In Praise of Older Women (1978 film)

Last updated
In Praise of Older Women
In Praise of Older Women (1978 film).jpg
Directed by George Kaczender
Written byPaul Gottlieb
Barrie Wexler
Based onIn Praise of Older Women
by Stephen Vizinczey
Produced by Robert Lantos
Claude Héroux
Starring Tom Berenger
Karen Black
Susan Strasberg
Helen Shaver
Marilyn Lightstone
Alexandra Stewart
Narrated byHenry Ramer
Cinematography Miklós Lente
Edited by George Kaczender
Peter Wintonick
Music by Tibor Polgár
Production
companies
Distributed byAstral Films
Release date
  • September 22, 1978 (1978-09-22)
Running time
109 minutes
CountryCanada
Language English
Budget$1.5 million
Box office$1,150,000 [1]

In Praise of Older Women is a Canadian film directed by George Kaczender. It is based on Stephen Vizinczey's book In Praise of Older Women.

Contents

Plot

András Vayda (Tom Berenger) grows up in a turbulent, war-torn Hungary, where he procures local girls for the occupying G.I.s during World War II. Disappointed by the girls his age, he meets Maya (Karen Black), a married woman in her 30s, who tutors him in love and romance. Maya is only the first of many mature women whom András will meet through his teenage and young adult life.

Cast

Production

The film was shot from 12 September to 18 October 1977. The film was initially budgeted at $890,000, but cost $1.5 million, with $300,000 coming from the Canadian Film Development Corporation. [2]

Release

The film was distributed by Astral Films in Canada and Embassy Pictures in the United States. It was shown at the 1978 Toronto International Film Festival on 14 September, and released in Montreal on 22 September. The French dub was released in Montreal on 14 March 1980. [2] The film earned over $20 million. [3]

In Praise of Older Women was removed by Famous Players from a theatre, after having made $24,000 the previous week, in order to show The Boys from Brazil instead. [4]

In 2023, Telefilm Canada announced that the film was one of 23 titles that will be digitally restored under its new Canadian Cinema Reignited program to preserve classic Canadian films. [5]

Reception

Before its release, the Ontario Film Review Board demanded the removal of a 35 second sex scene from the film. However, the original cut of the film was shown during the Toronto International Film Festival, and despite a subway strike and a rainstorm, hundreds of people waited outside the Elgin Theatre to see the film. [6] According to some sources, counterfeit tickets were distributed, and a riot almost formed as ticket holders were turned away. [6] [7] The film received mostly negative reviews. [3]

Accolades

List of awards and nominations
AwardCategoryRecipients and nomineesResult
Canadian Film Awards, 1978 [8] Art Direction (Feature) Wolf Kroeger Won
Performance by a Lead Actress (Feature) Helen Shaver Won
Supporting Actress (Feature) Marilyn Lightstone Won
Cinematography (Feature) Miklós Lente Won

See also

Works cited

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cineplex Odeon Corporation</span> Defunct theatre company

Cineplex Odeon Corporation was one of North America's largest movie theatre operators and live theatre, with theatres in its home country of Canada and the United States. The Cineplex Odeon brand is still being used by Cineplex Entertainment at some theatres that were once owned by the Cineplex Odeon Corporation, with newer theatres using the Cineplex Cinemas brand. The company was the result of Cineplex Corporation in 1984 purchasing and merging with Canadian Odeon Theatres, which itself was the result of a merger between Canadian Theatres and Odeon Theatres of Canada in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinema of Canada</span>

Cinema in Canada dates back to the earliest known display of film in Saint-Laurent, Quebec, in 1896. The film industry in Canada has been dominated by the United States, which has utilized Canada as a shooting location and to bypass British film quota laws, throughout its history. Canadian filmmakers, English and French, have been active in the development of cinema in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alanis Obomsawin</span> American-Canadian Abenaki artist and filmmaker

Alanis Obomsawin, is an Abenaki American-Canadian filmmaker, singer, artist, and activist primarily known for her documentary films. Born in New Hampshire, United States and raised primarily in Quebec, Canada, she has written and directed many National Film Board of Canada documentaries on First Nations issues. Obomsawin is a member of Film Fatales independent women filmmakers.

<i>The Decline of the American Empire</i> 1986 film by Denys Arcand

The Decline of the American Empire is a 1986 Canadian sex comedy-drama film directed by Denys Arcand and starring Rémy Girard, Pierre Curzi and Dorothée Berryman. The film follows a group of intellectual friends from the University of Montreal history department as they engage in a long dialogue about their sexual affairs, touching on issues of adultery, homosexuality, group sex, BDSM and prostitution. A number of characters associate self-indulgence with societal decline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Mirvish Theatre</span> Toronto, Ontario Theatre

The Ed Mirvish Theatre is a historic performing arts theatre in Toronto, Ontario, located near Yonge–Dundas Square. Owned and operated by Mirvish Productions, the theatre has approximately 2,300 seats across two levels. There are two entrances to the theatre, located at 263 Yonge Street and 244 Victoria Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montreal World Film Festival</span> Defunct annual film festival formerly held in Montreal, Canada

The Montreal World Film Festival, commonly abbreviated MWFF in English or FFM in French, was an annual film festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada from 1977 to 2019. Founded and run throughout its lifetime by Serge Losique, it was the only competitive film festival in North America accredited by the FIAPF..

