A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982)

Director:

Woody Allen

Writer:

Woody Allen (written by)

Release Date:

16 July 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Six characters in search of love [Video]

Plot:

A wacky inventor and his wife invite two other couples for a weekend party at a romantic summer house in the 1900s countryside.

Plot Keywords:

Summer | Inventor | Doctor | Promiscuity | Rendezvous

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Woody Allen	...	Andrew
Mia Farrow	...	Ariel
José Ferrer	...	Leopold (as Jose Ferrer)
Julie Hagerty	...	Dulcy
Tony Roberts	...	Maxwell
Mary Steenburgen	...	Adrian
Adam Redfield	...	Student Foxx
Moishe Rosenfeld	...	Mr. Hayes
Timothy Jenkins	...	Mr. Thomson
Michael Higgins	...	Reynolds
Sol Frieder	...	Carstairs
Boris Zoubok	...	Purvis
Thomas Barbour	...	Blint
Kate McGregor-Stewart	...	Mrs. Baker
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Copeland	...	(uncredited)
Tony Farentino	...	(uncredited)
Caitlin O'Heaney	...	Dolores Farrar (uncredited)

Directed by
Woody Allen

Writing credits
Woody Allen		(written by)

Produced by
Robert Greenhut	....	producer
Charles H. Joffe	....	executive producer
Michael Peyser	....	associate producer
Jack Rollins	....	executive producer

Cinematography by
Gordon Willis

Film Editing by
Susan E. Morse

Casting by
Juliet Taylor

Production Design by
Mel Bourne

Art Direction by
Speed Hopkins

Set Decoration by
Carol Joffe

Costume Design by
Santo Loquasto

Makeup Department
Fern Buchner	....	makeup designer
Romaine Greene	....	hair designer
Jay Cannistraci	....	additional makeup artist (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Frederic B. Blankfein	....	first assistant director (as Fredric B. Blankfein)
Tony Gittelson	....	second assistant director (as Anthony Gittelson)
Thomas A. Reilly	....	second assistant director (as Thomas Reilly)
Duncan Scott	....	dga trainee

Art Department
Joseph Badalucco Jr.	....	chief set dresser
Robert Bauer	....	construction grip (as Bob Bauer)
Gregory Bolton	....	assistant art director
Herb Darrell	....	shop craftsman
Glen Engels	....	construction grip
James Halligan	....	construction grip
Susan Kaufman	....	art department coordinator
James Mazzola	....	property master
Toni Ross	....	art department coordinator
Janet Shaw	....	set dresser
Cosmo Sorice	....	stand-by scenic artist
James Sorice	....	master scenic artist
Kenneth Vogt	....	property man
Anthony Zappia	....	shop craftsman (as Tony Zappia)

Sound Department
Marjorie Deutsch	....	sound editor
Frank Graziadei	....	sound recordist
Jack Higgins	....	re-recording mixer
Melissa A. Higgins	....	assistant sound editor
Beriau Picard	....	assistant sound editor
James Sabat	....	production sound mixer
Louis Sabat	....	boom man
Dan Sable	....	supervising sound editor
Lynn Sable	....	apprentice sound editor

Stunts
David Copeland	....	stunt double: Mr. Allen (as J. David Copeland)
Tony Farentino	....	stunt double: Mr. Roberts

Camera and Electrical Department
Brian Hamill	....	still photographer
Douglas C. Hart	....	assistant cameraman
Ronald M. Lautore	....	camera operator
Dave McClean	....	best boy
Robert Paone	....	second assistant cameraman (as Bob Paone)
Jeri Sopanen	....	cameraman: second unit
Louis S. Toth Jr.	....	dolly grip
Dusty Wallace	....	gaffer
Robert Ward	....	key grip (as Bob Ward)
David J. Schweitzer	....	special photography effects (uncredited)

Animation Department
Russ Mooney	....	animator (uncredited)

Casting Department
Paula Herold	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Bill Christians	....	wardrobe supervisor: men
Lancey Saunders Clough	....	wardrobe supervisor: women

Editorial Department
Pamela Scott Arnold	....	assistant film editor (as Pamela S. Arnold)
Richard Nord	....	first assistant film editor
Christine P. Williams	....	apprentice film editor

Transportation Department
Rocco Derasmo	....	transportation captain
Patrick Hogan	....	driver (uncredited)
Bobby Marsh	....	driver (uncredited)

