The Last Married Couple in America

When I was watching "The Last Married Couple in America" recently, I made note of the uninhibited anything-goes attitudes that it exhibited, so typical of the late 1970s. There were open relationships, bawdy parties, rampant divorce, and all manner of outrageous behaviors that typified that era.

Mari (Natalie Wood) and Jeff (George Segal) are a happy married California couple that stays together despite all of their friends going through divorces and various personal crises. When Jeff cheats on Mari with a mutual acquaintance (Valerie Harper), the couple separates and tries the single life. Naturally, they reunite after discovering that being single isn't so great after all, and all is happy with their family and the world.

This movie certainly has a great cast (including Richard Benjamin, Priscilla Barnes, Bob Dishy, and Dom DeLuise) but its story line is almost like a TV show transplanted into an R-rated movie. There are plenty of laughs and some pretty good scenes (including a crazy party scene toward the end), but I was left feeling that I had just watched a 1970s sitcom with some salty language and sex scenes thrown in. The supporting cast is very good, with Richard Benjamin outrageously funny as one of Segal's divorcing friends, and a very young and attractive Priscilla Barnes. Watching the film was a pleasant experience and it was nice to re-live early 1980, but in the end it wasn't anything really special.

A fun take on the aftermath of the sexual revolution but could have been better. Natalie Wood and George Segal are a 40ish couple who are happily married but seem to be the only ones left in their circle of friends who still are. They are under constant peer pressure from their friends to seek out extramarital affairs. Eventually Segal is seduced by Wood's friend Barbara played by a blonde Valerie Harper (cast against type from her long TV role as Rhoda Morgenstern) The supporting cast are stellar, a who's who of comedic actors of that era; Richard Benjamin, Alan Arbus, Bob Dishy and Priscilla Barnes but its the effortless chemistry between Natalie Wood and George Segal that are the backbone of the movie. Natalie's performances in her later years were far better than she's been given credit for. Her entire career were various snapshots of the mores of the times. She ultimately always made America feel good about its moral center even in her tragic roles. The sitcom feel of the whole film does it a disservice because it could have held up better over time if the script was better. Seeing this in 2020 is more like an archeological excavation digging up bones of a long lost civilization instead of a witty character study like Annie Hall or Manhattan. All and all its a worthwhile watch even just to see Natalie's last completed theatrical release.

Natalie Wood was best known for her childhood role in "Miracle on 34th Street". And don't forget the sexual revolution film, "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice". I'm this film it is quite similar, only with morals to back it up. George Segal and Natalie Wood play Jeff and Mari Thompson, a married couple with three boys. They have friends who are married. Then suddenly, each one they knew have separated or divorced. And they began to question their own relationship. Their marriage is tested when Maria's friend Barbara(Valerie Harper) comes into town, and hits on Jeff. Knowing to be very faithful to his wife, he would brush her off. Until one night, he did the deed. After getting a STD, Mari decided to do the same. The only thing they could get back together is with a friend's birthday party. This movie has got a great cast and great scenes. Dom Deluise was great. And I couldn't picture Valerie Harper as a blonde. She did look great though. And my favorite scene was the birthday surprises. Taking Jeff to his hangout, and flashing him when he was unaware of the fur coat suspicion. It's a very good movie, I enjoyed every moment of it. 3.5 out of 5 stars

Jeff (George Segal) and Mari (Natalie Wood) Thompson are a happily married couple...but all the other married couples they know are divorced or separated and seem happy being single. It leads them to start questioning their own marriage and if they really are happy.

I only caught this for Natalie Wood. This film was not a success (I remember it bombed badly back in 1980) and it was Wood's second to last theatrical film. It's not as bad as I've heard but no great movie either. It has a LOT of sex talk and jokes and bed hopping (this was pre-AIDS) but surprisingly no nudity till the very end. In fact, it plays a lot like an R rated sitcom. The script actually isn't bad--it perfectly captures the late 1970s styles, language and attitude towards sex and marriage. But, it cops out at the end and becomes VERY conventional. Pretty typical for a Hollywood sex comedy. The cast is very attractive--Segal overacts but in an endearing way, Wood is just great and looks fantastic (it's surprising to hear her swear!} and Valerie Harper is excellent as a sexually liberated woman. The biggest problem here is that it's never really funny. It's only mildly amusing at best. Still if you're interested in the 1970s and their view of sex you'll probably like this. I give it a 5.

"The Last Married Couple In America" is a misfire, and a waste of a perfectly good cast. In fact, the great chemistry between George Segal and Natalie Wood is the only thing that forces me to give this movie a ** rating, instead of the more appropriate *1/2. But to be a movie exclusively about marriage and not to be able to present even one meaningful insight into the subject in more than 100 minutes is quite a feat, indeed!