MovieChat Forums > The Last of Sheila (1973) Discussion > In-Jokes

In-Jokes

posted 12 years ago by fubared1
8 replies | jump to latest

This film is supposed to be loaded with Hollyweed in-jokes. Does anyone actually know what they all are? Both writers and the director were all gay, I know that much, but what about the rest? It really isn't that great a film or even that good a murder mystery, as none of the talents involved were great writers (except for Sondheim, but he is just a great lyric writer) and the director was your basic Hollyweed hack. I'd be more interested to know what the actual in-jokes were.

Life sucks, then you're reincarnated

[–] roncerabona 11 years ago

As others have remarked there are allusions to James Mason's role in "Lolita" (in which he played a child molester) and James Coburn's spaghetti western "A Fist Full of Dynamite" and the Dyan Cannon character is a parody of agent Sue Mengers. Not sure of others.

[–] fubared1 11 years ago

I meant the in-jokes based on the real life actors in Hollyweed.

Life sucks, then you're reincarnated

[–] Coventry 10 years ago

Not sure if it's an in-joke, but Hammer-horror nymph Yvonne Romain (“Curse of the Werewolf”, “Night Creatures”) briefly appears at the beginning of the film as the titular Sheila. A nifty detail in the script is that one of the main characters refers to Hammer horror later in the film, when they’re solving a riddle inside the abandoned monastery.

Dance with me my dear. The dance of those who will never return...

[–] musicbytes 10 years ago

The op does not thank everyone for the information. That means he is an ungrateful republican !

[–] MrsRhettButler 10 years ago

The shoplifting actress is based on Suzanne Somers (sp?) who was arrested for shoplifting. (This would have been more interesting back when the movie was made.)

Busby Berkeley hit a woman with his car and killed her. The studio protected him and covered it up.

The movie's director and one of the writers (Tony Perkins) were bisexual and married to straight women.

According to Judy Garland, Louis B. Mayer was a pedophile. (The director Woltz in The Godfather is also patterned after Mayer)

--- This wasn't relevant when the movie was made but Stephen Sondheim has annual Christmas Charades games. Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci, Mia Farrow and Robert DeNiro go, among other. According to Streep, DeNiro is terrible at Charades.

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[–] mvpx7 10 years ago

I would tend to rule out the Suzanne Somers angle. She wasn't even a known entity when the movie was filmed.

[–] MrsRhettButler 10 years ago

You're right. That show wasn't on until the mid '70s. Don't know who they're referring to then.

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[–] 10 years ago

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