The Four Seasons (1981 film)

The Four Seasons
Promotional movie poster
Directed by	Alan Alda
Written by	Alan Alda
Produced by	Martin Bregman
Starring	Alan Alda Carol Burnett Len Cariou Sandy Dennis Rita Moreno Jack Weston Bess Armstrong
Cinematography	Victor J. Kemper
Edited by	Michael Economou
Production company	Universal Pictures
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release dates	April 30, 1981 (1981-04-30)(Denver premiere) May 22, 1981 (1981-05-22)(United States)
Running time	107 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$6.5 million [1]
Box office	$50.4 million [2]

The Four Seasons is a 1981 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Alan Alda, and stars Alda, Carol Burnett, Len Cariou, Sandy Dennis, Rita Moreno, Jack Weston and Bess Armstrong. ^{[3] [4]} It draws its title from the four concerti composed by Antonio Vivaldi. Those compositions, along with others by Vivaldi, constitute the musical score. ^[5]

Plot

Three middle-class married couples — Jack and Kate Burroughs; Nick and Anne Callan; Danny and Claudia Zimmer — live in New York City and are the best of friends. Jack is a moralistic lawyer, Kate a Fortune magazine editor, Nick an insurance salesman and estate planner, Anne a housewife and photographer who enjoys taking pictures of vegetables, Danny a cheap dentist who displays symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder and hypochondriasis, and Claudia an insensitive Italian painter. Quarterly (in each of the four seasons), the three couples go on vacations planned by Kate.

Spring

In the month of May, the six friends go to Nick's and Anne's weekend cottage in the forest to celebrate Nick's and Anne's anniversary. The husbands cook Chinese food and go bike racing, while the wives discuss Anne's latest photos. While gathering firewood, Nick reveals to Jack how unhappy he is being married to Anne and how he plans to divorce her, wanting a woman who can excite him. When Jack asks if another woman is involved, Nick denies it. That night, Kate is devastated when Jack tells her of Nick's intentions, and both worry about Anne.

Summer

Nick has separated from Anne and is dating Ginny Newley, a younger, beautiful, naive woman. The Burroughses and the Zimmers are not impressed with Nick giving Ginny a new present daily and her believing all of his stories. All three couples, except Anne, spend the summer in a sailboat around St. Thomas. During their vacation, the sailboat gets stuck in a sandbar, and the Burroughses and the Zimmers are unable to sleep well due to Nick and Ginny having sex loudly every night. When the group gets the sailboat unstuck and resumes the journey, the Burroughses privately discuss the effects Nick and Ginny's relationship is having on the others. After witnessing Nick and Ginny swimming in the sea naked, the Zimmers do the same.

Autumn

In fall, the group rides Danny's new Mercedes-Benz to Connecticut to spend Parents' Weekend with two of the couples' daughters: Beth Burroughs and Lisa Callan. While checking in to the university inn, the couples awkwardly encounter Anne, who is also there to spend time with Lisa. Kate and Claudia apologize to Anne for not inviting her to their previous vacations, claiming that Nick would always bring Ginny along. Anne, who has become depressed over her separation, tells the other women she is moving on by trying new things such as taking a vacation in Czechoslovakia and adopting a pet snake. Beth reveals to her mother that despite being childhood friends, she and Lisa are no longer close. Meanwhile, Danny has become increasingly upset with Claudia's insensitivity to others, which she defends due to her Italian heritage and refuses to apologize. Nick is unable to cheer up Lisa, who has become withdrawn and unhappy over her parents' separation. Danny reveals to Jack that Nick is a womanizer, having secretly cheated on Anne with multiple other women. During a game of soccer, Jack bruises his knee from tackling Nick, whom he is becoming estranged from. That night, the Burroughses fight about Nick and Ginny, and Kate confesses that she hates planning the group's quarterly vacations.

Winter

The Callans have divorced, with Nick marrying Ginny and Anne becoming a magazine photographer. In winter, the three couples vacation at a ski resort, where they rent a lodge. A skiing match between Nick and Jack results in the former breaking an ankle and the latter tearing his ligament. To cheer everyone up, Ginny invites the others to a bar. When Danny's friends laugh at his irrational fears over his health, Ginny surprisingly defends him. When they return to the lodge, Kate insults Ginny by telling her that she will never understand the group. Upset, Ginny calls out the others for not accepting her before leaving the lodge. Despite his lack of concern, Nick reveals that Ginny is pregnant. The group have another fight, culminating in Jack vandalizing pieces of furniture before Kate calms him down. When Ginny still has not returned the following morning, Danny goes to look for her. He finds Ginny jogging but accidentally falls through thin ice. Ginny runs back to the lodge to tell the others of Danny being in danger. They all get into Danny's Mercedes-Benz and rescue him, although the car falls through the ice and sinks into the freezing water. The friends reconcile and walk back to the lodge, with Kate jokingly saying they should all return to the resort next winter.

