The Seven Minutes (film)
| The Seven Minutes | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Russ Meyer |
| Written by | Irving Wallace (novel) Richard Warren Lewis |
| Produced by | Russ Meyer |
| Starring | Wayne Maunder Marianne McAndrew |
| Cinematography | Fred Mandl |
| Edited by | Dick Wormell |
| Music by | Stu Phillips |
| Distributed by | Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation |
Release dates | July 23, 1971 (U.S.) December 11, 1971 (Japan) |
Running time | 115 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Seven Minutes is 1971 drama film directed and produced by Russ Meyer. The film was based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Irving Wallace.
Plot
After a teenager who purchased the erotic novel The Seven Minutes is charged for rape, an eager prosecutor who is against pornography (and preparing for an upcoming election) uses the scandal to declare the book as obscene and brings charges against the bookstore. The subsequent trial soon creates a heated debate about the issue of pornography vs. free speech. The young defense lawyer must also solve the mystery of the novel's true author.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Wayne Maunder | Mike Barrett |
| Marianne McAndrew | Maggie Russell |
| Philip Carey | Elmo Duncan |
| Jay C. Flippen | Luther Yerkes |
| Edy Williams | Faye Osborn |
| Lyle Bettger | Frank Griffith |
| Yvonne De Carlo | Constance Cumberland |
| Jackie Gayle | Norman Quandt |
| Ron Randell | Merle Reid |
| Charles Drake | Sargent Kellogg |
| John Carradine | Sean O'Flanagan |
| Harold J. Stone | Judge Upshaw |
| James Inglehart | Clay Rutherford |
| Tom Selleck | Phil Sanford |
| Olan Soule | Harvey Underwood |
| Charles Napier | Norman Quandt |
| Wolfman Jack | Himself |
Production notes
This was Meyer's second, and last, mainstream production for FOX. The film began production soon after the success of Meyer's highest grossing film, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.[1]
As with many of his movies, Meyers used several of the same actors in his previous productions including then-wife Edy Williams, Charles Napier, Henry Rowland, and James Inglehart.
Established actress Yvonne De Carlo makes an appearance along with veteran character actor Olan Soule. A young Tom Selleck also had a role in the film, and DJ Wolfman Jack made a cameo appearance.
The film attracted some attention for Marianne McAndrew's nude appearance. McAndrew was known at the time for her recent role as Irene Molloy in Hello, Dolly!.[2] In 1969, and when asked about her attitude toward for a scene in an upcoming film, McAndrew was quoted as stating "Intellectually, I can understand that nude scenes, in good taste, are honest. All these years we've been dishonest, in showing people in bed fully clothed. But we're going too far the other way. All I can say, I understand in intelllectually... but when it comes down to it being me who takes of my clothes, it's scarey." She also reported that it was in her contract that her nudity would be only in the film, with no nude imagery of her used in any media release or in any trailers.[3]
Reception
The Seven Minutes received a lukewarm reception from both audiences and critics and was Meyer's first commercial failure.[1][4]
New York Times reviewer Roger Greenspun wrote of the film, "I don't think that a court of law is the right Russ Meyer arena, and The Seven Minutes, which had started out pretty well, bogs down hopelessly in its courtroom legalisms and its absolutely non-cliff-hanging rush to unearth the real identity of the mythical J J Jadway", citing some problems with the film being its complicated plot and "enormous cast of characters". In addressing the film's use of nudity, he wrote "[Meyers] has never been so much concerned with undressing his girls (there are maybe five seconds of nudity in "The Seven Minutes") as admiring their appetites, their overwhelming proportions (but not so much their seductive flesh), their often destructive and self-destructive wills."[5]
References
- ^ a b Russ Meyer at filmreference.com
- ^ "Acress Changes Her Image With Appearance in Nude Scene". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Sarasota, Florida. 1971-01-28. Retrieved 2010-07-02.
She will be remembered as the too-sweet millenery proprietess in 'Hello Dolly!' To lose that image the brunette beauty shed all her clothes in a new movie, 'The Seven Minutes'
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help) - ^ Kleiner, Dick (November 29, 1969). "Dolly's No.2 Doll To Shred Threads". Gadsden Times. Google News Archive. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=(help) - ^ Ebert, Roger (1973). "Russ Meyer: King of the Nudies". Film Comment. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Greenspun, Roger (July 24, 1971). "'The 7 Minutes':Court Is Focus of Russ Meyer's Latest". The New York Times. movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
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