Alfie (1966) User Reviews

Classic study of 60s manners

[wrenster · 7/10 · 13 March 2003]

I only realised last night that I had not seen Alfie all the way through, but I'm glad I did now. This was a real eye-opener, not only from a historical point of view but also proof once again that Michael Caine is a British treasure, and one of the screen greatest actors.

I read the script for the original play a few years ago and found that I totally disliked the character of Alfie. But seeing Caine playing the role, and although I didn't like his whole attitude to women (calling them "it"), you cannot but like him. Caine plays the cheeky chappy so well that it's no wonder women would fall for his charm.

But the true taste of the pudding is the scene after the abortion, when Alfie enters the kitchen. A truly emotional sequence that shows the true power of Caine's acting ability.

It was also an interesting study of life in 60s London. Not the swinging, hippy sixties of Carnaby Street that is so often shown in most 60s London films. And as a piece of historical social study, you can't get better than this.

More than a comedy

[andrew7 · 8/10 · 15 January 2002]

Watching this marvellous film again last night, I began to think about how peculiar that a film which has so severely dated in so many respects still manages to say something profound today. In certain respects, this film just couldn't be done today. First of all, gender roles have changed a great deal, and many of Alfie's "birds" simply wouldn't be plausible in a modern film. Second of all, sex has changed so much. Back in the 80s, we had plenty of films (usually bad ones) which took a similarly cavalier attitude toward sex, but that's a relic of a simpler, pre-HIV world that's gone forever.

But "Alfie" still manages to say something, even to a modern audience. On one hand, it's got a very funny script, and Michael Caine plays Alfie with such an infectious charm that it's impossible not to smile. But also, there's a deeper layer of meaning to the film. "I never mean to hurt anyone," Alfie says. "I know," says Harry, "but you do." Alfie ignores this lovely and rare moment of real honesty, but the audience shouldn't, because the heart of the film is right here.

Alfie himself is such a fascinating character. At first, he seems like simply a rogue, a rascal. But there's a helluva lot going on under the surface. His deep, deep insecurities, his tragic loneliness (he wouldn't see it that way, naturally), his pathological inability to have a real relationship with anyone. Especially his own son, whom he obviously loves very much.

While it's easy to see "Alfie" as a tragic story and feel sympathy for the character, it's important to hold onto the hatred. Alfie is a cruel, merciless, and heartless man. He is self-absorbed, utterly insensitive, and totally domineering. He cheerfully holds his "birds" to standards of loyalty he himself needn't bother with. He ruthlessly undermines the individuality and autonomy of everyone he is with, even when pretending to be a liberating force. Notice in his scenes with Gilda how his words sound as though he's endorsing freedom, independence, and self-determination, but the effect of those words is to keep her right under his thumb where she belongs. Alfie deserves our sympathy, yes, but he also deserves our hatred, loathing, and utter contempt.

Anyway, like the DVD box says, this is just a sweet, frothy little comedy, if you like, and it's very enjoyable as such. But, if you care to look deeper, there is so much more to behold. The tagline to "American Beauty" was "look closer", but all of its profound ideas and insights (if any) were plastered right across the screen. "Alfie" is a film which asks you to look closer, and it rewards the effort.

Great period piece dealing with universal questions

[loenk · 8/10 · 23 October 2004]

This movie has long been one of my favorites. It is one of the few quintessentially "60's" movies, using filming methods that were quite unusual at the time (the direct dialogue between the main character and the audience, for example). While its style is clearly confined to that era, and England in particular, its subject matter is profoundly universal.

The subjects of love and devotion, or more accurately their opposites, philandering and infidelity, are treated with a unique sensitivity in the script. Michael Caine is at once both lovable and detestable, perfectly characterizing the age-old dynamic between the need for love and the need for physical pleasure. But this is not a feel-good movie, it is a movie that explores the difficult decisions that confront a person as they mature in both life and love, and it conveys the basic feelings that are present in all human beings, regardless of outward appearances.

I would recommend this as a thought-provoking exploration of human nature.

Cheeky Cockney Chappy

[foz-3 · 9 November 2000]

This is one of Caines best films and proof that with the right material he can be a very good actor. The story is based on the popular 1960's British theme of human emotions and how the central character faces up to their shortcomings. Alfie, the character, is a dinosaur by today's standards, but there were, and still are men who behave in this way. The film broke new bounds at this time, particularly with the abortion scene. It is said that many cinema-goers walked out in disgust at this harrowing point in the film. How times change. Denholm Elliot's short performance as the sleazy abortionist is worth a mention here as it captures the filthiness of the moment perfectly.

