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

Mrs. Fish: [about Leonard] That mench! He's got a heart as black as the ace of diamonds!

User Reviews

It's a little heavy on kookiness...

As a poet who is institutionalized, Sean Connery distances himself quite grandly from screen alter-ego James Bond. Connery is unexpectedly gregarious as the avant-garde writer, Joanne Woodard is suitably shrill as his spouse, the supporting cast (including Jean Seberg and the wonderful Zohra Lampert) is terrific, but this is an extremely bumpy, frantic piece on challenging the system. Director Irvin Kershner has always been a little erratic, and his shifts in tone take a while to get used to. The script, from Elliot Baker's novel, is uneven, yet the film certainly looks good, with handsome photography and fine use of New York locations. Often gets confused with "They Might Be Giants", another comedy which also co-starred Joanne Woodward and dealt with a certain madness. ** from ****