Lili

G

Released Mar 10, 1953

1 hr. 21 min.

Musical

Romance

List

100%

7 Reviews

Tomatometer

82%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Traveling with little more than her naïveté, sunny teenager Lili (Leslie Caron) arrives in a new town and is befriended by a circus troupe. Though she becomes infatuated with the dashing magician, Marcus the Magnificent (Jean-Pierre Aumont), Lili forms a more significant bond with puppeteer Paul (Mel Ferrer) and his four puppets, which she treats as real people. Together, Lili, Paul and the puppets prove to be a popular act, but their success and happiness are threatened by Paul's gruffness.

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Crom W

Classic. Top Performance by Leslie Caron.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/24/23

Full Review

Natasha C

Beautiful film about a naive young lady. I've seen it so many times but I still cry every time. Heartwarming.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/08/23

Full Review

Jeffrey R. B

I saw this film first run when I was five. I fell in love with Leslie Caron, and I still have a crush on her, today.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/09/23

Full Review

Ken R

All too rarely has a film about lost innocence and earnest love been so sensitively brought to the screen. Respected screenwriter Helen Deutsch (The Seventh Cross ‘44) adapted Paul Gallico's (The Snow Goose) darkly observant novella "The Seven Souls of Clement O'Reilly" into an inspiring story of a naive young orphaned girl coming of age. Deutsch also maintains the opportunistic exploitation of the vulnerable girl without sensationalizing this angle. The Academy award-winning score by brilliant composer Bronislau Kaper is nothing short of unforgettable. This beautifully produced MGM film cannot be called a musical as there's only one song but what a song! It's been universally popular for over 60years, and screenplay writer Helen Deutsch also wrote the world-renowned lyrics. The haunting dream-ballet sequence that closes this unique movie brings both tears of joy and wonder at its stirring and visually fascinating realization. Apart from a couple of clunky trick edits, direction, cinematography (Robert Plank - ‘Strange Cargo '40) and performances - combine to create movie making at its most magical - and should be seen by all lovers of classic film art. While it might not be to everyone's taste (what ever is?) in 2004 the New York Times added Lilli to their listing of the best 1,000 movies ever made. The WB Archive DVD delivers an excellent visual and sound transfer.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/27/21

Full Review

Audience Member

A charming film with a lovely performance by Leslie Caron. The dance numbers are well-performed and the songs are catchy. However, it is really odd that Caron's character is so in love with one of the circus performers who she wants sensationally dance with while also being amused by puppets and forgetting at times that a puppeteer controls those said puppets. The romance between Lili, Marc and Paul also gets a bit boring and cliched. Caron was nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars which she did deserve and I believe she was better than the other nominated performances I have seen; Kerr and McNamara. Overall, a charming film that gets pretty dull and cliched at times.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

william d

Touching story starring the lovely and talented Leslie Caron.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Charles Walters

Director

Leslie Caron

Lili Daurier

Mel Ferrer

Paul Berthalet

Jean-Pierre Aumont

Marc

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Rosalie

Kurt Kasznar

Jacquot

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Nell Minow

Movie Mom

Rated: B+

Feb 18, 2012

Full Review

Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Classic love story of an orphan and the carnival.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 25, 2010

Full Review

Clyde Gilmour

Maclean's Magazine

This is an astonishingly fragile and lovely film and is hereby highly recommended.

Nov 14, 2019

Full Review

Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

A vehicle for MGM's new star Leslie Caron to shine.

Rated: B

Jul 2, 2011

Full Review

Steve Crum

Video-Reviewmaster.com

Fine score, Caron performance in MGM musical fantasy.

Rated: 4/5

Mar 19, 2009

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Lelsie Caron is charming in her first Oscar nominated role as an orphan who takes with a carnival in this second-rate MGM musical (technically a melodrama with songs), which was very popular due to the Oscar-winning score, Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo."

Rated: B

Jul 15, 2005

Full Review

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Synopsis

Traveling with little more than her naïveté, sunny teenager Lili (Leslie Caron) arrives in a new town and is befriended by a circus troupe. Though she becomes infatuated with the dashing magician, Marcus the Magnificent (Jean-Pierre Aumont), Lili forms a more significant bond with puppeteer Paul (Mel Ferrer) and his four puppets, which she treats as real people. Together, Lili, Paul and the puppets prove to be a popular act, but their success and happiness are threatened by Paul's gruffness.

Director: Charles Walters
Screenwriter: Helen Deutsch, Paul Gallico
Distributor: MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
Production Co: Metro Goldwyn Mayer, Loew's Inc.
Rating: G
Genre: Musical, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 10, 1953, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 28, 2016
Sound Mix: Mono

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