Take a Girl Like You

Star Review

Jonathan Miller’s take on Kingsley Amis’s comic novel of sexual mores sees Hayley Mills and Oliver Reed take the leads. She is Jenny Bunn, a 20-year-old northerner with a firm belief in chastity and a determination to hold on to her virginity until her wedding night; he is Patrick Standish, 10 years her senior, a grammar school art teacher and bit of a playboy, and he is determined to seduce her.

This was the third Amis novel to reach the screen, following adaptations by the Boulting Brothers (Lucky Jim) and Sidney Gilliat (Only Two Can Play), and Miller – via jazz singer George Melly’s screenplay – updates Amis’ story from the staid 1950s to the tail end of the swinging 60s, bringing with it a cheery, knee-booted sexual optimism that the randy old devils of the fifties could only dream about. Along with The Family Way (1966), it also proved to be a key moment in Hayley Mills’ high profile journey from virginal girlhood to blossoming temptress.

AB on 1st November 2008

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Film Description

Jonathan Miller adapts Kingsley Amis's 1960 novel about Jennifer Bunn, a pretty, 20-year-old schoolteacher who is determined to remain a virgin until her marriage - much to the frustration of Patrick (Oliver Reed), who falls for her and pursues her.

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Film Details

Cast

Oliver Reed, Hayley Mills, Sheila Hancock, John Bird, Noel Harrison

Technical Details