Breezy is a 1973 American romantic drama film directed by Clint Eastwood, produced by Robert Daley, and written by Jo Heims.

The film stars William Holden and Kay Lenz, with Roger C. Carmel, Marj Dusay, and Joan Hotchkis in supporting roles.

[2] The film earned 3 nominations at the 31st Golden Globe Awards, including Most Promising Newcomer – Female for Lenz.

Breezy lost her parents years before in a car accident; she lived with her aunt until she graduated from high school.

After escaping a bad hitchhiking experience with an unstable stranger, Breezy loiters near Frank's luxurious house.

Another night, the couple goes to see a movie and runs into Frank's friend Bob who seems to always talk about wanting to cheat on his wife.

All of his shared joys with Breezy, such as their adopted stray dog and "us against the world" mentality, are not enough to enable him to cope with the age difference.

When the film generated no profits, the Screen Actors Guild told Eastwood that he would have to pay Holden the union minimum of $4000.

Heims had originally intended Eastwood to play the starring role of the realtor Frank Harmon, a bitter divorced man who falls in love with the young Breezy.

"[1][3] The role of Breezy went to a young dark-haired actress named Kay Lenz, chosen because of her chemistry with Holden,[1] who Eastwood described as "very very gentle with her, even during the screen test.

[1] Howard Thompson of The New York Times wrote, "A cloyingly naive resolution mars 'Breezy,' which opened yesterday, an otherwise engrossing drama of an aging man's infatuation with a tender-hearted 17-year-old girl derelict.

"[8] Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 3 stars out of 4 and wrote, "Screenwriter Jo Heims has fashioned a formula May–September love affair into a surprisingly tender and frequently witty romance in which an older man is realistically transformed by a much younger woman ... 'Breezy' frequently threatens to collapse into a stereotypical characterization, but Holden's refreshing honesty invariably revitalizes the action.

"[9] Arthur D. Murphy of Variety called it "an okay contemporary drama" with "perhaps too much ironic, wry or broad humor for solid impact.

"[10] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times wrote of Eastwood that Breezy was "a deeply felt, fully realized film that is entirely his own.

It's an offbeat love story told with rare delicacy and perception that affords William Holden his most fully dimensioned role in years and introduces a smashing newcomer named Kay Lenz.

"[11] The film opened at the Columbia II theater in New York City on November 18, 1973, but flopped, grossing only $16,099 in four weeks and 5 days.

It then underwent some minor re-editing and was test released in Utah in 39 theaters on July 3, 1974 on a four wall distribution basis for two weeks.

[12][13] The results were positive, so Universal expanded the four wall distribution policy[clarification needed] to the Portland and Seattle areas.

[15] Some critics, including Eastwood's biographer Richard Schickel, believed that the sexual content of the film and love scenes were too soft to be memorable for such a potentially scandalous relationship between Harmon and Breezy, commenting that, "it is not a sexy movie.