shakercoola A London architect's jealous wife bickers and rages at him to no avail for his affair with a beautiful young woman. His flagrant behaviour causes his wife to scheme to get him back. Elizabeth Taylor is a film star and the main attraction here, but the emphasis place upon her by the diretor detracts somewhat from a fuller representation of the romantic love triangle in the film. The dialogue is rather contrived but there is good humour and lines are thrown about like sticks of dynamite. Michael Caine plays virtually a supporting part to Taylor's charisma, though York is irresistable as the demure woman and perfect answer to Taylor's middle age beauty and style.

bkoganbing X,Y&Z stars that romantic trio of Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Caine, and Susannah York. I'm thinking Richard Burton must have been working on another project so Michael Caine was substituted in a part that seemed clearly written for Burton.Caine and Taylor are a pair of married somethings who are starting to look a lot like George and Martha from Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf. That would be another 20 years or so. At the moment they still have a lot of life and lovers to experience. But for reasons not fully explained Taylor resents York, a widow with two small children far more than any of the others Caine has had. She no doubts sees a slightly younger version of herself. It really is because while the two women are having a most civilized lunch to amicably dispose of the matter of Caine, York says something to Taylor that really reminds her of herself. Something that later Taylor uses to her advantage. At the end we don't really know what's in store for this triangle.Caine and Taylor have the showier roles, but York gives a nice understated performance. Not one hint of the end I will reveal, but it really does kind of blow Caine's mind.I'm sure this had Richard Burton in mind originally. Watch and see if you don't agree.

jovana-13676 I only came here to see La Liz in caftans and big hair and violet eye shadow overload, playing her tabloid self, and I leave satisfied. Michael Caine transforms from Stella's (Susannah York) dream lover to a Peckham vulgarian husband, depending on a woman that happens to be next to him. Caine and Taylor are fun to watch, while Susannah York's Stella, looking like a Pre-Raphaelite princess, seems out of place surrounded by the garish furniture and over the top costumes. A really horrible production design that makes a great backdrop for Zee (Taylor) and she wallows in it. You cannot not like the soap opera quality of it. The film can't decide whether it's a drama or a comedy, but I guess Susannah York's character somehow keeps it balanced, preventing it from being utterly silly.

nneprevilo When "X Y & Z" opened in New York, it faced unanimous horrible reviews from the film critics. Rex Reed gave it a zero and went after Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Caine, Susannah York and Margaret Leighton with a vengeance.Rex went on about the new wave of sex in the movies and said about this movie: "Well, sex is back in "X Y & Zee," as wretched and slimy a pail of slop as I've ever seen dumped on a movie screen, with the misguided Elizabeth Taylor playing chief pig in the pig sty..."X Y & Zee" is a depraved lesbian horror film with flabby, oatmeal-colored Michael Caine trying vainly to out-weight and out-scream the bloated Miss Taylor before they both get thrown out of the Screen Actors Guild." Believe me, he said plenty more.Me, the fool, went out and saw this on a double bill and wish I had listened to Mr. Reed. If you were among the pot smokers and free love people who staggered out of the 60s wearing your "I Hate Doris Day" tee shirts, you probably got a big kick out of this trash. I left the theatre disgusted.