Caprice

Drug smuggling in the cosmetics industry, with Doris Day and Richard Harris as industrial spies. Wild Frank Tashlin slapstick--funny gadgets, double agents--mixes curiously with serious action sequences involving a sniper; there's also a transvestite reveal (!) and at least one movie in-joke (Day's father, seen in a photograph, is Arthur Godfrey, who played her dad in Tashlin's "The Glass Bottom Boat"). Certainly an odd choice for Day, who later claimed her manager-husband signed her to the project before she could read the script (it was later tailored to her--and very well). She's dryly sarcastic throughout, and very appealing in her scenes with Harris. Incredible Leon Shamroy cinematography, terrific locations, plus a hilarious bit by Michael J. Pollard as a hippie. A strange one, indeed, but fun. *** from ****

This is one of those movies that was originally panned but holds up today, probably because the story and fashions are so of the era as to make it somewhat interesting.

Doris is bedecked in all sorts of fabulous mod clothes in this confusing story about double agent cosmetic spies. There are some cute scenes, one in a restaurant and another in a movie theater (which is disconcerting because of the 20th Century Fox logo and their music starting - you think the movie may be starting over).

Anyway, Doris sings Caprice on the movie screen while her character attempts to get a lock of hair from the woman in front of her. Meanwhile, the woman's boyfriend, embracing his girlfriend, has one hand on Doris' leg.

I disagree with one of the comments that said that Doris was a 45-year-old who thought she was 20, due to her outrageous makeup. In actuality, that was the makeup of the period, and she didn't look strange to me at all.

This is a terribly silly film but enjoyable for the cast, some good scenes, and as a '60s artifact.

A SUPER title for a film! Many have slammed this film. Doris Day detests it and will NOT talk about it. Why? It's polished, sexy, and stunningly filmed by Leon Shamroy! I believe this was his last film (although I may be mistaken). I agree that the plot was not exactly 007. But put it up against many of today's films and it's a fine body of work in many ways, albeit not in all ways. I personally do not think that Richard Harris was a good choice as a leading man for Doris Day. In 1966-67, my uncle was a longshoreman in Long Beach. He was also a rough rugged actor/stuntman in action films. He was doing something at Twentieth Century Fox and I asked him about Caprice. Could he get me in to see them film? So he went to the publicity department to get me some stills from the days shooting. Which he did. They were never officially released by Doris nor her husband. I felt fortunate to get both of them. The day came when he was taking me to the set where they were filming what he was working on and we would visit "Caprice". I skipped school and everything! Doris Day had fell filming and pinched a nerve in her back. She was in traction for quite awhile. They told us that they may have to scrap the film if she couldn't get back to work on it soon. I walked all around the sets. Remember the Eiffel Tower? They were really lush and that bed suspended from those big chains really swung(I sat on it inspite of the signs, I couldn't resist!). I, just a kid, was really impressed by it all. Martin Melcher spared nothing. It was lush! The interior of the jet was cool as well. At the end of the day, my uncle was able to get us a peek into Doris' bungalow at TCFox. WOW! They had great houses for their stars on the lot.

She had great clothes in the wardrobe area for the film. I remember how cool they all looked so perfectly maintained for filming. I particularly remember that pink hat she wore(I thought it was ugly). There were two of them as I recall. And several Platinum wigs. She refused to dye her own hair that color so the hair dresser, Barbara, said. I felt like a fly on the wall around there. The sets all said "HOT SET, DONT TOUCH ANYTHING!" I didn't. I felt VERY privileged.

Caprice was also Doris Day's last commercial recording on the Columbia label, for whom she recorded her entire recording career. It was a single that received good airplay on stations around the world that played easy listening stuff back then. It certainly wasn't as good a recording as "Move Over Darling"! For instance, they LOVED it in Portugal and Spain! The single was released with a high quality picture sleeve there! It's nothing to rave about, but lush, and rich just like the film "Caprice".

Hope you enjoy these memories of mine.

I don't know why the most people think, that "Caprice" is a mad movie, it is no true. This one is the follow-up of "The Glass-Bottom Boat" and is in every case bigger an greater, but not better. Frank Tashlin did a very good job, when he first cooperated with Doris but he used her for his crazy and hardly understandable sense of humor. You have to laugh about the whole movie, you can't take anything in it seriously. That's the trick of it. There are very funny moments, e. g. when Doris goes to cinema to watch "Caprice" and when she strikes again a sexual attack. Perhaps a few of you really enjoy this movie as I do. Take it easy and with a little smile. For all others: Doris didn't like the movie herself.

Have always loved Doris Day since forever and would see anything with her in it. Not all her films were great, a few of them not even good, but Day was an incredibly talented performer, was always watchable and always gave her all even in her lesser films.

Despite being her lowest rated film (as of now) on IMDb, critical reception not being kind to it at the time and even Day herself (Richard Harris apparently too) disliking it, while a long way from a flawless film and the weaker of the two films Day did with director Frank Tashlin (the other being 'The Glass Bottom Boat), 'Caprice' to me wasn't that bad. Again from personal opinion, it is not Day's worst film, that distinction goes to 'Where Were You When the Lights Went Out?' and 'Lucky Me' and 'Starlift' are not far behind. She has certainly done much better, especially 'Calamity Jane' and 'Pillow Talk' for films and both of those and 'Love Me or Leave Me' for performances.

'Caprice' certainly could have been much better. Its most problematic element is the often hopelessly convoluted (things get so complicated at times figuring out what was going on was not always easy) and daft story that was in more need of excitement and suspense overall. The script suffers from the same problems, and, while there are some undeniably funny and thrilling moments, tonally it felt muddled. It didn't seem to know whether it wanted to be a comedy or spy/espionage thriller, instead trying to do both with varying results, and when to be. The comedic elements fare much better, with some witty dialogue and some wildly entertaining set pieces, while the thriller elements only work in spurts with the lack of suspense and the convolution working against it.

Richard Harris is a rather ill-suited leading man. Very like Richard Widmark in 'The Tunnel of Love', Harris does step out of his comfort zone, which is laudable, but there is a real sense that he was completely out of his depth, to say that comedy isn't his forte is being generous. He plays the role too heavily and broadly instead of the lightness of touch and urbane charm needed here. It also was rather hard to take him seriously with the blue eye shadow and he visibly looked embarrassed wearing it, it just looked strange even in this particular context.

On the other hand, Day is a warm and natural presence and she shows a gift for a deft balance of comedy and drama, her chemistry with Harris had some nice moments. There is effortless support from Ray Walston, Edward Mulhane and Michael J. Pollard, and Tashlin's direction is both restrained and witty on the most part.

'Caprice' looks great too, apart from some cheap multi-layered gauze, the eye shadow and some obvious back projection. The cinematography is one of the film's biggest merits, full of ravishing colours and an atmosphere that one wishes was matched in the story. Production design is similarly audacious, and the clothes are like their own characters (worth seeing 'Caprice' for them alone).

Music score is quirky and slinky while also with an understated ominous touch, also loved the title song and it is beautifully sung by Day. As said, 'Caprice' does sport some fine moments. They are the chase sequence in the apartment complex that's entertaining and thrilling, the hilarious elevator scene (genius comic timing by Day) and especially the delightful scene in the theatre. The film could have done with more kick sometimes but was never what one would call "boring" (highlighted seeing as it has become one of my most hated words to its overuse and how it's constantly abused on the internet).

In summary, not great (couldn't help thinking of 'Charade', also with a mix of comedy and thriller-mystery, and how much better that was) but a long way from a disaster. 6/10 Bethany Cox