The Sailor from Gibraltar is a 1967 British romantic drama film directed by Tony Richardson and starring Jeanne Moreau, Ian Bannen, Vanessa Redgrave, Hugh Griffith and Orson Welles. Based on the novel Le Marin de Gibraltar by Marguerite Duras, it tells the story of a mysterious wealthy woman who travels the world in her yacht in search of a lost lover she calls “the sailor from Gibraltar”.
Plot
Bored with his fiancée Sheila and with Florence, where they have gone for a holiday, Alan takes her to Bocca di Magra where he meets and sleeps with Anna, a rich woman whose yacht is anchored offshore. When she leaves next day, she agrees to take him as her lover. An odyssey begins as she pursues alleged sightings of “the sailor from Gibraltar”, a man she regards as the love of her life. Initially bored or annoyed over her obsession, Alan eventually succumbs to the quest. After drawing blank in Greece and in Ethiopia, a third false lead in Egypt dents Anna's overriding will to continue. Once she shows vulnerability, Alan realises that he loves her and wants to stay searching pointlessly with her.
Cast
Jeanne Moreau - Anna
Ian Bannen - Alan
Vanessa Redgrave - Sheila
Orson Welles - Louis de Mozambique
Hugh Griffith - Llewellyn
Zia Mohyeddin - Noori
Umberto Orsini - Postcard Vendor
Critical reception
Time Out commended Raoul Coutard's camerawork, but dismissed the film as "Highfalutin nonsense"; whereas Derek Winnert found it "well-intentioned, weird, arty stuff in the style of the time. Director Tony Richardson turns it into a smart, interesting film that’s always intriguing even if it is not entirely a success."