Taglines: Two nimble American rascals turn Paris on its ear.
The Art of Love movie storyline. Painter Paul Sloan (Dick Van Dyke) feels he’s a failure, since nobody will buy his paintings. His art dealer informs him, that the works of an artist become much more wanted and valuable if the artist is dead. Therefore, Paul, together with his friend Casey Barnett (James Garner), plans to fake his own suicide. However, it starts looking like Casey has murdered Paul and when Casey starts making a move for Paul’s fiancée (Elke Sommer), he decides to get revenge. However, Paul falls in love with Nikki, who has also tried to commit suicide.
The Art of Love is a 1965 technicolour comedy film directed by Norman Jewison and starring James Garner, Dick Van Dyke, Elke Sommer, Angie Dickinson, Ethel Merman, Carl Reiner, Pierre Olaf, Roger C. Carmel, Irving Jacobson, Jay Novello, Paul Préboist and Paul Verdier.
The film involves an American artist in Paris (Van Dyke) who fakes his own death in order to increase the worth of his paintings (new paintings keep “posthumously” hitting the market). His conniving pal (Garner) sells the paintings and withholds the proceeds while the artist toils in a shabby garret.
The picture was written by Richard Alan Simmons, William Sackheim, and Carl Reiner. The supporting cast features Carl Reiner and Ethel Merman. Jewison noted in his autobiography that the film’s flaw was that the script assumes that an artist’s death guarantees a huge increase in the sales value of his paintings. That hurt audiences’ responses to the movie enormously. All of the paintings that were used in the movie were the work of international artist Don Cincone.
The Art of Love (1965)
Directed by: Norman Jewison
Starring: James Garner, Dick Van Dyke, Elke Sommer, Angie Dickinson, Ethel Merman, Carl Reiner, Pierre Olaf, Roger C. Carmel, Irving Jacobson, Jay Novello, Paul Préboist, Paul Verdier
Screenplay by: Carl Reiner
Production Design by: Norman Deming
Cinematography by: Russell Metty
Film Editing by: Milton Carruth
Costume Design by: Ray Aghayan
Set Decoration by: John P. Austin, Howard Bristol
Art Direction by: Alexander Golitzen, George C. Webb
Music by: Cy Coleman
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
Release Date: June 30, 1965
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