Other crew
Nicholas Bernstein	....	production assistant
Timothy M. Bourne	....	location scout (as Timothy Marshall Bourne)
Kay Chapin	....	script supervisor
James A. Davis	....	production assistant (as James Davis)
David Epstein	....	assistant location auditor
James Greenhut	....	production assistant
Anne Gyory	....	location scout
Joseph Hartwick	....	location auditor
Nicole Holofcener	....	production assistant
Jeffrey Kurland	....	assistant: Mr. Loquasto
Diana Laptook	....	location scout
Michael Lindgren	....	location scout
Gloria Norris	....	assistant: Mr. Allen
Joseph Pierson	....	production assistant
Helen Robin	....	production coordinator
Gail Sicilia	....	unit publicist
Andrea Snyder	....	production assistant
Todd M. Thaler	....	assistant production coordinator (as Todd Thaler)
Carl Turnquest Jr.	....	location projectionist (as Carl Turnquest)
Pat Walke	....	chapman crane operator
Stephanie Farrow	....	stand-in: Ms. Farrow (uncredited)
Dennis Kear	....	stand-in: Woody Allen (uncredited)

Thanks
Elizabeth Forsling Harris	....	the producers gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of: executive director of The New York State Office for Motion Picture and Television Development
Nancy Littlefield	....	the producers gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of: executive director of the Mayor's Office for Motion Pictures and Television

Production Companies

• Orion Pictures Corporation

Distributors

• Orion Pictures Corporation (1982) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. Pictures (1982) (USA) (theatrical) (through)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1982) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1986) (USA) (VHS)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1986) (USA) (TV)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2002) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Warner-Columbia (1982) (Austria) (theatrical)

Special Effects

• Kurtz and Friends (animation effects) (as Kurtz & Friends)

Other Companies

• Bernstein and Freedman P.C.  production accountant
• Computer Opticals  titles and opticals
• Dawn Animal Agency  animals provided by
• Eoin Sprott Studio  flying machines and inventions
• Hastings Sound Editorial  sound effects
• Mayor's Office for Motion Pictures & Television  the producers gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of
• New York City Mayor's Office of Film, Theater & Broadcasting, The  grateful acknowledgement for the cooperation of
• New York State Office for Motion Picture and Television Development  
• R/Greenberg Associates  optical effects

Also Known As:

"Comedia sexual de una noche de verano" - Mexico (imdb display title), Uruguay (imdb display title)
"Eine Sommernachts-Sexkomödie" - Austria, West Germany
"Comédie érotique d'une nuit d'été" - France
"Comedia sexual en una noche de verano" - Argentina
"En midsommarnatts sexkomedi" - Sweden
"En midsommernats sexkomedie" - Denmark
"En midtsommernatts sexkomedie" - Norway (imdb display title)
"Kesäyön seksikomedia" - Finland
"La comedia sexual de una noche de verano" - Spain
"Seks nocy letniej" - Poland
"Sexokomodia therinis nyhtas" - Greece (transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title)
"Sonhos Eróticos de uma Noite de Verão" - Brazil
"Szentivánéji szexkomédia" - Hungary
"Uma Comédia Sexual numa Noite de Verão" - Portugal
"Una commedia sexy in una notte di mezza estate" - Italy

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | Iceland:12 | Australia:M | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

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

Company:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

José Ferrer found himself the object of a practical joke while making this film. Dustin Hoffman visited the set while made up as Dorothy Michaels in the film Tootsie (1982), and proceeded to make sexual advances on Ferrer, who politely refused--but was completely unaware that Hoffman was not in fact a woman.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Jose Ferrer sings the song, "The Lord's Prayer", which was not written by Albert Hay Malotte until 1935, even though the film was set much earlier.

Quotes:

Leopold:I had the privilege of escorting Ariel through the Sistine Chapel for the first time in her life and explaining to her exactly why Michelangelo's ceiling was indeed great.
Ariel:When Raphael first laid eyes on it, he fainted.
Andrew:Had he eaten?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Sneak Previews: The Secret of NIMH/The Devil's Playground/Gregory's Girl/TRON" (1982)

Soundtrack:

Symphony No. 3 (Scottish) in A Minor

Manhattan in the woods

When I saw this film I thought it was from Allen's early period and I thought of it as a prototype Manhattan but when I checked the chronology I discovered that it belongs to his middle period and postdates both Annie Hall and Manhattan. It really is like Manhattan set in the woods of New England. As far as I can see, it is his first film with Mia Farrow and his camera is besotted with her as are all the male characters in the film. Mary Steeburgen also looks good although I can never work out whether she really can act or whether she is just having trouble with her contact lenses. The scenes of New England are beautifully shot and are ravishing to look at. I thought the element of mysticism sat uneasily with the rest of the film.

This film is said to be Allen's take on the Bergman film Three Smiles of a Summer Night although I cannot comment on this because I last saw the Bergman film 35 years ago at a student film society. Maybe the mystical element in Allen's film is lifted from Bergman. There are also obvious parallels with A Midsummer Night's Dream with the mortals swapping partners and with spirits flitting about in the woods. In keeping with the subject matter, Allen uses Mendelssohn for the incidental music rather that his usual classic jazz numbers.