A Little Night Music (1977)

Fredrik Egerman is very happy in his marriage to a seventeen-year-old virgin, Anne. Only she's been a virgin for the whole eleven months of the marriage, and being a bit restless, Fredrik ... See full summary »

Director:

Harold Prince

Writer:

Ingmar Bergman (suggested by: a film by "Sommarnattens leende")

Stars:

Elizabeth Taylor, Diana Rigg, Len Cariou

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Elizabeth Taylor	...	Desiree Armfeldt
Diana Rigg	...	Charlotte Mittelheim
Len Cariou	...	Frederick Egerman
Lesley-Anne Down	...	Anne Egerman
Hermione Gingold	...	Mme. Armfeldt
Laurence Guittard	...	Carl-Magnus Mittelheim
Christopher Guard	...	Erich Egerman
Lesley Dunlop	...	Petra
Chloe Franks	...	Fredericka Armfeldt
Heinz Marecek	...	Frid
Jonathan Tunick	...	Conductor
Hubert Tscheppe	...	Franz
Rudolph Schrympf	...	Band Conductor
Franz Schussler	...	The Mayor
Johanna Schussler	...	The Mayoress

Storyline

Fredrik Egerman is very happy in his marriage to a seventeen-year-old virgin, Anne. Only she's been a virgin for the whole eleven months of the marriage, and being a bit restless, Fredrik goes to see an old flame, the famous actress Desiree Armfeldt. Desiree is getting tired of her life, and is thinkin of settling down, and sets her sights on Fredrik, despite his marriage, and her own married lover Count Carl-Magnus. She gets her mother to invite the Egermans to her country estate for the weekend. But when Carl-Magnus and his wife Charlotte appear, too, things begin to get farcical (Send in the Clowns), and the night must smile for the third time before all the lovers are united.

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Plot Keywords:

female singer | russian roulette | playing piano | male singer | orchestra | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA West Germany Austria

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 May 1980 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

Das Lächeln einer Sommernacht

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sascha Filmverleih, S&T-Film Berlin, Elliott Kastner Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

Adapted from a Broadway musical produced and directed Harold Prince (who also directed this film), the stage production of "A Little Night Music" starred Glynis Johns as Desiree, Patricia Elliott, Beth Fowler and George Lee Andrews. Len Cariou, Laurence Guittard, and Hermione Gingold all reprise their roles from the play.

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Connections

Referenced in DuckTales: Send in the Clones (1987)

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Soundtracks

"Finale"
Written by Stephen Sondheim
Performed by Elizabeth Taylor and Len Cariou

User Reviews

Why did they tamper with perfection?

A Little Night Music was one of the most sophisticated and stylish stage musicals ever written. It was inspired by an Ingmar Bergman film and played on Broadway in 1973, winning six Tony Awards including Best Musical. When it was decided to make a film version, the original creative team (Stephen Sondheim, Hugh Wheeler and director Harold Prince) decided to alter their work. They shifted the setting from Sweden to Austria, which eliminated the aspect of a sun-lit evening ("perpetual sunset is rather an unsettling thing"). Also eliminated was the important Quintet, who provided a Greek chorus effect, commenting on the action with the songs "Remember?", "Perpetual Anticipation" and the "Night Waltz". I could understand their elimination, but when it came to the remainder of the score, gone was Carl-Magnus' solo "In Praise of Women", Madame Armfeldt's biting and nostalgic "Liaisons", and Petra's poignant "The Miller's Son". A new solo version of "The Glamorous Life" was written, there were new lyrics for "A Weekend in the Country". Elizabeth Taylor, dramatically, makes a good Desiree, but vocally, she makes Broadway original Glynis Johns look like Lily Pons. Bright spots in the film include Len Cariou, Laurence Guittard and the magnificent Hermione Gingold, reprising their original stage roles. Basically, the reconception did not work for the story. This musical is best seen on stage. If it was transferred correctly, this could have been one of the classics of film, but its best to steer clear of this and listen to the marvelous original Broadway cast recording.