Tropic of Cancer (film)

Tropic of Cancer
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJoseph Strick
Screenplay byBetty Botley
Joseph Strick
Based onTropic of Cancer
by Henry Miller
Produced byJoseph Strick
StarringRip Torn
James T. Callahan
David Baur
Laurence Lignères
Phil Brown
Dominique Delpierre
CinematographyAlain Derobe
Edited bySidney Meyers
Sylvia Sarner
Music byStanley Myers
Production
company
Tropic Productions
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • February 27, 1970 (1970-02-27)
Running time
87 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Tropic of Cancer is a 1970 American drama film directed by Joseph Strick, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Betty Botley. It is based on Henry Miller's 1934 autobiographical novel Tropic of Cancer. The film stars Rip Torn, James T. Callahan, David Baur, Laurence Lignères, Phil Brown and Dominique Delpierre. The film was released on February 27, 1970, by Paramount Pictures.[1][2]

Strick had previously adapted other controversial works of literature – Jean Genet's The Balcony and James Joyce's Ulysses. Though the book came out in 1934, the film is set in the late 1960s when Paris, while little changed visually, was a very different place. Filming took place on location in Paris, produced by Joseph Strick with some help from the author, whose persona was portrayed by Rip Torn and his wife Mona by Ellen Burstyn. The novel had provided a test for American laws on pornography and the film was rated X in the United States, which was later changed to an NC-17 rating in 1992.[3] In the UK the film was refused an 'X' certificate by the BBFC.

  1. ^ "Tropic of Cancer (1970) - Overview". TCM.com. 1970-02-19. Retrieved 2016-03-26.
  2. ^ "Movie Review - - Rip Torn Portrays Miller in "Tropic of Cancer" Adaptation". NYTimes.com. 1970-02-20. Retrieved 2016-03-26.
  3. ^ Fox, Margalit (June 7, 2010). "Joseph Strick, Who Filmed the Unfilmable, Dies at 86". The New York Times. Retrieved April 1, 2014.