Arabesque

Arabesque (1966)

Timing: 1:45 (105 min)

6.206/10
158

6.724/10
961

6.4/10
8900

All about film

Video 1

Photo 10

Actors and characters

Release date

1966-05-04

Country

United States

Production

Universal Pictures, Stanley Donen Films

Genre

Thriller, Comedy, Mystery, Action

Budget

$4 800 000

Revenue

$0

Website

Director

Stanley Donen

Actors

Gregory Peck, Sophia Loren, Alan Badel, Kieron Moore, Carl Duering, John Merivale, Duncan Lamont, George Coulouris, Ernest Clark, Harold Kasket
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Producer

Stanley Donen

Operator

Christopher Challis

Composer

Henry Mancini

Artist

Audition

Editing

Frederick Wilson
All team (23)

• This wasn't the first time Gregory Peck had played a role intended for Cary Grant. He previously replaced him in 'Roman Holiday' (1953), and during the filming of 'Arabesque,' whenever he couldn't play a scene 'funny,' he would tell the director, 'Remember, I'm not Cary Grant.'
• Stunts were particularly difficult for Gregory Peck (1916-2003) due to an old leg injury. In some scenes, he even had to restrain Sophia Loren so that the audience wouldn't think she was saving him, as the script specifically called for him to be the rescuer.
• Stanley Donen (1924-2019) directed this thriller in an unusually flamboyant style. He later admitted that he wasn't entirely happy with the script from the start (many writers worked on it, and there were rumors that it continued to be revised even after filming began), so he shot it in such an unconventional manner to try to conceal its flaws. Moreover, he had to start filming before he was fully prepared – a demanding shooting schedule dictated by the perpetually busy Gregory Peck and Sophia Loren.
• This wasn't the first time Gregory Peck had played a role intended for Cary Grant. He previously replaced him in "Roman Holiday" (1953), and during the filming of "Arabesque", whenever he couldn't play a scene 'funny', he would tell the director: 'Remember, I'm not Cary Grant'.