In fact all the supporting roles are excellent. As a period 1960's piece, the film is almost flawless and Sonny Rollins' jazzy soundtrack is beautiful. The ending of the film is very moving with Caine summing up his life and the arty end credits being run whilst Cher sings Burt Bacharach's "Alfie" theme tune. Watch it and your views on life will change.

Iconic Michael Caine film

[HotToastyRag · 7/10 · 23 November 2017]

If you've never seen a Michael Caine movie, or if you only know him from his white-haired roles, you need to start with Alfie, the movie that propelled him to stardom and made him an instant heartthrob. He made his Cockney accent famous and inspired thousands of imitations through the decades, and even though he actually toned down his naturally thick accent for the movie, his co-star Shelley Winters didn't know what he was saying while they were filming! Incidentally, this was the first Shelley Winters movie I saw, and I have always thought of her as cute, fun, and frisky, even though that's not the persona most people associate with her.

In Alfie, Michael Caine plays the ultimate cad. He has an endless supply of women at his disposal, even though he treats them like garbage and refuses to commit to any of them. He's a sarcastic, flippant young man, and even when he gets one of his girlfriends pregnant, he refuses to marry her-which, in 1966, was not respectable behavior. However, as villainous as he seems, he manages to charm the audience with his constant talking to the camera and adorable aura. The audience thinks he's despicable, but desperately wants him to see the error of his ways and repent, so they're invested in him and the film.

It's a very adult story, so even though Michael cracks jokes to the audience, it's a pretty heavy film. I don't want to give anything away, but particularly religious audiences might want to avoid this movie. If you do decide to watch it, you'll probably be very glad you did. Not only is it one of the most famous flicks of the 60s, but you'll get to hear the origin of Burt Bacharach's memorable title song, and you'll gain a new celebrity boyfriend. I actually wrote Michael Caine a fan letter when I was in high school and told him I thought he was exceptionally dreamy.

Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to some upsetting adult content, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.

Takes the Swing Out of Swinging London

[evanston_dad · 7/10 · 28 December 2006]

Michael Caine plays Alfie, a hipster swinger in 1960s London whose attitudes and actions we abhor even as we warm to the twinkle in his eye.

Caine plays the role just right. The movie would go nowhere if he wasn't able to make us understand what about Alfie attracts women despite his treatment of them. The film has noble ambitions, and explores some pretty dark (and for the time, edgy) terrain, when Alfie's antics catch up with him and he leaves one of his conquests (played quietly by Vivien Merchant) in the hands of a sleazy abortionist. The look on Caine's face when he returns to his apartment and sees the aborted fetus, visual confirmation of his callous disregard, was enough on its own to earn him the Oscar nomination he received for this film.

Much of the marketing for "Alfie" positions it as a gay romp through the swinging 60s, but it's actually quite a bitter little pill to swallow, and it leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

With Shelley Winters as a blowsy American who's as good at playing Alfie as he is her.

Grade: B+

Deeper than it seems at first glance

[kayester · 7/10 · 20 June 2003]

This is a seriously good comedy. Michael Caine is delightfully saucy as the title character. He ought to seem a cad, and at times he is, but he takes his lumps too, and takes them in stride. The supporting cast is very effective, with especially excellent performances by Jane Asher, Shelley Winters and Millicent Martin. The camera work is also notable, and London serves as an effective backdrop. Definitely worth a look, and a reminder Michael Caine was as good then as he is now.

The Dark Side of the Sexual Revolution

[JamesHitchcock · 9/10 · 30 October 2007]

Michael Caine made several good films in the sixties and early seventies, such as "Zulu", "The Ipcress File" and "Get Carter", but in my opinion "Alfie" is his best from this period, and only equalled among his later films by "Hannah and Her Sisters" and "Educating Rita". It is set in what might be described as the kitchen sink end of swinging London. The anti-hero, Alfie Elkins, is a young working-class Cockney who works as a mechanic and driver for a car-hire company. In some respects the film looks back to the social-realist school of the late fifties and early sixties. Alfie is in some ways a very traditional character. He lives in the sort of drab, seedy flat familiar from "kitchen sink" realist films and hangs out in old-fashioned East End pubs rather than discos. He dresses smartly but conservatively, at one stage even sporting an RAF blazer. Not for him the long hair, sideburns, bell-bottom jeans, loud shirt and kipper tie which constituted the uniform of the sixties trend-setter.

