Bartleby (1972 film)

Bartleby
Directed by	Anthony Friedman
Produced by	Rodney Carr-Smith
Screenplay by	Rodney Carr-Smith Anthony Friedman
Based on	"Bartleby, the Scrivener; A Story of Wall-street" by Herman Melville
Starring	Paul Scofield John McEnery Thorley Walters
Music by	Roger Webb
Cinematography	Ian Wilson
Edited by	John S. Smith
Production company	Pantheon Film Productions
Distributed by	British Lion Film Corporation
Running time	78 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Bartleby is a 1972 British drama film directed by Anthony Friedman and starring Paul Scofield, John McEnery and Thorley Walters. It is an adaptation of the short story Bartleby, the Scrivener; A Story of Wall-street by Herman Melville. The film relocates the narrative from New York in the 1850s to London in the 1970s.

Bartleby, a young audit clerk, is defeated by the pressures of modern life; he gradually opts out of all forms of social engagement and withdraws into his own world.

The TV Guide reviewer commented that "the film is brooding, slow, and annoying at times, but the vision of McEnery as Bartleby is not easily forgotten. Scofield...gives a supremely intelligent portrayal of a man caught between logic and emotion."