Charlie Bubbles

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Charlie Bubbles

1968

1h 31m

Comedy

Drama

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4 Reviews

67%

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100+ Ratings

Charlie Bubbles (Albert Finney), a wealthy British writer who is losing his ability to feel -- and therefore write -- returns to his hometown of Manchester. Despite his success, Charlie is restless and unhappy even when he visits the women in his life, including his mistress, Eliza (Liza Minnelli), and his estranged wife, Lottie (Billie Whitelaw). As Charlie floats around Manchester, it becomes clear that he is almost completely disconnected from his working-class roots.

Pauline Kael

New Yorker

The entire painfully monotonous movie is based on this single small, unoriginal idea -- the kind of idea that could be one element, or good for a short sequence.

Jul 6, 2022

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Renata Adler

New York Times

The ending, a low key absurdist touch, is as quiet, beautifully made and carefully thought out as the rest.

Jan 8, 2018

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Manny Farber

Artforum

Finney's puritanical, sucked-in ungiving performance, is not so much a man as a particular stage when life has lost its zing and there are no more visible goals on the horizon.

Jun 17, 2019

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Penelope Houston

The Spectator

About the only thing wrong with Charlie Bubbles is the title, which sounds whimsical and gormless, like a plaster gnome fishing amidst the crazy paving.

Jul 9, 2018

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Mark T

The only film directed by Albert Finney, it is best known for having created video surveillance as a security resource. In Charlie's mansion, his multiscreen wall used to watch his house guests may seem meager compared to similar setups we've seen in films like The Matrix, but it was the first. One year later, the concept inspired Russian government officials to use remote monitors to safely watch rocket launches and by banks after that to screen onsite activity from other locations. 1 For this reason alone (as well as Liza Minnelli's acting debut), this quirky film earns a full five-star rating. 1. Ref: Terry, Mark. The Geo-Doc: Geomedia, Documentary Film, and Social Change. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020. Page 143.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/18/23

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bill t

Damn frustrating movie that really doesn't go anyplace, just literally about a screenwriter who gets out of the city with his would-be-girlfriend, and meets up with his ex-wife and son. THATS IT. Plenty of patience, for what? I don't know. Maybe some sort of statement about today's society. Who knows.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Audience Member

Excellent movie. It's too bad Finney never directed again. It's very much in the style of the British New Wave of the 1960's.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

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Audience Member

Odd little comedy-drama which sticks in the memory. It gets by more on acting and dream-like atmosphere than by it's story.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/21/23

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Audience Member

Comedy-drama concerns a materially successful man, fighting vainly the old ennui. Unfortunately, audiences also are bound to experience the same tedium, via underplaying and limp direction.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

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Albert Finney

Director

Albert Finney

Charlie Bubbles

Liza Minnelli

Eliza

Colin Blakely

Smokey Pickles

Billie Whitelaw

Lottie Bubbles

Timothy Garland

Jack Bubbles

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Synopsis

Charlie Bubbles (Albert Finney), a wealthy British writer who is losing his ability to feel -- and therefore write -- returns to his hometown of Manchester. Despite his success, Charlie is restless and unhappy even when he visits the women in his life, including his mistress, Eliza (Liza Minnelli), and his estranged wife, Lottie (Billie Whitelaw). As Charlie floats around Manchester, it becomes clear that he is almost completely disconnected from his working-class roots.

Director: Albert Finney
Producer: Michael Medwin
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Runtime: 1h 31m