Liberty (1986 film)

Liberty is a television film which aired on NBC on June 23, 1986.[1] It is a largely fictionalized account of the construction of the Statue of Liberty, which had been completed 100 years earlier.

Liberty
GenreHistorical period drama
Screenplay byPete Hamill (billed as Robert Malloy)
Directed byRichard C. Sarafian
Starring
ComposerWilliam Goldstein
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
ProducerPaul Pompian
Production locationsBaltimore, Maryland
Chateau de Ferrières 77164, Ferrières-en-Brie, France
Maison Opéra Paris, France
Senlis 60300 Oise, France
CinematographyAl Francis
EditorRobert Florio
Running time180 minutes
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseJune 23, 1986 (1986-06-23)

Scenes were shot on location in Paris and Baltimore.[2][3]

Plot

Sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi (Frank Langella) and author Édouard de Laboulaye (Jean-Pierre Cassel) agree to create a monument to present to the United States on behalf of the French people. Bartholdi searches for a model, approaching (and romancing) young woman Jeanne Baheau (Corinne Touzet) for the body of the statue, and deciding to use his mother (Claire Bloom) as a model for its face.

Enlisted to help with its construction are immigrant coppersmith Jacque Marchant (Chris Sarandon), shop owner Seamus Reilly (George Kennedy), and assistant Robert Johnson (LeVar Burton). Marchant falls in love with poet Emma Lazarus (Carrie Fisher), who supplies the sonnet "The New Colossus" for the base of the statue.[1][3][4]

Cast
ActorRole
Chris SarandonJacque Marchant
Frank LangellaFrédéric Auguste Bartholdi
Carrie FisherEmma Lazarus
Dana DelanyMoya Trevor
Corinne TouzetJeanne Baheau
George KennedySeamus Reilly
Claire BloomMadame Bartholdi
LeVar BurtonRobert Johnson
Jean-Pierre CasselÉdouard de Laboulaye
Remak RamsayJohn La Farge
Philip BoscoBoss William Tweed
Alan NorthUlysses S. Grant
Max WrightAlexandre Gustave Eiffel
Jean De BaerAllyse
Dennis BoutsikarisJoseph Pulitzer
Walter GotellRabbi Goteyel
Angela BassettLinda Thornton

Reception

Reviews of Liberty were generally negative. Jeff Jarvis of People called it "as pretentious as a high school sophomore trying to act like a college freshman."[5] Clifford Terry of the Chicago Tribune described it as "turgid as well as ludicrous, drawing upon the device of meshing fictional and historical characters."[4]

Screenwriter Pete Hamill was unhappy with the finished product, and had his name changed to "Robert Malloy" in the credits.[1]

References
  1. O'Connor, John J. (June 23, 1986). "'Liberty,' A Glimpse of History". The New York Times. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  2. Mann, Roderick (April 20, 1986). "Frank Langella: Give Him 'Liberty' And Fame". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  3. Fisher, Carrie (November 13, 2012). Shockaholic. Simon & Schuster. p. 36. ISBN 9780743264839. Retrieved August 9, 2017 – via Google Books.
  4. Terry, Clifford (June 23, 1986). "Give Me Your Tired, Poor...But Take 'Liberty'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  5. Jarvis, Jeff (June 23, 1986). "Picks and Pans Review: Liberty". People. Retrieved August 9, 2017.


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