A Fine Madness (1966)

Samson Shillitoe, mad genius of a poet irresistible to women but plagued by writer's block, agrees to see a psychiatrist... and his beautiful wife.

Director:

Irvin Kershner

Writers:

Elliott Baker (screenplay), Elliott Baker (based upon the novel by)

Stars:

Sean Connery, Joanne Woodward, Jean Seberg

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Connery	...	Samson Shillitoe
Joanne Woodward	...	Rhoda Shillitoe
Jean Seberg	...	Lydia West
Patrick O'Neal	...	Dr. Oliver West
Colleen Dewhurst	...	Dr. Vera Kropotkin
Clive Revill	...	Dr. Menken
Werner Peters	...	Dr. Vorbeck
John Fiedler	...	Daniel K. Papp
Kay Medford	...	Mrs. Fish
Jackie Coogan	...	Mr. Fitzgerald
Zohra Lampert	...	Evelyn Tupperman
Sorrell Booke	...	Leonard Tupperman
Sue Ane Langdon	...	Miss Walnicki
Bibi Osterwald	...	Mrs. Fitzgerald
Mabel Albertson	...	Chairwoman

Storyline

Samson Shillitoe, a frustrated poet and a magnet for women, is behind in his alimony payments, and lives with Rhoda, a waitress who stands by him through all his troubles. Samson becomes belligerent when he cannot find the inspiration to finish his big poem so Rhoda tries to get him to see the psychiatrist Dr. West, who claims to be able to cure writer's block. Samson ends up being pursued by various women while trying to evade the subpoena servers and finish his poem.

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Plot Keywords:

poet | poem | psychiatrist | writer's block | writer | 

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Taglines:

We should all be so crazy.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 September 1966 (Finland)

Also Known As:

Simson ist nicht zu schlagen

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pan Arts, Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The scene involving a topless 'Sue Ann Langdon' and Sean Connery near the film's beginning was the subject of a photo feature in "Playboy" magazine.

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Goofs

A sign in the restaurant where Rhoda works advertises "banannas"; this could be a set design error or a real sign from a location shoot.

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Quotes

Knocker: [to Koocker] I can't write poetry in jail. I've tried!

User Reviews

Fun social satire made redundant by One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

The idea that free-spirited creativity is a social disorder that must be cured by a well-meaning but thoroughly incompetent psychiatric establishment is the theme here, and one quite familiar to anybody who has seen One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Sean Connery was a great choice to play a blocked, womanizing writer at the core of the drama and he centers the film with his amiable exuberance. Comparisons to Cuckoo's Nest are inevitable, and this film lacks the other's stifling power and resonance, but it shares a common vision of the psychiatric profession acting as a microcosm of authoritarian abuses in society at large. Still, this is a funny and charming, much lighter satire on the same subject, energetically directed by Irvin Kirschner, and enjoyable for Connery fans in any case.