Rent Darling (1965)
3.3 of 5 from 100 ratings
2h 2min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Julie Christie plays the part of 'Darling' in this story of a stylish amoral model. There are three men in her life, each of whom willingly or involuntarily helps her on her way to the top. Dirk Bogarde plays a TV interviewer, an honest man striving to tell illusion from reality; Laurence Harvey, an advertising executive, totally cynical about manipulating society's values; and Roland Curram, a gay magazine photographer battening parasitically on glossy society. There is also a 'fourth man' - the one whom Darling marries, only to find herself a prisoner of the smart world she has conquered. Although Darling thinks she can exploit society to her own advantage, she ends up exploited - manipulated by men who are, aptly enough, professional image-makers at a time in British life when the image said it all (or so it was thought). And at the centre of it all, incarnating the decade which saw the ascension of the model girl to the status of international idol, Julie Christie gives the sort of indelible performance that made many of her subsequent roles look like Darling's distant cousins or historical ancestors. - Actors:
- Julie Christie, Laurence Harvey, Dirk Bogarde, José Luis de Vilallonga, Roland Curram, Basil henson, Helen Lindsay, Carlo Palmucci, Dante Posani, Umberto Raho, Marika Rivera, Alex Scott, Ernest Walder, Brian Wilde, Pauline Yates
- Directors:
- John Schlesinger
- Producers:
- Joseph Janni
- Writers:
- Frederic Raphael, John Schlesinger, Joseph Janni
- Others:
- Julie Harris, Ken Higgins, Ray Simm
- Studio:
- Optimum
- Genres:
- Classics, Drama, Romance
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch If You Liked Darling, A World of Difference: A History of Gay Cinema, Acting Up: British Actresses at the Oscars, Award Winners, BAFTA Nominations Competition 2024, BAFTA Nominations Competition 2025, Drama Films & TV, Films to Watch If You Like..., Getting to Know Julie Christie - At 85, Getting to Know..., Oscar Nominations Competition 2025, People of the Pictures, Remembering Timothy West, A Brief History of Film..., The Royal Film Performance: The Newsreel Years, Top 10 Best Picture Follow-Ups, Top 100 BFI Films, Top Films
- Awards:
1966 BAFTA Best Black and White Production Design
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 30/03/2015
- Run Time:
- 122 minutes
- Languages:
- English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.66:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Trailer
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 16/06/2025
- Run Time:
- 128 minutes
- Languages:
- English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- DVD Regions:
- Region 0 (All)
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.66:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- (0) All
- Bonus:
- New - Sofia Coppola on 'Darling'
- New - Let's Call It Darling: An Interview with Frederic Raphael
- New - After a Fashion: Julie Harris's Costumes for 'Darling'
- New - Extract from BEHP audio interview with John Schlesinger
- Behind the Scenes Stills Gallery
- Costume Designs Gallery
- Colour Stills Gallery
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- New - 2025 Trailer
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Reviews (2) of Darling
An absolutely perfect movie. - Darling review by CW
Darling is one of my fave movies & I watch it again every few years. Everything so well thought out. Brilliant script, directing, cast, sets, costumes. Heartbreaking story with young Julie Christie, Dirk Bogarde and Laurence Harvey. Perfectly cast. Darling and Midnight Cowboy two masterpieces by John Schlesinger. The story is told in an interview with Diana (Julie Christie) who is an unreliable narrator. She takes the interviewer from her childhood to her first interview for a TV show, her modelling career, affairs and reinventions. There are breathtaking scenes with acting as good as it gets. I absolutely love a Darling and highly recommend.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
French New Wave, British Detachment - Darling review by griggs
Darling feels like Britain trying on the French New Wave for size—full of style, attitude, and sharp Mod fashion—but it’s more gloss than grit. Julie Christie is excellent as Diana (aka “Darling”), drifting from man to man, city to city—rootless, emotionally immature, and seemingly irresistible… until she isn’t.
Beneath the confidence, she’s clearly flailing, full of regret, more posturing than revolution. No surprise she won the Oscar—she nails that mix of charm, bravado, and quiet despair. Dirk Bogarde might be even better—he’s subtle, sharp, and just as deserving of his BAFTA. Whenever he’s on screen, he quietly takes over.
Schlesinger wants us to see Darling as a modern, sex-positive go-getter, but the film doesn’t always know how to treat her. Sometimes, it admires her; sometimes, it sneers. The narration tries to close the gap but ends up reinforcing the distance. I didn’t feel invited in—I felt like I was peering through a shop window at someone trying on identities like outfits—perhaps that's the point.
In the end, Darling is stylish, clever, and occasionally biting—but emotionally, it left me somewhere in no-man’s-land. Intriguing but not quite satisfying. It's a time capsule that’s still trying to work out what it wants to say and how to say it.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.