel), The Exorcist'' and for his screenplay for The Exorcist, the 1973 film adaptat ...

is based on a story by Arne Sultan and Marvin Worth. The supporting cast features Bob Cummings, Keenan Wynn, Hermione Gingold and Lionel Stander.

Plot

Recently

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...

ed Michele O'Brien moves into a

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village, or simply the Village, is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street (Manhattan), 14th Street to the north, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the s ...

brownstone with her infant son John Thomas. Her neighbor, Harley Rummel, a bohemian who earns a living by making nudie films in his apartment, becomes interested in her, but Michele believes her boss, wealthy

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

Philip Brock, is a better prospect as a new mate. Although he is an authority on children, Philip actually despises them, so Michele decides to keep John Thomas a secret for the time being. Unbeknownst to her, Harley is using the baby in his movies. When John Thomas is admitted to Philip's clinic for observation, Harley sneaks into his room to complete a film, but his surreptitious activities are captured by a hidden camera recording the baby's behavior. Michelle is furious but, when he saves John Thomas from a potentially dangerous situation, she forgives Harley and decides he may be the better choice for a father after all.

Cast

;Uncredited (in order of appearance) * Kathleen Hughes as Mother in Dr. Brock's audience * Jo Anne Worley as Mother asking Dr. Brock for advice *

Donald Sutherland Donald McNichol Sutherland (17 July 1935 – 20 June 2024) was a Canadian actor. With a career spanning six decades, he received List of awards and nominations received by Donald Sutherland, numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award ...

as Father asking Dr. Brock to autograph books * Anita Sharp-Bolster as Mrs. Egan, babysitter * Michael Chaplin as Heathcliff, beatnik

Production

The film was entirely shot at

Shepperton Studios Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of Pinewood Group, the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not ...

Surrey, England Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

. The original Baby John Thomas was supposed to be played by 2-year-old Philip Barron, but he didn't get on with Warren Beatty and cried almost every time he went near him, so there was a last-minute change and a Michael Bradley was found so production could start, and both children were used during filming. Bad weather delayed filming, and seven minutes were cut from the final edit. The title song, with music by

Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; May 12, 1928 – February 8, 2023) was an American composer, songwriter, record producer, and pianist who is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential figures of 20th-century popular music. Start ...

and lyrics by

Hal David Harold Lane David (May 25, 1921 – September 1, 2012) was an American lyricist. He was best known for his collaborations with composer Burt Bacharach and his association with Dionne Warwick. Early life David was born and raised in New ...

, was performed on the

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

by Tom Jones.

Novelization

In February 1966, Dell Publishing released a paperback novelization by Al Hine under his frequent tie-in pseudonym, "Bradford Street." There is no attribution to the screenplay, though the 1965 copyright is assigned to Paramount Pictures. The cover price was 45¢ and the cover photos feature stars Beatty and Caron.

Critical reception

'' Variety'' called the film "light" and "refreshing" and added, "Well-paced direction of many fine performances, generally sharp scripting and other good production elements add up to a satisfying comedy." ''

Time Out New York ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 333 cities in 59 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition became ...

'' said, "This dull attempt at an offbeat and sophisticated romantic comedy falls flat on its face, thanks largely to the usual sluggish direction from Arthur Hiller nd... a dismal script by William Peter Blatty."

References

External links

* * *
''Promise Her Anything''
then-and-now location photographs a
ReelStreets
{{Arthur Hiller 1965 films British romantic comedy films 1965 romantic comedy films Films set in New York City Paramount Pictures films Films directed by Arthur Hiller Films with screenplays by William Peter Blatty Films scored by Lyn Murray 1960s English-language films 1960s British films English-language romantic comedy films