Amantes em Família

Quirky, thoroughly offbeat erotic comedy is ultimately worth seeing, despite its talkiness and its occasionally stagy direction. It sure deals with some serious subjects in a less-than-plausible way (the characters are way too calm and civilized), but its gentle eccentricity, and the appealing performances by the entire cast (Bo Derek is stunning!), leave you with a nice impression. Fair film.

"A Change of Seasons" is a film that makes polyamory seem fun and sophisticated. Call me old fashioned, and I really am, I can't relate to the plot...and that might explain why the reception to this film was cold, at best--with three Razzie Award nominations.

Shortly after the story begins, Karyn Evans (Shirley MacLaine) guesses that her husband, Adam (Anthony Hopkins), is having an affair with one of his college students (Bo Derek). But instead of being angry or hurt, Karyn gets herself a young stud of a boyfriend. And, to make things REALLY weird, the four of them go on a couples vacation together! Complications arise when the Evans' daughter shows up...and is naturally shocked by her parents' behavior.

I think how much you enjoy the film certainly will be affected by your views on polyamory and adultery. For me, it's not a funny topic and I found it hard to relate to the characters. Some might not feel this way and might enjoy the plot.

But for me, it wasn't just the story that left me flat. I rarely talk about this with any film, but the music in this movie was just godawful!! Every time the singing began, my skin crawled....it was THAT saccharine and awful. The music of the Carpenters was like acid rock compared to the stuff in "A Change of Seasons"

Overall, a couple good actors in a script that might have worked better had the film actually been a comedy. Some real laughs would have improved it...as well as ANY other soundtrack!

A middle-aged husband (Anthony Hopkins) falls for a beautiful young woman (Bo Derek). His wife (Shirley MacLaine) starts her own affair in retaliation.

I caught this in a theatre in Massachusetts in 1980. It was filmed on location around there and I was curious to see how the state looked on the big screen. There was a bit of controversy while the film was being shot here--Hopkins HATED working with Derek because she refused to rehearse. He threatened to quit more than once. After seeing the film I wish he had quit! The script is by the numbers and not even remotely funny (this was supposed to be a romantic comedy). MacLaine and Hopkins do their best with the material but not even their considerable acting talents can save this. Every single event was predictable and boring. Also Derek's complete lack of acting talent is almost painful to watch. I don't care how beautiful she is--the woman just can't act! Hopkins hatred for her comes through loud and clear.

This did nothing for the stars careers. Derek already had "10" out and Hopkins had "The Elephant Man" but MacLaine did this and another dreadful "comedy" called "Loving Couples" at the same time. She did point out in her book that they were both awful and almost ruined her career. Good thing she did "Terms of Endearment" a few years later.

I had blocked this movie out completely but I saw a bit of it on TV recently and all the bad memories came rolling back. Also if you're just watching this to see Derek nude it happens during the opening credits and that's about it. A really bad film--1 all the way.

How can two future Oscar winners star in a movie and have zero chemistry? Try a hackneyed plot, pedestrian direction with self-important pretentious, a grandiose score, and pointless dialogue. The cinematography is excellent, though, and the supporting cast, especially TV-veteran Edward Winter (best performance in film) is surprisingly robust, considering the material (EXCEPT Bo Derek, or course, whose notoriety from 10 is one of the reasons this was rushed to the big screen prematurely.

Advertised as a wacky marital sex romp (with allusions to wife-swapping), this Erich Segal script surprises by being a mostly sobering look at a marriage between two middle-agers (Shirley MacLaine and Anthony Hopkins) which has faltered and can't really be rectified. Released alongside a spate of similar middle-age-crazy comedy-dramas (including MacLaine's "Loving Couples", which she made back-to-back with "Seasons"), this one has the added appeal of seeing serious-minded Hopkins romancing Bo Derek (fresh off her triumph in "10" and usually out of her clothes). The writing is often achingly 'cute', with hardly a wink to the audience to let us know co-writer Segal is in on the joke. However, the more thoughtful moments (integrated unobtrusively by director Richard Lang) offer some insight into what breaks up a marital union, and both MacLaine and Hopkins have strong scenes. ** from ****