Simon (1980)

Director:

Marshall Brickman

Writers:

Marshall Brickman (story) &
Thomas Baum (story) ...
(more)

Release Date:

February 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

He loves you. Do what he says.

Plot:

A group of scientist take Simon, a psychology professor, as a test person for a brainwash experiment...

Plot Keywords:

Scientist | Hippie | Evolution | General | One Word Title

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Alan Arkin	...	Prof. Simon Mendelssohn
Madeline Kahn	...	Dr. Cynthia Mallory
Austin Pendleton	...	Dr. Carl Becker
Judy Graubart	...	Lisa
William Finley	...	Fichandler
Jayant	...	Barundi
Wallace Shawn	...	Eric Van Dongen
Max Wright	...	Leon Hundertwasser
Fred Gwynne	...	Maj. Gen. Korey
Adolph Green	...	Commune leader
Keith Szarabajka	...	Josh
Ann Risley	...	Pam
Pierre Epstein	...	Military aide
Roy Cooper	...	General's aide
Rex Robbins	...	Army doctor
David Warrilow	...	Blades
Hetty Galen	...	Simon's mother (voice)
David Gideon	...	Security guard
David Susskind	...	Himself
Dick Cavett	...	Himself
Remak Ramsay	...	TV newscaster
Hansford Rowe	...	Priest Babcock Beastly
Yusef Bulos	...	Hemling Grotowsky
Jerry Mayer	...	Prof. Jerry Milstein
Sol Frieder	...	Rabbi Chaim Glassberg
William Griffis	...	Senator
Frank J. Lucas	...	Psychologist
George Riddle	...	Muttonchop aide
Tom Kubiak	...	Roach reaction patient
Al Cerullo	...	Helicopter pilot (as Al Cerullo Jr.)
Barbara Mongin	...	Institute staff member
Paula Gibson	...	Melody
James Dukas	...	Narration
Jim Saxon	...	Commune member
Michael Earl	...	Commune member
Jay Lowman	...	Commune member
Steven Nash	...	Commune member
Barbara Bergen	...	Commune member
Joyce Adams	...	Commune member
Bonnie Deroski	...	Commune member
Kathryn Cordes	...	Commune member
Leslie Frances Williams	...	Commune member
Nick Pippin	...	Commune member
Ed Karvoski	...	Commune member
Mary Lou Kleinbach	...	Commune member
Richard Bassett	...	Commune member
Phil Witt	...	Commune member
Isam Culver	...	Commune member
Rick Murray	...	Commune member
Stephanie Segal	...	Commune member
Max Goff	...	Commune member
Mary Donnet	...	Commune member
Don Stitt	...	Commune member
Nikki Collins	...	Commune member
Jenny Gault	...	Commune member
Regina Rodwell	...	Commune member
Schorling Schneider	...	Commune member
Tina Austin	...	Commune member
Billie Perkins	...	Commune member
Jeffrey Bacon	...	Commune member
Elizabeth Wingate	...	Commune member
Joan Adams	...	Commune member
Lisa Maurer	...	Commune member
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Louise Lasser	...	Doris the Computer (voice) (uncredited)

Directed by
Marshall Brickman

Writing credits
Marshall Brickman		(story) &
Thomas Baum		(story)
Marshall Brickman		(screenplay)

Produced by
Martin Bregman	....	producer
Louis A. Stroller	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Stanley Silverman

Cinematography by
Adam Holender

Film Editing by
Nina Feinberg

Production Design by
Stuart Wurtzel

Set Decoration by
John Godfrey

Costume Design by
Santo Loquasto

Makeup Department
Robert Jiras	....	makeup artist (as Bob Jiras)
Eoin Sprott	....	special makeup effects artist

Production Management
David Ray	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Robert Barth	....	second assistant director (as Bob Barth)
Michael Rauch	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Lawrence Miller	....	assistant art director
Dave Weinman	....	set dresser (as David Weinman)

Sound Department
Harriet Fidlow	....	sound editor
Tom Fleischman	....	sound re-recording mixer
Al Mian	....	additional sound
Dan Rosenberg	....	sound recordist
Dan Sable	....	supervising sound editor
Steve Scanlon	....	sound mixer
Dick Vorisek	....	sound re-recording mixer

Special Effects by
Edward Drohan	....	special effects (as Ed Drohan)

Visual Effects by
Werner Koopmann	....	visual effects supervisor

Stunts
Jery Hewitt	....	stunts
Victor Magnotta	....	stunts
Louise Wolf	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Ricki-Ellen Brooke	....	second assistant camera
Sandy Brooke	....	assistant camera
Richard C. Kratina	....	additional photographer (as Dick Kratina)
Fred Schuler	....	additional photographer
Fred Schuler	....	camera operator

Animation Department
Carl Paolino	....	animator

Editorial Department
David Ray	....	associate editor

Music Department
Herbert J. Harris	....	music coordinator

Other crew
Monty Diamond	....	location manager

Production Companies

• Bergman
• Orion Pictures Corporation
• Stroller

Distributors

• Orion Home Video (video)
• Orion Pictures Corporation
• Warner Bros. Pictures (through)
• Warner Home Video (2012) (USA) (DVD) (DVD-R)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Columbia University - Broadway & 116th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Bergman

Trivia:

Meryl Streep turned down the part of Dr. Cynthia Mallory.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the space shuttle lifts off, it promptly turns into a Saturn V.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Altered States (1980)

Comedy - A community-college professor is duped by government scientists into participating in an experiment in which they convince him and the world that he is an alien.

"Simon" is dated by a number of the foci of different scenes (sensory-deprivation tanks and princess phones, for example). Still, it is one of my favorite comedies despite it's flaws. I can't qualify its appeal to me as entirely rational or securely grounded in aesthetic standards. I saw it on one occasion with a close friend of mine and my house mates at that time. He and I laughed our heads off while the house mates were puzzled by both the film and our reaction. They didn't like it. It's probably a safe bet that those who like the film "Annie Hall" will like this. The introduction to the secret government scientific foundation is a gas as is the "evolution" sequence. The composition of the closing shot is almost painfully beautiful but its impact is much diminished in versions formatted for television.