Julia (1977 film)

Julia
original film poster by Richard Amsel
Directed by	Fred Zinnemann
Produced by	Richard A. Roth
Written by	Alvin Sargent
Starring	Jane Fonda Vanessa Redgrave Jason Robards Hal Holbrook Rosemary Murphy and Maximilian Schell
Music by	Georges Delerue
Cinematography	Douglas Slocombe
Editing by	Marcel Durham Walter Murch
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	October 2, 1977 (1977-10-02)
Running time	118 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$20,714,400

Julia is an Academy Award-winning 1977 film made by 20th Century Fox. It is based on Lillian Hellman's book Pentimento, a chapter of which purports to tell the story of her relationship with an alleged lifelong friend, "Julia," who fought against the Nazis in the years prior to World War II. The film was directed by Fred Zinnemann and produced by Richard Roth, with Julien Derode as executive producer and Tom Pevsner as associate producer, from a screenplay adapted by Alvin Sargent.

Plot

The young Lillian and the young Julia, daughter of a wealthy family being brought up by her grandparents in the U.S., enjoy a childhood together and an extremely close relationship in late adolescence. Later, while medical-student/physician Julia (Vanessa Redgrave) attends Oxford and the University of Vienna and studies with such luminaries as Sigmund Freud, Lillian (Jane Fonda) suffers through revisions of her play with her mentor and sometime lover, famed author Dashiell Hammett (Jason Robards) at a beachhouse.

After becoming a celebrated playwright, Lillian is invited to a writers' conference in Russia. Julia, having taken on the battle against Nazism, enlists Lillian en route to smuggle money through Nazi Germany which will assist in the anti-Nazi cause. It is a dangerous mission, especially for a Jewish intellectual on her way to Russia.

During a brief meeting with Julia on this trip, Lillian learns that her friend has a child named Lily, living with a baker in Alsace. Shortly after her return to the United States, Lillian is informed of Julia's murder. The details of her death are shrouded in secrecy. Lillian unsuccessfully looks for Julia's daughter in Alsace and also discovers that Julia's family wants nothing to do with the child, if she exists, probably for financial reasons.

Cast

• Jane Fonda as Lillian Hellman
• Vanessa Redgrave as Julia
• Jason Robards as Dashiell Hammett
• Maximilian Schell as Johann
• Hal Holbrook as Alan Campbell
• Rosemary Murphy as Dorothy Parker
• Meryl Streep as Anne Marie
• John Glover as Sammy
• Lisa Pelikan as Julia (younger)
• Lambert Wilson as Walter Franz

Julia features the first film performances of Meryl Streep and Lisa Pelikan.

Production

The film was shot on location in England and France.

Awards

Julia won Academy Awards for:

• Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Jason Robards);
• Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Vanessa Redgrave);
• Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium (Alvin Sargent)

It was nominated for an Academy Award for:

• Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Maximilian Schell);
• Best Actress in a Leading Role (Jane Fonda);
• Best Cinematography;
• Best Costume Design;
• Best Director;
• Best Film Editing;
• Best Music, Original Score;
• Best Picture.

It also won the BAFTA Award for Best Film.

External links

• Julia at the Internet Movie Database
• Julia at Rotten Tomatoes

Awards
Preceded by The Last Picture Show	Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress	Succeeded by Hannah and Her Sisters