The Pumpkin Eater (1964)

70% of users liked it
(422 ratings)

Anne Bancroft stars as a restless, twice-married British woman with six children, whose third husband is a fledgling screenwriter (Peter Finch). When success spins Finch's head around, he begins to dally with women other than his wife. Meanwhile, Bancroft is forced to stay home and play "domestic… More Anne Bancroft stars as a restless, twice-married British woman with six children, whose third husband is a fledgling screenwriter (Peter Finch). When success spins Finch's head around, he begins to dally with women other than his wife. Meanwhile, Bancroft is forced to stay home and play "domestic goddess", a role for which she is utterly unsuited. After suffering a nervous breakdown, Bancroft wanders the streets of London in a vain search for a sympathetic ear. She eventually comes to grips with the situation at hand--but as in most of playwright Harold Pinter's works, the characters of The Pumpkin Eater are just as unfulfilled in the last scene as they were in the first. Anne Bancroft won a Cannes Film Festival award for her performance in this film. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 49 min.
Directed By: Jack Clayton
Genres: Drama, Classics

In Theaters: Nov 9, 1964 Wide
On DVD: Oct 17, 1995

Critic Reviews

Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
A depressing but well acted marital drama, earning Anne Bancroft an Oscar nod for playing a mother of eight children married to the philandering Peter Finch.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
It's a marvelously written piece of junk that no matter how brilliantly penned never rises above its shallow soap opera roots.

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Featured Audience Ratings

jay n

Anne Bancroft is brilliant in this heavy drama of the collapse of a bad marriage. The rest of the cast of fine English actors all give good performances but are overshadowed by Anne's towering work. Maggie Smith's part as a flibbigibbet is small and worlds away from what has… More
Anne Bancroft is brilliant in this heavy drama of the collapse of a bad marriage. The rest of the cast of fine English actors all give good performances but are overshadowed by Anne's towering work. Maggie Smith's part as a flibbigibbet is small and worlds away from what has become her established persona of astrigent strength. A good film but rough going.
Emily B

This really is a very underrated film. Anne Bancroft puts in a great performance as the three times married mother of 6 who is slowly being driven mad by her current husband's unfaithfulness. The scene where she breaks down in the middle of Harrods is particulary powerful.

Cast

            Anne Bancroft as Jo Armitage

            Peter Finch as Jake Armitage

            James Mason as Bob Conway

            Cedric Hardwicke as Mr. James Jo's Father

            Richard Johnson as Giles

            Eric Porter as Psychiatrist

            Rosalind Atkinson as Jo's Mother

            Frances White as Dinah

            Alan Webb as Mr. Armitage Jake's Father

            Cyril Luckham as Doctor

            Janine Gray as Beth Conway

            Yootha Joyce as Woman at Hairdresser

            Frank Singuineau as King of Israel

            Elizabeth Dear
            
            Christopher Ellis as Fergus

            John Franklyn-Robbins as Parson

            Faith Kent as Nanny

            David Langton
            
            Fergus McClelland
            
            Anthony Nicholls as Surgeon

            Sarah Nicholls as Elizabeth

            Michael Ridgeway
            
            Gerald Sim as Man at Party

            Maggie Smith as Philpot

            John Junkin as Undertaker

            Gregory Phillips
            
            Leslie Nunnerley as Waitress at Zoo

            Rupert Osborne as Pete
See full cast