Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)

A light-hearted picture of middle-aged love and friendship.

Director:

Paul Mazursky

Writers:

Paul Mazursky, Larry Tucker

Stars:

Natalie Wood, Robert Culp, Elliott Gould

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Natalie Wood	...	Carol Sanders
Robert Culp	...	Bob Sanders
Elliott Gould	...	Ted Henderson
Dyan Cannon	...	Alice Henderson
Horst Ebersberg	...	Horst
Lee Bergere	...	Emilio
Donald F. Muhich	...	Psychiatrist
Noble Lee Holderread Jr.	...	Sean Sanders
K.T. Stevens	...	Phyllis
Celeste Yarnall	...	Susan
Lynn Borden	...	Cutter
Linda Burton	...	Stewardess
Greg Mullavey	...	Tim - Group Leader
Andre Philippe	...	Oscar
Diane Berghoff	...	Myrna

Storyline

Documentary-filmmaker Bob Sanders and his wife Carol attend a group-therapy session that serves as the backdrop for the film's opening scenes. Returning to their Los Angeles home, the newly "enlightened" couple chastise their closest friends, Ted and Alice, for not coming to grips with their true feelings. Bob insists that everyone "feel" rather than intellectualize their emotions, and Carol pronounces "that's beautiful" after anyone says anything even remotely personal. Ted and Alice humor their friends, but a good-natured sexual tension is obviously at work among the foursome.

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Plot Keywords:

breasts | sex | menage a quatre | female nudity | adultery | 

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Taglines:

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice request the company of your pleasure.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 January 1970 (France)

Also Known As:

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

Filming Locations:

Riviera Hotel & Casino - 2901 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Frankovich Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Features Elliott Gould's only Oscar nominated performance.

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Goofs

When the 4 of them are together after the party, Bob puts on a record, but later the music is still audibly playing but in the background you can see the record player and it does not have a record playing.

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Quotes

Bob Sanders: Well look at you, man. You've got the guilt anyway. Don't waste it.

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Connections

Featured in Sex at 24 Frames Per Second (2003)

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Soundtracks

Burbank Brown
by Ray Greathouse and Morris Bachemin
Instrumental by Sweet Progress

User Reviews

Okay, WHO said that it had a cop-out ending?

With the sexual revolution of the '60s, there of course would have to be a movie about sex. "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice" was it. Having visited a therapy group, Bob and Carol Sanders (Robert Culp and Natalie Wood) have become more open about their sexuality, and are identifying more with the counterculture in general. Their repressed friends, Ted and Alice Henderson (Elliott Gould and Dyan Cannon) can't seem to get into it. But while in a hotel room in Las Vegas, after they've all revealed some secrets, they decide to have an orgy. You've probably seen the picture of the four of them in bed together.

When this movie came out, many critics thought that it had a cop-out ending. In an interview, director Paul Mazursky explained that he felt that they only could go as far as they eventually went. Anyway, you can't judge an entire movie by one individual scene; it's what the movie's saying overall that matters. As for the characters, Bob seems sort of wooden, Carol is hot (as Natalie Wood always was), Ted is a dork, and Alice is a little eccentric. Overall, it's a pretty good movie.