In one respect, however, he is very different to the traditional social-realist hero. The "angry young men" from films such as "Look Back in Anger", "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning", "The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner" and "Room at the Top" were characterised by anger and resentment against the Establishment. Resentment is an emotion quite alien to the happy-go-lucky Alfie, whose main preoccupation is not settling scores with "the system" but rather scoring with women. He is a practised seducer, and the film introduces us to a number of his conquests. The nearest thing he has to a steady girlfriend is Gilda, the mother of his young son Malcolm, but even she tires of his infidelity and refusal to commit to her. Eventually she leaves him to marry her long-time admirer, bus conductor Humphrey. Humphrey is everything Alfie is not; he is far from handsome, but is caring, faithful and deeply in love with Gilda. Alfie suffers a setback when he is taken into hospital with a suspected lung infection, but he is soon well enough again to go back to his old ways, taking advantage of Lily, the wife of a fellow-patient. Among his other victims are unhappily-married Carla, home-loving Northerner Annie, and wealthy older woman Ruby.

"Halliwell's Film Guide" describes the film as a "garish sex comedy", which strikes me as a misconception. Despite a certain superficial similarity in plot to the likes of "Confessions of a Window Cleaner", the film is actually a deeply serious one. Certainly, Alfie himself is a bit of a comedian who sees life as one big joke, always endeavouring to look on the bright side. Cheerfulness can in some cases be an admirable attribute, but in Alfie's case it goes hand-in-hand with a crass insensitivity to the problems and emotions of others. What he wants out of life is commitment-free relationships which will enable him to find sexual satisfaction with as many women as possible. Perhaps the most telling detail about his character is that he habitually refers to women as "it" rather than "she".

Only at the end of the film does it start to dawn on him that there might be more to life than a series of one-night stands, and he starts to ponder the question "What's it all about?" (The question is enshrined in the famous song which we hear at the end of the film as Alfie stands by the Thames pondering his future). There are three key moments in Alfie's gradual enlightenment. One comes when he wanders into a church where Gilda and Humphrey are having their first child baptised, and he realises that he is missing out on family life. Another comes when he discovers that Ruby has dumped him in favour of an even younger toyboy. For the first time he is being used in the way he uses others, and he doesn't like it. The most moving comes when, after Alfie has bullied Lily, whom he has got pregnant, into having an illegal abortion, he is shocked by the sight of his dead unborn child.

Caine gives one of his best performances as the cheerfully immoral hero, and he receives good support from a number of others, especially Vivien Merchant as the tragic Lily, Alfie Bass as her invalid husband Harry and Denholm Elliott as the cynical abortionist.

The film is firmly rooted in the working-class London of the mid-sixties, and reflects the Zeitgeist of that period. It was a time when the Pill was a recent invention, when the sexual revolution was just beginning but when older, conservative, attitudes towards sex were stronger than they are today. Although Alfie's conquests are played by some of the best-looking British actresses of the period, such as Shirley Anne Field, Julia Foster and Jane Asher, they are not mini-skirted dolly-birds, but basically old-fashioned girls, conservatively, even dowdily, dressed. All of them, except the sluttish Ruby, are looking for love rather than sex, and he is smart enough to know this and cynical enough to exploit it.

In some respects the film was a progressive one for its period, both in its stylistic devices, such as having the hero speak direct to camera, and in its frankness about sexual matters, especially the highly controversial topic of abortion (still illegal in Britain in 1966, although it was to be legalised the following year). In its view of social matters, however, it is more conservative; its attitude towards abortion, for example, is more pro-life than pro-choice. The film can perhaps be seen as a critique of the sexual revolution, showing how greater sexual freedom was giving irresponsible philanderers like Alfie more opportunities to seduce women. The irony is that Alfie ends up ruining his own life as effectively as he has ruined theirs. Beneath its permissive surface, "Alfie" is a devastating exposure of the dark side of the sexual revolution. 9/10

An Enjoyable Comedy that Still Holds Up Today,

[lesleyharris30 · 7/10 · 10 September 2014]

Alfie is a good movie with a well written storyline and a terrific cast.A lot of people told me that this was a good movie but it was very dated,and to be honest I don't think that's true,the dialogue and the characters personalities is still something that holds up in today's world,I know many people that behave like Alfie and some of the other characters.The movie dosen't really have a story to follow,you're basically just following Alfie as we see him question his lifestyle,but Michael Caine has the like-ability factor for us to be very much able to just follow him around and speak to the audience,which was actually my favourite part of the movie because they pulled off breaking the fourth wall very well.Alfie isn't laugh out loud comedy,but it's funny and also dramatic at times and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good comedy if you ever see it on television.

An amoral hedonists series of amorous adventures lead to him realising he is lonely.

