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Although Richard Harris was the perfect King Arthur, casting is one major area where the movie version of "Camelot" fell short of its potential. Both plays starred Julie Andrews and her beautiful voice added much to the already great scores, but, unfortunately, she was not cast as the female lead in either film. However, the producers of the movie version of "My Fair Lady" had the good sense to hire Audrey Hepburn who was perfectly cast as Eliza Doolittle. She had the innocence and fragility needed for the role with just enough fire in her to finally rebel against Henry Higgins, while still leaving the audience sympathetic to her. On the other hand, the female lead in "Camelot," Vanessa Redgrave, although an extremely gifted actress, was miscast as Guenevere. She presents the character as a cold, selfish woman who is indifferent to the tragedy she brings to her husband and his empire. Unfortunately, she was permitted to do her own singing with the result of a lessening of the impact of some of the songs in "Camelot." On the other hand, Audrey Hepburn's singing was dubbed by Marni Nixon, a singer with a beautiful, trained voice.
The casting of the third lead character in each film also differed in quality. In "My Fair Lady," Colonel Pickering was played by a distinguished English actor, Wilfrid Hyde-White, whose acting was excellent. Unfortunately, the key role of Lancelot in "Camelot" was played by a novice Italian actor, Franco Nero, with limited command of English. Although he certainly fit the role physically, with his exceptional good looks, his acting was stiff and his delivery of lines was almost robotic.
The male leads in both films were perfect. In fact, the casting of Richard Harris probably saved "Camelot" from being a disaster. He was so well-cast as King Arthur that after the film, he became associated with the role and played it in several major productions, including one on Broadway and one in London. |
The Key Factors Movie Musical Success 