A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982)

Director:

Woody Allen

Writer:

Woody Allen (written by)

Release Date:

16 July 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Six characters in search of love [Video]

Plot:

A wacky inventor and his wife invite two other couples for a weekend party at a romantic summer house in the 1900s countryside.

Plot Keywords:

Summer | Inventor | Doctor | Lecture | Spirit

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Woody Allen	...	Andrew
Mia Farrow	...	Ariel
José Ferrer	...	Leopold (as Jose Ferrer)
Julie Hagerty	...	Dulcy
Tony Roberts	...	Maxwell
Mary Steenburgen	...	Adrian
Adam Redfield	...	Student Foxx
Moishe Rosenfeld	...	Mr. Hayes
Timothy Jenkins	...	Mr. Thomson
Michael Higgins	...	Reynolds
Sol Frieder	...	Carstairs
Boris Zoubok	...	Purvis
Thomas Barbour	...	Blint
Kate McGregor-Stewart	...	Mrs. Baker

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | Iceland:12 | Australia:M | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Columbia University - Broadway & 116th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Based on Sommarnattens leende (1955), which also inspired Stephen Sondheim's musical "A Little Night Music".

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: About thirteen minutes into the movie, a crew member is visible crouched by a tree, as a deer runs through the woods.

Quotes:

Andrew: I wonder if geniuses have problems with their sex lives.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Horrors of Spider Island (#11.11)" (1999)

Soundtrack:

Symphony No. 3 (Scottish) in A Minor

Manhattan in the woods

When I saw this film I thought it was from Allen's early period and I thought of it as a prototype Manhattan but when I checked the chronology I discovered that it belongs to his middle period and postdates both Annie Hall and Manhattan. It really is like Manhattan set in the woods of New England. As far as I can see, it is his first film with Mia Farrow and his camera is besotted with her as are all the male characters in the film. Mary Steeburgen also looks good although I can never work out whether she really can act or whether she is just having trouble with her contact lenses. The scenes of New England are beautifully shot and are ravishing to look at. I thought the element of mysticism sat uneasily with the rest of the film.

This film is said to be Allen's take on the Bergman film Three Smiles of a Summer Night although I cannot comment on this because I last saw the Bergman film 35 years ago at a student film society. Maybe the mystical element in Allen's film is lifted from Bergman. There are also obvious parallels with A Midsummer Night's Dream with the mortals swapping partners and with spirits flitting about in the woods. In keeping with the subject matter, Allen uses Mendelssohn for the incidental music rather that his usual classic jazz numbers.