Best Performance: Michael Caine Worst Performance: Jane Asher

Citizen Caine.......Becomes Alfie

[werefox08 · 8/10 · 5 July 2012]

Michael Caine was 33 years old in 1966...the year Alfie was made. He was a relatively unknown actor. After Alfie, he was famous and in demand. Caine appears to have approached this role with a lot of confidence ...and why not, he already had a cockney accent...and he was also very cocky. His performance is 95% of the reasons why this is a very good movie. He gives one of the truly GREAT screen performances. The film is not just a comedy...there are examinations of deep and complex social issues...and there are lots of windows into the swinging sixties. But in the final analysis this is Michael Caines movie....for it is his character that stays with us, long after we are mesmerized by his bravado performance. He is still working today...at the age of 79. He has given some great performances over the years...but none to equal his work as Alfie.

Sets Michael Caine on the Road

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 22 August 2017]

Except for the wonderful cheek of Michael Caine, this would be a pretty ordinary movie. The thing is, however, this rake is really a destructive force. These little sex comedies in the Sixties were pretty much for male viewers or fantasizing women. This is the kind of cad who makes promises with no desire to ever commit to anything. His motivations are strictly physical and without direction. And yet, Micael Caine lights up the screen. He is one of those actors who I automatically go to, like Anthony Hopkins or Gene Hackman. I know that even if the script is somewhat lacking, these guys will rise above it.

Wow...was I mistaken about this one!

[planktonrules · 10/10 · 8 August 2012]

I am very glad I finally got around to seeing "Alfie". For years I incorrectly assumed two things--that it was a smutty little film and that it was a comedy. While the film does have a very strong message about sex and the title character seems to be sexually addicted, it is far, far deeper. And, while the film appears to be a comedy, as the film progresses it becomes more and more serious. All in all, I was very impressed by this film--it had far more depth than I'd assumed.

The film begins with Alfie (Michael Caine) making it with a married lady in a car. You don't see any of it but hear them as he tries to convince her to go all the way. Now here is where it gets weird--Alfie gets out of the car and then begins addressing the audience. In fact, throughout the film he stops to talk to the audience--to discuss his philosophy about women, marriage and relationships. Now MOST of what he says is pure drivel--a guy coming up with 1001 reasons why it was okay to use women and why emotionally connecting with any of them was a BIG mistake. However, as the story unfolds, Alfie discovers that staying that emotionally distant is very difficult. I could easily say more--but don't want to give away the plot twists.

I really loved this film. Michael Caine was at his best as a lovable but emotionally stunted rogue. But what really impressed me was the writing. This film would be WONDERFUL to show to young men--especially since there are so many 'Alfies' out there and seeing how lonely this sort of life could be is a great lesson for young folks. See this film--it's so much more than I'd expected and had amazing depth.

Engaging character flick

[The_Triad · 7/10 · 20 November 2006]

Alfie is a film about a promiscuous man and the situations and people that he interacts with. I can only imagine this is what all the people behind those "Confessions of a Window Cleaner...Taxi Drvier..." movies had in mind, before those dastardly executive producers got involved. Alfie is so far from the British sex comedy it may be marketed as it's quite astounding. The film has the tone of a comedy/drama, it's comic at times, has one or two harrowing scenes, and the central character has a remarkable depth, thanks largely to an underwritten script(in a good way - not to much information about the central character but enough hints as to form an interest) and Michael Caine's performance. It's also interesting to have a largely misogynistic character in the main role, and with him narrating direct to the camera produces a love-hate relationship with Alfie, (surely a brave move for any film) in which one minute you'll see him as charming cheeky chap, and a minute later as a downright pig. Alfie is a great character to spend some time with. He's not a role model, or a hero, or a villain, but a fully rounded, deep character who will hold your interest over the film's near two hour runtime.

No doubt to a British audience forty years ago ...

[Bevan - #4 · 3/10 · 7 March 2004]

... this movie not only said something but was an evocative depiction of a particular way of life in a particular era.

However, when I want to watch a documentary, I can do that. When I see a movie, I want to be entertained or edified. While Michael Caine - one of the most overrated actors of the era, IMHO - plays for the first time the bone dry solipsist he's done repeatedly in his career, his Alfie is an unpleasant slacker; he professes to care for various people down the road, but not enough to summon the motivation to do much for them or to keep them. The women around him are scarcely more pleasant themselves, succumbing quickly to some charisma they fancy they see (but the viewer does not), completely enslaving themselves at once for the occasional scrap of his attention and often being cajoled to support him in his dingy, barren flat. There is little sense of dramatic tension, and the plot line spirals downward to a predictable end.

No doubt Alfie was daring in its day, but take away the shock value of the abortion issue and the unrepentant hedonism, and what DOES this film have, precisely?

3/10.

An excellent introduction to Michael Caine's work

[RubyVendetta · 15 November 1999]

Having seen most of Michael Caine's work before, it was a pleasant surprise to see one of his first films. You can tell that it is one of his early roles and was not made with a large budget, but, as a good film should portray, it is quite clearly the quality of the script and the acting that outshines the sets and other superfluous aspects.

