Middle-aged college professor Adam Evans (superbly played by Anthony Hopkins) has an extramarital fling with lovely, innocent coed Lindsey Rutledge (a winning performance by the delectable Bo Derek). Meanwhile, Adam's spunky wife Karyn (a marvelously sassy and spirited Shirley MacLaine) gets involved with kind, hunky young carpenter Peter Lachapelle (affable Michael Brandon). Complications ensue when Adam and Karyn decide to spend a vacation at a posh country home with their two respective lovers in tow. Director Richard Lang, working from a witty and perceptive script by Erich Segal, Ronni Kern and Fred Segal, maintains a warm, gentle tone throughout and coaxes fine acting from a bright and personable cast. Hopkins and MacLaine are terrific in the leads, with fine support from Derek, Brandon, Mary Beth Hurt as the Adams' fiery daughter Kasey, Edward Winter as Lindsey's hearty, tolerant father Steven, Paul Regina as Kasey's wacky fiancé Paul Di Lisa, and K Callan as Karyn's supportive friend Alice Bingham. Moreover, the characters are refreshingly complex and genuinely engaging, with MacLaine as Karyn in particular qualifying as the definite stand-out. Derek's slow motion tryst with Hopkins in a hot tub rates as a definite memorably steamy moment. Philip Lathrop's glossy cinematography, Henry Mancini's bouncy, melodic score, and the catchy, folksy theme song "Where Do You Catch the Bus for Tomorrow?" are all up to par as well. An amusingly quirky and occasionally quite touching delight.
Review of A Change of Seasons
A Change of Seasons
(1980)
A charming and enjoyable romantic comedy drama romp
17 February 2008
Warning: Spoilers