<i>The Grey Fox</i> 1982 Canadian film by Phillip Borsos

The Grey Fox is a 1982 Canadian biographical Western film directed by Phillip Borsos and written by John Hunter. It is based on the true story of Bill Miner, an American stagecoach robber who staged his first Canadian train robbery on 10 September 1904. The film stars Richard Farnsworth as Miner. The cast also features Jackie Burroughs, Ken Pogue, Wayne Robson, Gary Reineke and Timothy Webber.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Lantos</span>

Robert Lantos, CM is a Hungarian-Canadian film producer.

<i>Joshua Then and Now</i> (film) 1985 Canadian film

Joshua Then and Now is a 1985 Canadian film and a TV mini-series, adapted by Mordecai Richler from his semi-autobiographical novel Joshua Then and Now. James Woods starred as the adult Joshua, Gabrielle Lazure as his wife, and Alan Arkin as Joshua's father. It was directed by Ted Kotcheff who had previously directed Richler's The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz.

<i>Circle of Two</i> 1980 film by Jules Dassin

Circle of Two is a 1981 Canadian drama film starring Richard Burton and Tatum O'Neal. It was the last film directed by acclaimed film noir director Jules Dassin. O'Neal - sixteen at the time of filming - appears topless in one scene.

George Kaczender was a Hungarian-born Canadian film director. He directed 26 films between 1963 and 2001.

<i>Mr. Patman</i> 1980 Canadian film

Mr. Patman is a 1980 Canadian film directed by John Guillermin and starring James Coburn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1978 Toronto International Film Festival</span>

The 3rd Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) took place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between September 14 and September 21, 1978. It showcased 85 films, the lowest number of films in the festival's history. In Praise of Older Women directed by George Kaczender was selected as the opening film. When the Ontario Film Review Board objected to a 40-second scene between Marilyn Lightstone and Tom Berenger, co-producer of the film Robert Lantos cut the scene for the theatrical run. Despite that, some of the TIFF staff managed to smuggle original uncut version of the film and run it into the theatre. The news was well publicised, increasing interest in the film, in turn boosting ticket sales. Difficulties arose when audiences waiting outside the theatre noticed that each ticket admitted two person thus causing anger in the crowd. The audience who were not able to get seats during the first screening were invited to a later screening. The People's Choice Award was introduced this year, which is given to a feature film chosen by a vote of the festival audience.

Jacques and November is a 1984 Canadian drama film directed by Jean Beaudry and François Bouvier. The film was selected as the Canadian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 58th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.

<i>Felix and Meira</i> 2014 film

Felix and Meira is a 2014 Canadian drama film directed by Maxime Giroux, and starring Martin Dubreuil, Hadas Yaron, and Luzer Twersky. It is about an improbable affair between two Montreal residents - one a married woman from a devoutly Jewish family and community, and the other a single French Canadian man with his own family issues.

Beth Janson is a Canadian film industry executive, who was appointed as chief operating officer of the Toronto International Film Festival in April 2022. She was previously the chief executive officer of the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television from 2016 to 2022. Originally from Montreal, Quebec, she graduated from York University.

The Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award is an annual film award, presented by the Toronto International Film Festival to the movie rated as the year's best film according to TIFF audience. Past sponsors of the award have included Cadillac and Grolsch.

Louisiana is a 1984 Franco-Italian - Canadian film directed by Philippe de Broca. The film score was composed by Claude Bolling.

Love in a Four Letter World is a Canadian softcore pornographic film, directed by John Sone and released in 1970. The film stars Michael Kane and Helen Whyte as Harry and Vera Haven, a wealthy couple whose lives are turned upside down when a group of hippies move into a commune in the house next door, drawing first their daughter Susan, and then Helen herself, into their bohemian free love philosophy.

References

  1. Donahue, Suzanne Mary (1987). American film distribution : the changing marketplace. UMI Research Press. p. 297. Please note figures are for rentals in US and Canada
  2. 1 2 Turner 1987, p. 253-254.
  3. 1 2 Knelman 1987, p. 28.
  4. Pendakur 1990, p. 155.
  5. Pat Mullen, "Oscar Winning Doc Leads List of Restored Canadian Classics". Point of View , May 9, 2023.
  6. 1 2 David Berry (September 3, 2015). "TIFF: An oral history". National Post . Retrieved September 4, 2015.
  7. "Fun facts about TIFF". CBC News . September 3, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2015.
  8. "Awards Database". Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. April 8, 2014. Archived from the original on November 14, 2016. Retrieved September 4, 2015.

Works cited