Caine's character is inherently unlikeable, but, he exudes such a strong charisma that one warms to him gradually. The films choice of supporting actress is also well done as they are controlled by Caine's character, but not upstaged.

The ending, for me is the key point in liking Caine's character, as without spoiling the film, the final scene, set against the Thames at night, is an outstanding piece of writing and direction.

Alfie is an excellent introduction to Michael Caine's work and, for all its flaws, it remains an outstanding film.

Funny & Sad

[whpratt1 · 7/10 · 11 March 2007]

Excellent picture, great comedy, outstanding performance and out of the world great music which can be appreciated from generation to generation. Michael Caine, (Alfie Elkins) "Dessed to Kill" played the role of a love'm and leave'm sort of a playboy and a rather hateful and likable guy despite all his faults. Shelly Winters, (Ruby) plays the role of a rich older gal with a nice full figure who manages to capture Alfie's attention and draws him back to her time and again to her flat in London. This film shows that their is a Price Tag everyone has to pay for their decisions in life and taking the life of a human being will leave a scar on your soul you will never get rid of. Enjoyable, but rather sad film which has a deep moral story to tell.

What's it all about, Alfie?

[sme_no_densetsu · 7/10 · 5 February 2010]

"Alfie" is the film that made Michael Caine a star some 44 years ago. Here he plays a working-class lothario whose relationships with women are typified by selfishness and a lack of scruples.

Being a film from the swinging sixties I half-expected a badly dated affair. Luckily, that expectation proved to be unfounded, though there seem to be quite a few who hold that opinion. As I see it, Alfie finds a ready counterpart in the self-styled 'player' of today.

Michael Caine pulls off the difficult title role with ease. Alfie is a fairly loathsome character but his candour makes him appealing as a sort of anti-hero. The various women that cross his path are all convincingly portrayed, including Academy Award nominee Vivien Merchant.

The film's presentation is attractive and Lewis Gilbert's direction handles Alfie's many asides with fluidity. The score by jazzman Sonny Rollins is a nice change of pace as well. And, of course, let's not forget the Oscar-nominated theme song by Burt Bacharach & Hal David.

In my opinion, the one thing that drags the film down slightly is that the plot seems a bit aimless for much of the film. This isn't particularly surprising since the film is really more of a character study. As far as that goes, it's a rewarding viewing experience.

Caine's natural charm and charisma make an obnoxious character likeable

[dr_clarke_2 · 7/10 · 19 December 2020]

Adapted by Bill Naughton from his own play, Lewis Gilbert's 1966 film Alfie was a defining moment in the career of star Michael Caine, and remains hugely popular today. But is not perhaps quite what people who have never seen it might be expecting: often described as a comedy, it's infrequently funny and often quite dark. The plot follows the eponymous Alfie, a self-centred, womanising Cockney who is forced to contemplate his outlook on life by circumstances that arise within the film. The character is a paradox: Caine's natural charm and charisma make him likeable, and yet it's hard to sympathise with him when he espouses his fairly obnoxious worldview to the viewer, referring to the married woman with who he has just had sex in a car as "it", a term he will often use when describing women throughout the film. He refuses to marry his rather wet girlfriend, Gilda, who is pregnant with his child, because he balks at responsibility and commitment; for all his good looks and charm, it's easy to see why Gilda comes to see mild-mannered bus conductor Humphrey as a better prospect. Inevitably, Alfie is forced to take stock by the events that happen to him, but his transformation is a reluctant one. He remains largely unrepentant for his treatment of other people, having an affair with his friend Harry's wife Lily and getting her pregnant, which results in her choosing to have an abortion. It takes seeing his estranged son Malcolm from afar followed by a close-up encounter with Lily's terminated foetus to make him start to realise the consequence of his actions. By the time he learns his lesson, it's just in time to get a taste of his own medicine when he decides to visit Ruby and discovers that she has a younger man in her bed. Ultimately, Alfie isn't a man who embraces change, but one on whom it is foisted. The film eventually comes full circle at the end, as Alfie bumps into Siddie - the married woman he had sex with in the opening scenes - who has lost interest in him. He muses that he hasn't got his peace of mind and asks the audience, "What's it all about? Know what I mean?" It is to Naughton's credit that Alfie is an entirely believable character, but it is to Caine's that we are willing to spend a couple of hours following his story. Caine's performance is one of the main reasons that Alfie has endured. Another is the director Lewis Gilbert, whose unusual approach sees Alfie break the fourth wall and address the audience directly right from the start of the film, as he informs the audience that they won't be seeing any titles. Gilbert and cinematographer Otto Heller bring a dynamic look to the film, which shows off the London locations and makes good use of a wide variety of camera techniques: at one point during the pub fight, a thrown chair seems to crack the camera lens; a slow motion montage - including black and white photos of Malcolm - shows Alfie bonding with his son. Sonny Rollins' jazzy soundtrack provides a distinctive and enlivening accompaniment throughout. Whilst Caine carries the film, the guest cast certainly helps, with everybody giving naturalistic performances, from Julia Foster as Gilda through Graham Stark as Humphrey (successfully treading a fine line between endearing and stalker) to Denholm Elliott as the "Abortionist" who arrives to get rid of Lilly (and Alfie's) unwanted foetus and in doing so provide unsavoury reminder that in the pre-AIDS era there were still consequences to Alfie's irresponsible behaviour. When Lily screams with pain and horror following her abortion, actress Vivien Merchant gives a horribly believable performance. For all that Alfie has comic moments, it is its more serious themes that now tend to linger in the mind; perhaps in 1966, Alfie's misogynistic quips were considered more amusing. Nevertheless, it still works extremely well as both a fascinating study of a deeply flawed character, and an enduring slice of British film making.

