Frances
Encyclopedia
Frances is a 1982 American drama film
starring Jessica Lange
, Kim Stanley
, and Sam Shepard
. When it was released this film was advertised as a purportedly true account of actress Frances Farmer
's life but the script was largely fictional and sensationalized. In particular, the film depicts Farmer as having been lobotomized
; this is reputed to never have happened.
Directed
by Graeme Clifford
, the story was written for the screen by Eric Bergren, Christopher De Vore and Nicholas Kazan
(son of Elia Kazan
, who worked with the real Frances Farmer
in several plays), based upon William Arnold's Shadowland
, a fictional biography of Farmer. In pre-production, the producers reneged on their option to use the book as source material. Arnold filed an unsuccessful copyright infringement lawsuit but many of his fictional elements were incorporated into the final film. On the commentary of the DVD release, director Clifford stated, "We didn't want to nickel and dime people to death with facts." Mel Brooks
was executive producer
of the film, but received no credit for his participation.
Frances was nominated for Academy Awards
for Best Actress in a Leading Role
(Jessica Lange) and Best Actress in a Supporting Role
(Kim Stanley). The original music score was composed by John Barry
. Meryl Streep has been quite vocal and adamant in her praise of Lange's performance, calling her "beyond wonderful". Sir Anthony Hopkins also revealed his admiration for Lange in the film, stating that her performance in Frances was his favorite by an actress.
, Frances Elena Farmer is a rebel from a young age, winning a high school award by writing an essay called "God Dies". Later that decade, she becomes controversial again when she wins (and accepts) an all-expenses-paid trip to the USSR
. Determining to become an actress, Frances is equally determined not to play the Hollywood game: she refuses to acquiesce to publicity stunts, and insists upon appearing on screen without makeup. Her defiance attracts the attention of Broadway
playwright Clifford Odets
, who convinces Frances that her future rests with the Group Theatre.
But once she leaves Hollywood for New York City
, Frances learns to her chagrin that the Group Theatre intends to exploit her fame in order to draw in customers. Her desperate attempts to restart her film career, combined with her increasing dependence on alcohol and the pressures brought to bear by her mother, result in a complete nervous breakdown
. While institutionalized, Frances is abused by the powers-that-be: she is forced to undergo insulin
and electroshock, is beaten cruelly, and periodically rape
d by the male orderlies and visiting soldiers and eventually involuntarily lobotomized
.
Frances is released in the custody of her mother in 1950, who persists in browbeating her daughter until Frances discovers the legal means to break away. The film comes to a climax when Frances is feted by the network program This Is Your Life
. When asked about her alcoholism and mental illness, Farmer said she had never believed she was mentally ill. She commented, "if a person is treated like a patient, they are apt to act like one." The film ends with Frances Farmer walking down the street with Harry York. Ending lines state that Frances Farmer spent 1958 to 1964 as host of a local TV program (Frances Farmer Presents
) in Indianapolis, Indiana
, dying of esophageal cancer
on August 1, 1970 at age 56.
, Susan Blakely
, Blythe Danner
, Susan Dey
, Patty Duke
, Mia Farrow
, Sally Field
, Jane Fonda
, Goldie Hawn
, Diane Keaton
, Liza Minnelli
, Susan Sarandon
, Cybill Shepherd
, Sissy Spacek
, Meryl Streep
, Natalie Wood
and Tuesday Weld
. Susan Blakely went on to portray Farmer in the 1983 CBS
television film Will There Really Be a Morning?
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
starring Jessica Lange
Jessica Lange
Jessica Phyllis Lange is an American actress who has worked in film, theatre and television. The recipient of several awards, including two Academy Awards, four Golden Globes and one Emmy, Lange is regarded as one of the première female actors of her generation.Lange was discovered by producer...
, Kim Stanley
Kim Stanley
Kim Stanley was an American actress, primarily in television and theatre, but with occasional film performances....
, and Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is the author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child...
. When it was released this film was advertised as a purportedly true account of actress Frances Farmer
Frances Farmer
Frances Elena Farmer was an American actress of stage and screen. She is perhaps better known for sensationalized and fictional accounts of her life, and especially her involuntary commitment to a mental hospital...
's life but the script was largely fictional and sensationalized. In particular, the film depicts Farmer as having been lobotomized
Lobotomy
Lobotomy "; τομή – tomē: "cut/slice") is a neurosurgical procedure, a form of psychosurgery, also known as a leukotomy or leucotomy . It consists of cutting the connections to and from the prefrontal cortex, the anterior part of the frontal lobes of the brain...
; this is reputed to never have happened.
Directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Graeme Clifford
Graeme Clifford
For the opera singer with a similar name, see Grahame Clifford.Graeme Clifford is an acclaimed Australian film director, his directing credits include the Academy Award nominated film Frances, Gleaming the Cube and the mini-series The Last Don, which received two Emmy nominations.Clifford was a...
