Billy Liar

Billy (Tom Courtenay), a young British clerk in a gloomy North Country undertaker’s office, is bombarded daily by the propaganda of the media that all things are for the asking. This transparently-false doctrine, coupled with the humdrum job and his wild imagination, leads him on frequent flights to “Ambrosia”, a mythical kingdom where he is crowned King, General, lover, or any idealized hero the real situation of the moment makes him desire. His vacillating commitment and post-adolescent immaturity have created situations which make Ambrosia all the more attractive. He’s succeeded in becoming engaged to two different girls simultaneously, while in love with a third, Liz (Julie Christie). He’s in hot water with his employer, having spent a rather large sum of postage money on his personal frivolities. Last but not least, his dream of becoming a highly-paid, famous scriptwriter in London seems doomed. The only person in his life capable of bringing him down to Earth is Liz, and she’s …