BUtterfield 8 (1960)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Such a frustrating disappointment

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The reason BUtterfield 8 is so famous is two-fold: Elizabeth Taylor and the Hays Code. Before the fall of the Hays Code, a movie like this could never be made, so in 1960, Hollywood was thrilled to make a film about a call-girl. Since the call-girl was played by someone so beautiful and scantily clad, audiences were thrilled to see it. When they flocked to the theaters upon its release, they were greeted by life size cardboard cutouts of Elizabeth Taylor (I know movie theaters today are always decorated like that, but in 1960 it was new) and phone booths in which you could dial the phone number BUtterfield 8 and listen to a prerecorded message from the star. What a publicity campaign! Elizabeth Taylor won an Oscar during the 1961 ceremony, but it was clear even at the time that she didn't really win for her performance. She'd recovered from a nearly fatal bout of pneumonia near the voting period, and since she'd recently made her way back into America's good graces after being branded as a homewrecker, the Academy rewarded her.Liz herself notoriously dissed the film, and I can't say I blame her. The film isn't that great, and it's also pretty dated, since countless movies about prostitutes have been made since. The shock value isn't there anymore. If you want to see Elizabeth Taylor in a negligee and you can't find Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, I guess you can sit through this one. But try and find something else; there are so many other movies that show off her beauty.

If you have to watch one old movie make sure you see from 1960 Elizabeth Taylor's "Butterfield 8" finally after many years I viewed this legendary classic of the screen queen, I must say it's near excellent work despite it's tragic end. Elizabeth Taylor stars as Gloria a young beautiful woman in Manhattan who moonlights secretly as a high class call girl and the agency she works for is "Butterfield 8". Gloria likes the lifestyle of money but underneath she feels guilt and amoral for sleeping around as her mother has a concern for her safety too. But it's the sessions of passion and love making with Weston Liggett(Laurence Harvey)that she enjoys the most it's tough and complex as it leads to love and drama as Weston a married businessman is ready to leave his wife for the beautiful Gloria and this all has Gloria to reconsider everything in life. This film has it all drama, love, passion and tension moments of decision that all lead to a tragic fate really this is one classic to watch.

BUtterfield 8 (1960) * 1/2 (out of 4) Elizabeth Taylor won her first of two Oscars for this melodrama where she plays a prostitute who begins to fall in love with a rich client (Laurence Harvey) who just happens to be married. The troubled woman also has feelings for another man (Eddie Fisher) who is attached to another woman even though he may have feelings for the bad girl. The novel that this film was based on was about a true person whose troubled life eventually had her body washing up on shore during 1931 but this tragic tale has been watered down so that MGM wouldn't have any trouble with the production code but another problem is that they wanted to add that typical MGM polish but this is one case where it really killed the picture. Taylor went on record several times saying she hated this picture and thought she only won the Oscar due to her illness at the time and after watching this movie I Must say that I agree with her. This is especially true when you look at some of the other performances nominated. With that said, Taylor turns in a good performance but for an actress of her greatness you still can't help but say this is one of her lesser performances. It's also well-known that Taylor was wanting to finish off her contract with MGM so that she could go to Fox and pick up a million-dollar check for CLEOPATRA but I wouldn't say this effected the performance any. I think the actress was smart enough to see how poor this material was and it's fair to say that everyone was hampered with the screenplay. The screenplay is a complete mess as it really never seems to know what type of story it wants to tell and there are way too many times where a door is opened and something dark is about to come forward but for no apparent reason the subject and tone changes. If you pay attention during the first scene between Taylor and Fisher you'll notice what appears to be dubbed dialogue and I'm curious if this was done because the original was too "dirty" or if perhaps it was just that bad and they had the lines changed later. Either way, the problems continue from there because the screenplay doesn't offer up a single character that you like. I don't mind this when you have a hard film telling an ugly story but that's not the case here. The characters all come off rather unlikeable and when the film wants you to feel something for them you just can't because you don't care. Both Harvey and Fisher are decent in their roles but the screenplay gives them very little to do other than stand behind Taylor. Taylor, as I said, isn't great here but she at least manages to make you keep your eye on her. The minor sexuality in the film is brought to life by Taylor who looks as beautiful as ever. BUTTERFIELD 8 is a pretty poor movie from start to finish. There's not an ounce of life to be found, the story is a mess and you can't help but with some of the MGM shine had been removed so that the film could have dealt with the real subject at hand. As it is this film is certainly only for buffs who want to check out everything that has won an Oscar.

Elizabeth Taylor was amazingly candid about her winning the Oscar for her performance in "BUtterfield 8"--chalking it up to sympathy for recent near-death hospitalization. While I wouldn't say this is necessarily the case, it's certainly not one of her better films. Her character, though strikingly beautiful, was a bit too surly and bitter. While you could see men falling for her for her looks, even the ugly prostitutes might be preferable because of the character's nastiness. So when Laurence Harvey falls desperately (and rather sickeningly) in love with her you wonder why! He's handsome and rich and all she has to offer (other than her fantastic body) is meanness. You wonder why he doesn't just find a nicer 'professional girl'.I call Taylor a professional girl because this movie was made in the waning days of the production code so they didn't call her a call-girl or prostitute. Taylor plays a part-time actress, part-time high-priced professional girl who has clearly become jaded...and a serious drinker. The film begins with Harvey desperately following her and her male friend (played by real-life husband Eddie Fisher) amazingly ambivalent about her. Ironically, the Fishers were having marital difficulties at the time and the bizarre love-hate relationship between Taylor and Fisher seemed to be mirroring their lives.As I said above, it's not one of Taylor's better films. It's meant more as a titillating soap opera--much like a sleazier version of "Peyton Place". In other words, it's far from high-art and the writing is often rather bad. The characters are hard to believe and the dialog a bit silly. I particularly wonder if it pained Harvey to utter many of his rather simpering lines and double-entendres--he must have felt frustrated playing such a character.I'd say this film is interesting mostly to die-hard fans of Taylor or people who love soapy films. I'm not saying it's bad....it just isn't one of her better films.