, the story was written for the screen by Eric Bergren, Christopher De Vore and Nicholas Kazan
Nicholas Kazan
Nicholas Kazan is an American writer, producer and director. He is the son of director Elia Kazan and his first wife, playwright Mary Day Thacher Kazan. He married Robin Swicord, a writer, producer, actress, and director in 1984. His daughter is the actress Zoe Kazan.Kazan, also a noted...
(son of Elia Kazan
Elia Kazan
Elia Kazan was an American director and actor, described by the New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history". Born in Istanbul, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, to Greek parents originally from Kayseri in Anatolia, the family emigrated...
, who worked with the real Frances Farmer
Frances Farmer
Frances Elena Farmer was an American actress of stage and screen. She is perhaps better known for sensationalized and fictional accounts of her life, and especially her involuntary commitment to a mental hospital...
in several plays), based upon William Arnold's Shadowland
Shadowland (Arnold)
Shadowland: Search for Frances Farmer is a 1978 biographical novel by William Arnold, ostensibly about the life of actress Frances Farmer. The book is a fictionalized account which was further distorted when adapted as the film Frances in 1982...
, a fictional biography of Farmer. In pre-production, the producers reneged on their option to use the book as source material. Arnold filed an unsuccessful copyright infringement lawsuit but many of his fictional elements were incorporated into the final film. On the commentary of the DVD release, director Clifford stated, "We didn't want to nickel and dime people to death with facts." Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks is an American film director, screenwriter, composer, lyricist, comedian, actor and producer. He is best known as a creator of broad film farces and comic parodies. He began his career as a stand-up comic and as a writer for the early TV variety show Your Show of Shows...
was executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
of the film, but received no credit for his participation.
Frances was nominated for Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
(Jessica Lange) and Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
(Kim Stanley). The original music score was composed by John Barry
John Barry (composer)
John Barry Prendergast, OBE was an English conductor and composer of film music. He is best known for composing the soundtracks for 12 of the James Bond films between 1962 and 1987...
. Meryl Streep has been quite vocal and adamant in her praise of Lange's performance, calling her "beyond wonderful". Sir Anthony Hopkins also revealed his admiration for Lange in the film, stating that her performance in Frances was his favorite by an actress.
Plot
Born in Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Frances Elena Farmer is a rebel from a young age, winning a high school award by writing an essay called "God Dies". Later that decade, she becomes controversial again when she wins (and accepts) an all-expenses-paid trip to the USSR
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Determining to become an actress, Frances is equally determined not to play the Hollywood game: she refuses to acquiesce to publicity stunts, and insists upon appearing on screen without makeup. Her defiance attracts the attention of Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
playwright Clifford Odets
Clifford Odets
Clifford Odets was an American playwright, screenwriter, socialist, and social protester.-Early life:Odets was born in Philadelphia to Romanian- and Russian-Jewish immigrant parents, Louis Odets and Esther Geisinger, and raised in Philadelphia and the Bronx, New York. He dropped out of high...
, who convinces Frances that her future rests with the Group Theatre.
But once she leaves Hollywood for New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Frances learns to her chagrin that the Group Theatre intends to exploit her fame in order to draw in customers. Her desperate attempts to restart her film career, combined with her increasing dependence on alcohol and the pressures brought to bear by her mother, result in a complete nervous breakdown
Nervous breakdown
Mental breakdown is a non-medical term used to describe an acute, time-limited phase of a specific disorder that presents primarily with features of depression or anxiety.-Definition:...
. While institutionalized, Frances is abused by the powers-that-be: she is forced to undergo insulin
Insulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
and electroshock, is beaten cruelly, and periodically rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
d by the male orderlies and visiting soldiers and eventually involuntarily lobotomized
Lobotomy
Lobotomy "; τομή – tomē: "cut/slice") is a neurosurgical procedure, a form of psychosurgery, also known as a leukotomy or leucotomy . It consists of cutting the connections to and from the prefrontal cortex, the anterior part of the frontal lobes of the brain...
.
Frances is released in the custody of her mother in 1950, who persists in browbeating her daughter until Frances discovers the legal means to break away. The film comes to a climax when Frances is feted by the network program This Is Your Life
This Is Your Life
This Is Your Life is an American television documentary series broadcast on NBC, originally hosted by its producer, Ralph Edwards from 1952 to 1961. In the show, the host surprises a guest, and proceeds to take them through their life in front of an audience including friends and family.Edwards...
. When asked about her alcoholism and mental illness, Farmer said she had never believed she was mentally ill. She commented, "if a person is treated like a patient, they are apt to act like one." The film ends with Frances Farmer walking down the street with Harry York. Ending lines state that Frances Farmer spent 1958 to 1964 as host of a local TV program (Frances Farmer Presents
Frances Farmer Presents
Frances Farmer Presents is an American anthology series that aired on Indianapolis station WFBM-TV . The series premiered on October 13, 1958 and ended in September 1964.-Synopsis:...
