5 Great Lee Remick Movies

Lee Remick was a beautiful and talented actress whose career spanned four decades, from the 1950s through the 1980s. After appearing in various TV series in the early ’50s, Remick made her film debut in the Elia Kazan-directed film, “A Face in the Crowd” in 1957, starring Andy Griffith. Remick got fifth billing, but rapidly rose to second billing by 1959, performing opposite James Stewart, one of Hollywood’s well-established stars. What follows are five of my favorite Lee Remick films:

ANATOMY OF A MURDER (1959): Lee Remick portrayed flirty Laura Manion in this courtroom drama, rated as one of the 12 best trial films of all time by the American Bar Association. Laura Manion’s husband, Lt. Frederick Manion aka “Manny” (Ben Gazzara) is on trial for the murder of a man he claims raped his wife. James Stewart is Paul Biegler, Manion’s defense attorney. Manion also claims to have no memory of the crime and is looking to get off on a temporary insanity defense, or “defense of irresistible impulse.” George C. Scott plays the prosecuting attorney. A comparative rookie, Lee Remick holds her own against Stewart and Scott, who were both nominated for Best Actor for their performances.

Lee Remick and George C. Scott in “Anatomy of a Murder”

“Anatomy of a Murder” Quotes: Paul Biegler: Look, Laura, believe me, I don’t usually complain of an attractive jiggle, but just you save that jiggle for your husband to look at, if and when I get him out of jail.

WILD RIVER (1960) A year later, Lee Remick played Carol Garth Baldwin in this drama set in 1930s Tennessee. Carol is a widowed mother who lives with her grandmother (Jo Van Fleet) on an island in the “Wild River”. The plot involves a fight over land. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is putting up a dam and Grandma’s island will soon be flooded. Grandma has been offered a tidy sum to move to a new home but she won’t budge for love or money. Montgomery Cliff plays TVA agent Chuck Glover. He is certain he can reason with Grandma and get her off the island. When that doesn’t work out, Chuck looks to Carol for help and a relationship develops between them. This film was directed by Elia Kazan who specifically wanted Lee Remick for the role of Carol, having worked with her in “Face in the Crowd”. Both Kazan and Remick have been quoted as saying this was their favorite film. It is also notable for the film debut of Bruce Dern. James Earl Jones’ father, has an uncredited role opposite Jo Van Fleet in a powerful scene when Grandma illustrates her point that the TVA has no right to buy her land if she doesn’t wish to sell it.

Lee Remick in “Wild River”

“Wild River” quotes: Carol Garth Baldwin: You’re gettin’ awful human, aren’t ya, Chuck?
Chuck Glover: I was always human, wasn’t I?

DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES (1962): Lee Remick scored a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance in “Days of Wine and Roses” as did her co-star Jack Lemmon. That says it all about the caliber of their performances, doesn’t it? The 1962 addiction drama features Lemmon as Joe Clay, an advertising executive who enjoys a liquid lunch so much that when he marries Kirsten Arneson, he convinces her to join him. Joe is already alcohol dependent but before long, Kirsten isn’t far behind him on that downhill road. Despite having a beautiful daughter they both adore, the couple descend into full blown alcoholism. The film was directed by Blake Edwards. Henry Mancini (music) and Johnny Mercer (lyrics) won the Oscar for Best Music, Original song for the song “Days of Wine and Roses”.

Lee Remick and Jack Lemmon in “Days of Wine and Roses”

“Days of Wine and Roses” Quotes: Joe Clay (forcing Kirsten to look in a mirror): I walked by Union Square Bar. I was going to go in. Then I saw myself – my reflection in the window – and I thought, “I wonder who that bum is?” And then I saw it was me. Now look at me. I’m a bum. Look at me! Look at you. You’re a bum…. C’mon look at us! See? A couple of bums.

THE RUNNING MAN (1963) Lee Remick plays Stella Black, a woman who conspires with her husband Rex (Laurence Harvey) to commit insurance fraud by faking his death. The fact that Stella is complicit is revealed to the audience in the opening scene. After collecting £50,000 (about $140K) in life insurance proceeds, Stella takes off for a vacation in Malaga, Spain where she reunites with her very much alive husband. Rex has a new identity as Jim Jerome, a wealthy Australian sheep farmer who wants to marry Stella. Their crime begins to unravel when Stella runs into Stephen Maddox (Alan Bates), the insurance investigator on Rex’s death claim. Rex is sure Maddox has followed them to Malaga to get the goods on them and proceeds to engage the investigator in a game of cat and mouse. Lee Remick gives a great performance of a conflicted woman in this Carol Reed-directed thriller. Rex is such an oaf that you may even want to sympathize with her but she probably doesn’t deserve it.

Lee Remick in “The Running Man”

“The Running Man” Quotes: Stella Black: You love it, don’t you? I mean, you love taking risks and teasing him because you think he’s trying to catch you.
Rex Black: Shhhhh, please quiet.
Stella Black: You think you’re far too clever for him and anyone else in the world, don’t you? And you like that. Much more interesting than just us being together.

NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY (1968) On the one hand, this film is a crime drama starring Rod Steiger as serial killer Christopher Gill. Lee Remick stars as Kate Palmer who gets caught up in the case through her relationship with Morris Brummel (George Segal), the investigating detective. That relationship provides some of the comic relief. The inimitable Eileen Heckart is a bonus in her role as Brummel’s stereotypical Jewish mother. Although Gill’s victims are usually older women (he really wanted to kill his mother), he targets Kate after Morris insults him on the phone. “No Way to Treat a Lady” was based on William Goldman’s novel of the same name. Jack Smight directed this gem which also features a hilarious scene with Michael Dunn as Mr. Kupperman, who offers a false confession to Gill’s crimes. While Steiger chews the scenery, Lee Remick displays her versatility at drama and comedy.

Lee Remick and Rod Steiger in “No Way to Treat a Lady”

“No Way to Treat a Lady” Quotes:
Mrs. Brummel: That girl is a gem! An absolute gem! And I’ll tell you something else…
Morris Brummel: What?
Mrs. Brummel: She reminds me of me!

Having firmly established her bona fides as a gifted and accomplished actress, Lee Remick went on to star in more films on the silver screen, as well as in TV series and mini-series in the 1970s and 1980s. One of her last roles aired in 1989 when she played Sarah Bernhardt in the 3-part miniseries “Around the World in 80 Days”. Remick was diagnosed with cancer in 1989 and, in a stunning loss to the film industry, she passed away on July 2, 1991 at the age of 55. She was survived by her husband of 21 years; her children Kate and Matthew from her first marriage; stepdaughters, Justine and Nicola Gowans; her mother, Pat, and brother Bruce.