Characters

• Jack Burroughs (Alan Alda), a lawyer who is happily married to Kate. He enjoys asking deep and probing questions and then volunteering an answer. Jack is moralistic, expressing disapproval of Nick for leaving his wife. He competes with the more athletic Nick in dirtbike racing, soccer, and skiing. His friends and wife consider him too judgmental at times. Instead of keeping true feelings to themselves, Jack thinks it is better for everyone to clear the air, when some feelings could be better off hidden.
• Kate Burroughs (Carol Burnett), an editor for Fortune magazine. She suspects that her husband has fantasies of being worshipped by an attractive, younger woman the way Nick has. Since she comes across as well-organized and even perfect, Kate can feel invisible and neglected.
• Nick Callan (Len Cariou), an insurance salesman and estate planner. He is bored with his wife Anne and divorces her. He admits to Jack that he wants a woman who can excite him. Ginny, a younger woman, begins joining him on seasonal vacations with the Burroughses and Zimmers. Although his four friends disapprove, Nick is happy. Ginny marries him and becomes pregnant with his child.
• Anne Callan (Sandy Dennis), a housewife, mother, and aspiring photographer. She takes pleasure in taking photos of vegetables, much to Nick's chagrin. After being left for a younger woman, Anne falls into depression. She believes that both Kate and Claudia deserted her following her divorce. To break out of her rut, Anne attempts to try new (but unusual) things such as buying a snake and planning a vacation to Czechoslovakia. Eventually she is able to support herself as a magazine photographer (taking "pictures of people, not kumquats," as Nick observes).
• Danny Zimmer (Jack Weston), a dentist and Claudia's husband. He shares with his male friends a passion for cooking and exotic dishes. He is oldest of the group and fears that he is approaching death. This has prompted diet changes and even irrational fears, like pressing strange elevator buttons. Danny can be quite cheap when it comes to money and often displays symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
• Claudia Zimmer (Rita Moreno), an accomplished painter. She can be quite outspoken, even to the point of being insensitive to others. Whenever her candor is criticized, Claudia refuses to apologize and cites her heritage ("I'm Italian!"). She expresses the desire to feel in love the way Nick does with Ginny. After witnessing Nick and Ginny swim naked, Claudia and Danny try it themselves.
• Ginny Newley (Bess Armstrong), a young woman who begins a relationship with Nick after meeting him on a flight. She is attractive, bubbly, and a bit naive. She is in awe of the older Nick, whom she regards as quite accomplished. Although the Burroughses and Zimmers resent her as "the other woman," they eventually accept her as a friend. Ginny defends Danny when the group mocks him for his irrational fears. Ginny marries Nick and she becomes pregnant with his child.
• Lisa Callan (Beatrice Alda), Nick and Anne's daughter. Her parents' divorce greatly affected her and caused her to become sullen, withdrawn, and isolated at school. Lisa confesses her unhappiness to her father, who is unable to cheer her up.
• Beth Burroughs (Elizabeth Alda), Jack and Kate's daughter. She attends college at the University of Vermont and is an excellent student. Noting her upbeat attitude, Danny observes that she "takes a real bite out of life." Beth's relationship with Lisa, a classmate, has deteriorated at college.

Release

The film had its premiere at the Denver International Film Festival on April 30, 1981, before opening May 22. ^[6]

Reception

The Four Seasons was a critical and box office success. Produced on a budget of $6.5 million, the film grossed $50,427,646, ^[2] making it the ninth highest-grossing film of 1981. ^[7] It holds a 76% "Fresh" rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes from 17 reviews. ^[8]

The film also renewed interest in the Vivaldi concerti after which it was named and which its musical score included.^{[ citation needed ]}

Awards and nominations

Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
Bodil Awards	Best Non-European Film	Alan Alda	Won	[9]
Golden Globe Awards	Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy		Nominated	[10]
	Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy	Alan Alda	Nominated
	Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy	Carol Burnett	Nominated
	Best Screenplay – Motion Picture	Alan Alda	Nominated
Writers Guild of America Awards	Best Comedy – Written Directly for the Screen		Nominated	[11]

Spinoffs

The film spawned a CBS series in 1984 produced by Alda and starring Jack Weston and Tony Roberts.

The film was adapted by Tina Fey, Lang Fisher, and Tracey Wigfield into a Netflix TV series of the same name. Among others, it stars Fey and Steve Carell.

References

1. Aljean Harmetz (1981-06-02). "How Does Hollywood Decide if a Film is a Hit?". The New York Times. Retrieved 2025-03-10.
2. "The Four Seasons, Box Office Information". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved March 9, 2012.
3. "The Four Seasons". Turner Classic Movies . Atlanta: Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner). Retrieved October 29, 2016.
4. Janet Maslin (1981-05-22). "How Does Hollywood Decide if a Film is a Hit?". The New York Times. Retrieved 2025-03-10.
5. "AFI|Catalog". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved 2021-06-14.
6. Brown, Gene (1995). Movie Times. Macmillan. ISBN   0-02-860429-6.
7. "1981 Domestic Grosses". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved March 9, 2012.
8. "The Four Seasons, Movie Reviews". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved January 29, 2023.
9. "Bodil Prize 1982". Bodil Awards . Retrieved May 2, 2025.
10. "The Four Seasons". Golden Globe Awards . Retrieved July 5, 2021.
11. "Awards Winners". Writers Guild of America Awards. Archived from the original on December 5, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2010.

External links

• The Four Seasons at IMDb
• The Four Seasons at the TCM Movie Database
• The Four Seasons at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
• The Four Seasons at Letterboxd