) in Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, dying of esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes, primarily squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma . Squamous cell cancer arises from the cells that line the upper part of the esophagus...
on August 1, 1970 at age 56.
Main cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Jessica Lange Jessica Lange Jessica Phyllis Lange is an American actress who has worked in film, theatre and television. The recipient of several awards, including two Academy Awards, four Golden Globes and one Emmy, Lange is regarded as one of the première female actors of her generation.Lange was discovered by producer... |
Frances Farmer Frances Farmer Frances Elena Farmer was an American actress of stage and screen. She is perhaps better known for sensationalized and fictional accounts of her life, and especially her involuntary commitment to a mental hospital... |
| Kim Stanley Kim Stanley Kim Stanley was an American actress, primarily in television and theatre, but with occasional film performances.... |
Lillian Farmer |
| Sam Shepard Sam Shepard Sam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is the author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child... |
Harry York |
Production
Many candidates were under consideration for the role of Frances Farmer: Anne ArcherAnne Archer
Anne Archer is an American actress who has performed in feature films, television, and stage and was named Miss Golden Globe in 1971. Among her best known roles is that of Beth Gallagher in the 1987 movie Fatal Attraction, for which she received a nomination for an Academy Award.-Career:Archer's...
, Susan Blakely
Susan Blakely
Susan Blakely is an American film actress who has mainly played supporting roles.-Early life:Blakely was born in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1948. She is the daughter of Weezie, a former art teacher, and Colonel Lawrence Blakely, a career Army officer. Her first career break came while she was living...
, Blythe Danner
Blythe Danner
Blythe Katherine Danner is an American actress. She is the mother of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and director Jake Paltrow.-Early life:...
, Susan Dey
Susan Dey
Susan Dey is an American actress, known primarily for her roles in film and television. Her more prominent parts came as elder daughter, Laurie Partridge, on the 1970s sitcom The Partridge Family, and as Grace Van Owen, a California assistant district attorney and judge on the dramatic series, L.A...
, Patty Duke
Patty Duke
Anna Marie "Patty" Duke is an American actress of stage, film, and television. First becoming famous as a child star, winning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at age 16, and later starring in her eponymous sitcom for three years, she progressed to more mature roles upon playing Neely...
, Mia Farrow
Mia Farrow
Mia Farrow is an American actress, singer, humanitarian, and fashion model.Farrow first gained wide acclaim for her role as Allison Mackenzie in the soap opera Peyton Place, and for her subsequent short-lived marriage to Frank Sinatra...
, Sally Field
Sally Field
Sally Margaret Field is an American actress, singer, producer, director, and screenwriter. In each decade of her career, she has been known for major roles in American TV/film culture, including: in the 1960s, for Gidget or Sister Bertrille on The Flying Nun ; in the 1970s, for Sybil , Smokey and...
, Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
, Goldie Hawn
Goldie Hawn
Goldie Jeanne Hawn is an American actress, film director, producer, and occasional singer. Hawn is known for her roles in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, Private Benjamin, Foul Play, Overboard, Bird on a Wire, Death Becomes Her, The First Wives Club, and Cactus Flower, for which she won the 1969...
, Diane Keaton
Diane Keaton
Diane Keaton is an American film actress, director, producer, and screenwriter. Keaton began her career on stage, and made her screen debut in 1970...
, Liza Minnelli
Liza Minnelli
Liza May Minnelli is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli....
, Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
, Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Shepherd
Cybill Lynne Shepherd is an American actress, singer and former model. Her best known roles include starring as Jacy in The Last Picture Show, as Betsy in Taxi Driver, as Madeleine Spencer in Psych, as Maddie Hayes on Moonlighting, as Cybill Sheridan on Cybill, and as Phyllis Kroll on The L...
, Sissy Spacek
Sissy Spacek
Sissy Spacek is an American actress and singer. She came to international prominence for her for role as Carrie White in Brian De Palma's 1976 horror film Carrie for which she earned her first Academy Award nomination...
, Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep
Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film.Streep made her professional stage debut in 1971's The Playboy of Seville, before her screen debut in the television movie The Deadliest Season in 1977. In that same year, she made her film debut with...
, Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood, born Natalia Nikolaevna Zacharenko was an American film and television actress. After first working in films as a child, Wood became a successful Hollywood star as a young adult, receiving three Academy Award nominations before she was 25 years old.Wood began acting in movies at the...
and Tuesday Weld
Tuesday Weld
Tuesday Weld is an American actress.Weld began her acting career as a child, and progressed to more mature roles during the late 1950s. She won a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Female Newcomer in 1960...
. Susan Blakely went on to portray Farmer in the 1983 CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television film Will There Really Be a Morning?