In Praise of Older Women (1978)

Director:

George Kaczender

Writers:

Stephen Vizinczey (novel)
Paul Gottlieb (writer)

Release Date:

22 September 1978 (Canada)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Andras Varda grows up in a turbulent, war-torn Hungary, where he procures local girls for the occupying G.I.'s during World War II...

Plot Keywords:

Nudity | Leg Spreading | Male Nudity | Hungarian Revolution | Adultery

Awards:

4 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Tom Berenger	...	Andras Vayda
Karen Black	...	Maya
Susan Strasberg	...	Bobbie
Helen Shaver	...	Ann MacDonald
Marilyn Lightstone	...	Klari
Alexandra Stewart	...	Paula
Marianne McIsaac	...	Julika
Alberta Watson	...	Mitzi
Ian Tracey	...	Andras Vajda Jr
Monique Lepage	...	The Countess
Louise Marleau	...	Woman in Elevator
Jill Frappier	...	Lady Teacher
Mignon Elkins	...	Mother Vayda
Joan Stuart	...	Aunt Alice
John Bayliss	...	Glen MacDonald

Also Known As:

En hommage aux femmes de trente ans (Canada: French title)

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Netherlands:16 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Montréal, Québec, Canada

Company:

Astral Bellevue Pathé

Trivia:

This was the very first movie screened by the Toronto Film Festival (now the Toronto International Film Festival).

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Hollywood North (2003)

Soundtrack:

Sailor's Song

in praise of sheer idiocy

"In Praise of Older Women" is relatively true to the excellent psychological/philosophical novel it is based on. However, the problem is that all its intellectual elements (such as its theories about the reasoning behind promiscuity) are removed in the adaptation. The result is a soft porn movie which is unintentionally hilarious due to awkwardness and bad acting. Andras, the skirt-chasing protagonist, is presented as a dip who throws a temper tantrum when one of his lovers leaves him and delivers lines like "Give us the grand tour, pops." or "This exquisite antique ashtray could be yours if you promise to become my lover." as awkwardly as if he actually knew how lame he sounded (which Tom Berenger, who played him, probably did). A bad acting award should also go to the girl who played Andras´s first teenage girlfriend. She delivers her lines as if the characters she talked to were puppies or newborn babies but then, as my friend pointed out, she actually does act like a stupid flirty girl in her early teens who does not know what she wants in a boyfriend. The actresses who play Andras´s more adult girlfriends admittedly do a better job but still, they mostly play along with the soft porn cliche of upper class semi-intellectuals who treat sex as if it was art collecting or jogging. What do they see in a dork like Andras at their age anyway ? Also, what´s the deal with some of the Hungarian characters having Hungarian accents and the other Magyars having AMERICAN accents ? Nevertheless, I must reemphasize that this movie is fun. It made me laugh more than most typical "comedies" and some of the dramatic scenes, such as the one where Andras must flee Hungary , actually do work dramatically. The sex scenes, while pretty mild by today´s standards, look relatively realistic. The insights into Hungarian culture are interesting too. Nevertheless, trash is trash and I love it !