Rogue on the loose

[jotix100 · 8/10 · 9 August 2005]

Alfie Elkins, that irresistible roguish Cockney character, takes us into his confidence right at the start of this film, as he invites us, his audience, to follow him in this fantasy filled with sex that reflected a Mod society of London in the sixties. Alfie, by talking directly to the camera, seems to be performing asides a character would do in a play to emphasize a point. Some comments in here indicate they are an annoyance, but in fact, they enhance the charm of Alfie. He is a happy go lucky man who scores with all kinds of women, who find him, not only attractive, but hard to forget. Alfie is not bashful in telling us his sexual encounters with the women we get to meet.

Lewis Gilbert's 1966 film made an impact when it was released. Watching it in the DVD format, one can clearly see the film has been preserved well. It still has a crisp look and frankly, it doesn't have that "dated" look of other films of that period. Aside from some of those 60s hair styles, seen in some of the actresses, the film looks as though it was recently shot.

This is a film to relish Michael Caine in one of his best creations. As Alfie, he is never mean. He is a man who is only interested in satisfying the women he meets. This was Mr. Caine's break through film, which indicated, even then, his potential as the versatile actor one has always cherished.

The women in Alfie's life show a lot of different types. Shelley Winters is at her best with her take of Ruby, the wealthy American "bird" that loves her encounters with Alfie. Millicent Martin, seen briefly, makes a fun Siddie. Vivian Merchant is Lily, the married woman who strays when she can't resist Alfie's charms. Jane Asher as Annie is excellent. Julia Foster plays Gilda, the only one to give Alfie an heir. Eleonor Bron is seen briefly. Alfie Bass is the only actor who has any extended role in the film.

This is a film that reflects that sexual liberating era.

Oh Alfie!

[AaronCapenBanner · 7/10 · 15 September 2013]

Michael Caine became a breakout star as Alfie, an unrepentant ladies man in the "swinging '60s" era of London, which was undergoing a social revolution at the time, which Alfie takes full advantage of, though it will eventually catch up with him...

Despite the potentially odious nature of the lead character, Michael Caine does succeed in making him charming and even refreshingly honest, as he frequently breaks the fourth wall of the screen by talking to the viewer directly, a risky move that works here because of the free-spirit nature of Alfie, and the supremely talented acting abilities of Michael Caine. Film does take a serious turn, though the change of tone is welcome and works, because, by the end, you realize that beneath it all, Alfie is kind of a sad person, whose casual treatment of women will not serve him well as he gets older...

Caine's film all the way

[rdoyle29 · 8/10 · 30 June 2017]

Caine is Alfie, an unrepentant ladies man who gets close to and uses several women before tossing them away at the slightest sign of complication. He eventually learns that his actions have consequences and that he faces increasingly diminishing options along the path he's chosen. Not exactly a deep film, but one that's elevated by Caine in his career defining performance. Caine walks a very thin line, never letting the audience forget that he's really a creep while simultaneously charming the pants of them with a running narration pitched directly to the audience in 4th wall breaking asides. He pretty much carries the film. It seems like Kubrick must have studied this one while preparing "A Clockwork Orange".

Does every dog have its day?

[hitchcockthelegend · 7/10 · 23 April 2016]

One of Michael Caine's launching pad movies, Alfie is a cunning observation of the hedonistic swinging 60s, of a mod London that time has left behind. Adapted by Bill Naughton from his own play, it's directed by Lewis Gilbert and sees Caine supported by Shelley Winters, Millicent Martin, Julia Foster, Jane Asher, Shirley Anne Field and Vivien Merchant.

