Butterflies Are Free (1972)

A blind man moves into his own apartment against the wishes of his overprotective mother and befriends the freethinking young woman next door.

Director:

Milton Katselas

Writers:

Leonard Gershe (screenplay), Leonard Gershe (play)

Stars:

Goldie Hawn, Edward Albert, Eileen Heckart

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 7 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Goldie Hawn	...	Jill
Edward Albert	...	Don
Eileen Heckart	...	Mrs. Baker
Paul Michael Glaser	...	Ralph (as Michael Glaser)
Michael Warren	...	Roy (as Mike Warren)

Storyline

All Don Baker wants is a place of his own away from his over-protective mother. Don's been blind since birth, but that doesn't stop him from setting up in a San Francisco apartment and making the acquaintance of his off-the-wall, liberated, actress neighbor Jill. Don learns the kind of things from Jill that his mother would never have taught him! And Jill learns from Don what growing up and being free is really all about.

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Plot Keywords:

blind man | actress | underwear | peeping tom | overbearing mother | 

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Taglines:

Take some time to smell the flowers.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Music | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Las mariposas son libres

Filming Locations:

1355 Grant Avenue, San Francisco, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Frankovich Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was made and released about three years after its source stage play of the same name by Leonard Gershe had been first performed in 1969. Gershe also penned the screenplay for this cinema movie adaptation.

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Goofs

At 1:42:19, the position of Don's hand on the ladder changes.

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Quotes

Jill: I'm auditioning for a part in a new play with a little theatre group called The Cosmic Workshop. It's about this girl who gets all hung up when she marries a homosexual. Originally he was an alcoholic, but homosexuals are very in now in movies and books and plays, so they changed it.
[pause]
Jill: Are you homosexual?
Don: No, just blind.

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Connections

References Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

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Soundtracks

Butterflies Are Free
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (as Steve Schwartz)

User Reviews

Surprising

I randomly put this movie on today, and I was pleasantly surprised. So much that I took the time to register and write the only review of a movie I've ever written. The movie feels more like a play, with a majority of the movie occurring in one space. The bulk of the movie is dialog, the main character Donny is blind. The movie is about his struggle for independence from his enabling mother and his interaction with his newfound roommate, Jill. I found all the actors delivery to be exceptional, and the interactions dynamic and entertaining. Most of the movie is conversations between the characters with quick replies and wit worthy of note. There's not much going on in the film outside of a simple plot, but the movie touches on some very serious, emotional moments as well as humorous. I think Donny's character is played excellently, and the other roles very convincing as well. Overall I found the movie to be really well done, entertaining and not at all bland, although it is definitely more like a play than a movie, so it might take a little more creativity and thought to make it as appealing, but that's what I enjoy anyway. Very impressed, haven't enjoyed a movie that much in a while. And it's 34 years old.