Undeniably dated and arguably pushing the boundaries of the war between the sexes, it's a picture that is often wry and bittersweet and yet also so sad. It never shies away from responsibility, deftly showing the pitfalls of the era, with Caine absolutely marvellous as Alfie goes through his armoury of sexual charm and bizarre naivety.

The viewing of sex and adultery, from both sides of the coin, is frank and telling, with the smartness of the production garnering 5 Oscar nominations. Come the end of the play, you will have feelings you didn't think were coming your way. Especially after a turn of events that is harrowing and potent in equal measure.

Of its time for sure, but relevant film making? Without a doubt. Exceptionally performed in to the bargain. 7/10

Fascinating character study that has a relevant message

[tiffanie_says_stay_in_your_lane · 10/10 · 24 April 2022]

I think it's best if I begin this review with honesty, because that is the best policy: I misjudged this film. Although I love old movies, sometimes I have a tendency to harbor the expectation that I will get offended before I even start watching. I thought this was just going to be another dumb movie about sex, but it turned out I was wrong. I came across Alfie on the Pluto TV app, but I didn't catch it from the beginning. I had read about it on Wikipedia some years before, so I basically knew what happened. I discovered it's on YouTube, so I thought I'd give it a watch, since I had never seen the film in its entirety. I really liked it. It has its share of drama, and there are some funny moments as well. It's a lot better than the Italian Job.

Michael Caine plays a young man (well, he was 32 or 33 at the time, so I don't know if that was considered young during the 60s. I'm guessing when this film was made it was commonplace for people to already be settled down by the time they were 30. I bet if you were in your 30s and still sleeping around, you were considered an anomaly) who has an aversion to monogamous relationships. He gallivants with both single and married women. I guess the terminology for this is a "ladykiller," but let's be real - he had a sex addiction. I'm not a man, but I'm pretty sure it's not healthy for a man to flirt, make out, and sleep with every woman he encounters. The way he talks about women, you'd think he was referring to a loaf of bread. He doesn't see them as human beings who have feelings. He wants a woman to go above and beyond for him, but if she were to catch a cold, he wouldn't even care enough to bring her a bowl of soup. He has varying situations with each of his girlfriends (if you can call them that), which is quite honestly, a hot mess:

1. The movie opens with him spending the evening with a married woman, Siddie (Millicent Martin), and she goes back to her husband once their meetup is over.

2. He impregnates the woman who is his steady girlfriend, Gilda (Julia Foster), and is not excited when his son is born. He continues to flirt and make out with other women while he's living with Gilda. Once his son starts walking, Alfie discovers that he enjoys playing with him. Just when he's becoming a wonderful father, he gets into an argument with Gilda after she tells him she is thinking about marrying another man (Humphrey, the bus conductor, played by Graham Stark) and leaves. He's ever so confident that he doesn't need her anymore.

3. He uses his lung examination as an opportunity for a free therapy session by going off on a tangent about how he has the right to be in his son's life. The doctor informs him that he has shadows on his lungs, and this causes him to have a panic attack. He goes to stay at a sanitarium, befriends one of the other patients (Alfie Bass), and makes him mad because he was talking about his wife Lily (Vivien Merchant) as if to say she might be cheating on him.

3. He leaves the sanitarium, and during that time takes a job photographing tourists in London. That's when he meets an older, American woman, Ruby (Shelley Winters), and they exchange phone numbers.

4. He goes back to the sanitarium to talk to the man who he befriended, and Lily is present. He agrees to take her back home, and while doing so, goes on an impromptu date with her, rowing a boat along a lake and whatnot, then has sex with her.

5. On the way back he picks up a female hitchhiker named Annie (Jane Asher). When they return to London she lives with him and he treats her like a maid. During this time, he goes to Ruby's apartment to have sex with her. Later on he gets punched in the face at a nightclub by the guy who had originally offered to drive Annie to London (which was hilarious, by the way), manages to escape, goes home, and of course takes his anger out on Annie. During their argument, he admits to having read her diary, and then gets mad at her for getting mad at him. She gathers her things and leaves.

6. Lily becomes pregnant, and gets an illegal abortion.

If you can make it through him being narcissistic, arrogant, egotistical, and addressing women as "it," then you will like this movie, because believe it or not, Alfie does experience a transformation. During Lily's abortion procedure he goes out for a walk, and that's when he starts to feel lonely. He sees Gilda, his son, Humphrey, and their newborn daughter, leaving a church after the baby girl had just been baptized. This is a depressing moment for him. He could've been in Humphrey's place if he hadn't acted like such a jerk. You can't blame Gilda for marrying him. He was so thoughtful and compassionate. When Alfie returns to his apartment, he sees his dead child. It's a highly powerful scene. Upon realizing how much of a horrible person he is, he breaks down crying. At this point in the film, there aren't any other women left to keep him company. He finds out Ruby has started seeing a younger man, and Siddie only wants to be with her husband. When he asks if she wanted to hang out sometime (not his exact words), she replied with maybe, but he knew that maybe was actually a no.

Some people say this movie is dated, but I don't see how it's any different from what's going on nowadays. Men who are like Alfie still exist. They think they're entitled to sex, and they purposely try to make women feel uncomfortable. Well, maybe it's not intentional, but that's how it comes off. The way he stared at the doctor the whole time she was writing something down, and kept staring even after she noticed, it was like ohhhh-kay, weirdo alert! That was probably the most relatable scene I've ever watched in an old movie from my perspective as a young woman. You catch him staring. You look away. What's he doing when you look at him again?? He's still staring!! It's like seriously dude???? My theory is that people don't like this movie for either one of two reasons: they get tired of watching him jump from one woman's bed to another (which is understandable. I'm sure there were people who were unable to watch it to the end), or they're a man who treats women poorly in their own life, and the character of Alfie reminds them too much of themselves. Some folks will find this movie too real, and as a result become turned off by it. It didn't bother me. As I said before, I'm not a man, so I've never been guilty of talking down to women. I was friends with a man who was psychologically abusive, and I reached a point where I stopped corresponding with him. He gave off bad energy. If you're a male, and you're insensitive towards women, then this film will most likely be unpleasant for you. It's a realistic depiction of what happens when a man lives his life having casual sex and trying to avoid emotional attachment. It also shows what happens when a man continuously undermines a woman's self-esteem. At some point or another, he's going to end up alone. There's a valuable lesson at the end, and what I loved is the lesson wasn't implicit in its delivery. In fact, Alfie comes right out and says, and I'm paraphrasing, "you might have cars, money, and women, but if you don't have peace of mind, you might as well not have anything." This film exemplifies how talented of an actor Michael Caine is. He gave such a convincing performance. I use the word convincing because I'm sure he was/is kindhearted in real life, but he played a mean person so well. I thought him talking into the camera made the movie unique. He was even talking to the camera as he was being examined by the doctor, and it was funny, because it was like no one else knows there's a camera in the room but him. I did struggle to understand him here and there (his accent was one thing - that Cockney slang is when he lost me), but the story was easy to follow. I also thought it was sweet how the movie closed - he starts walking home with the stray dog from the beginning of the film.

Sorry, Hollywood, but the English make the best films. If you love old movies, and find character studies intriguing, I 100% recommend this.

What's it all about, Alfie?

[Incalculacable · 7/10 · 10 May 2006]

Alfie, the movie which launched Michael Caine's career, is a drama (perhaps dark comedy, although I would not label it as a pure comedy) about the ways of a playboy constantly having affairs with both women - married ones, too! He's a pretty bad character - making the women feel miserable, ordering them around, impregnating them left right and center... yep, a pretty detestable character! But what is great about this movie is that you see Alfie's character change throughout.. when he sees the fetus, when he catches her with another guy, she tells him that "he's younger than you are" and many others. The plot is easy as Michael Caine is the narrator, too (great technique!!).

Great acting, great movie. Funny, touching and meaningful, I recommend it to you.

What's it all about? The fuss, I mean

[Boyo-2 · 3/10 · 26 August 2004]

*SPOILER ALERT*

Having been born before this was released, I've heard of this movie my whole life, knew the song, etc. but never had the opportunity to see it.

Well unfortunately that opportunity presented itself last week, and now I can see I didn't miss a damn thing the past forty years.

He's a heel..so what? Does he have to brag about it?

I'm not a big fan of actors speaking directly to the camera and he does that constantly here, usually only to justify his own actions. Meanwhile the other character that he just treated badly doesn't get to see the 'cute' side, they get the bastard.

I also kept thinking ans wishing what this would have been like with Albert Finney in the title role. Out of the millions of movies Michael Caine has made, I can count the ones I like on one hand. Its weird cause I like him, I just don't like his movies.

I see an actress named Vivien Merchant got a Best Supporting Actress nomination. She could have been any of at least three women. Denholm Elliot has a small part; years later, he'd lose an Oscar to Caine (Elliot nominated for "A Room with a View" and Caine winning, for some reason, for "Hannah and her Sisters).

The only thing more amazing than the success of this movie is the fact that its one of the only times Shelley Winters doesn't raise her voice, bug her eyes or do everything she can to dominate a scene. Its a small part but she restrains herself.

Maybe Jude Law's remake will improve on the material. 3/10.