A Little Night Music
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A Little Night Music
Plot
Beginning its several incarnations as an Ingmar Bergman film named Smiles of a Summer Night, the story was adapted by composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim into a successful Broadway musical directed by Harold Prince. This film, also directed by Prince, is adapted from the stage musical. In the movie, in the early 1900s, a group of friends bound together by complicated romantic entanglements, have come together for an elegant dinner at a country estate. The men present are the current, previous, or prospective lovers of the beautiful actress, Desiree (Elizabeth Taylor), and the other women are all united by their jealousy of her. Sadly, Desiree herself wants to simplify things and settle down -- she envies the wives. The adapted score later won an Oscar. The musical's well-known songs include Every Day a Little Death, A Weekend in the Country, and You Must Meet My Wife. The most famous song from the musical, Send in the Clowns, is sung here by Elizabeth Taylor. ~ Clarke Fountain, RoviCast
- Elizabeth Taylor - Desiree
- Diana Rigg - Charlotte
- Len Cariou - Frederick
- Hermione Gingold - Armfeldt
- Lesley-Anne Down - Anne
Credit
Herta Pischinger - Art Director, Patricia Birch - Choreography, Florence Klotz - Costume Designer, Harold Prince - Director, John Jympson - Editor, Heinz Lazek - Executive Producer, Stephen Sondheim - Composer (Music Score), Jonathan Tunick - Composer (Music Score), Arthur Ibbetson - Cinematographer, Elliott Kastner - Producer, Hugh Wheeler - Screenwriter| A Little Life-Opera (1997 Film), A Little Kiss (2006 Film) | |
| A Little Patriot (1917 Film), A Little Piece of Heaven (1991 Film) |
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A Little Night Music (film)
| A Little Night Music | |
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 Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Harold Prince |
| Produced by | Elliott Kastner |
| Screenplay by | Hugh Wheeler |
| Story by | Ingmar Bergman |
| Based on | A Little Night Music by Hugh Wheeler |
| Starring | Elizabeth Taylor Diana Rigg Len Cariou Lesley-Anne Down |
| Music by | Stephen Sondheim |
| Cinematography | Arthur Ibbetson |
| Editing by | John Jympson |
| Studio | Sascha-Verleih S&T-Film Berlin |
| Distributed by | New World Pictures |
| Release date(s) |
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| Running time | 124 minutes |
| Country | United States ‹See Tfd› West Germany Austria |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.5 million |
A Little Night Music is the 1977 film adaptation of the musical A Little Night Music, starring Elizabeth Taylor, Diana Rigg, and Lesley-Anne Down, with Len Cariou, Hermione Gingold, and Laurence Guittard reprising their Broadway roles.
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Plot
Fredrik Egerman (Len Cariou) is very happy in his marriage to an 18-year-old virgin, Anne (Lesley-Anne Down). However, Anne has nervously protected her virginity for the whole eleven months of marriage, and being a bit restless, Fredrik goes to see an old flame, the famous actress, Desirée Armfeldt (Elizabeth Taylor). Desirée, who is getting tired of her life, is thinking of settling down, and sets her sights on Fredrik, despite his marriage, and her own married lover Count Carl-Magnus Mittelheim (Laurence Guittard). She gets her mother to invite the Egermans to her country estate for the weekend. But when Carl-Magnus and his wife, Charlotte (Diana Rigg), appear, too, things begin to get farcical, and the night must smile for the third time before all the lovers are united.
Cast
- Elizabeth Taylor as Desiree Armfeldt
- Diana Rigg as Charlotte Mittelheim
- Len Cariou as Frederick Egerman
- Lesley-Anne Down as Anne Egerman
- Hermione Gingold as Madame Armfeldt
- Laurence Guittard as Count Carl-Magnus Mittelheim
- Christopher Guard as Erich Egerman
- Lesley Dunlop as Petra
- Chloe Franks as Fredericka Armfeldt
- Jonathan Tunick as Conductor
Production
Music
Stephen Sondheim wrote the music and lyrics for the film. He wrote the lyrics for the "Night Waltz" theme ("Love Takes Time") and wrote an entirely new version of "The Glamorous Life", which has been incorporated into several subsequent productions of the stage musical.
Location
The setting for the film was moved from Sweden to Austria, and was filmed on location.
Release and reception
The film received mostly negative reviews, with much being made of Taylor's wildly fluctuating weight from scene to scene. Some critics talked more positively of the film, with Variety calling it "an elegant looking, period romantic charade". The film has received critical praise for Diana Rigg's performance. The film currently holds an 11% 'Fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[1]
Awards and honors
- Jonathan Tunick - Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song Score, and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score (Won)
- Florence Klotz - Academy Award for Best Costume Design (Nominated)
Home media
A soundtrack was released on LP, and the film was, for a time, available on VHS and Laserdisc. A DVD release was issued in June 2007. The new version of "The Glamorous Life" has been included on the new remastered version of the Original Broadway Cast Recording.
References
External links
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Mentioned in
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik
(198z Music Film)
The Best of Broadway, Vol. 4
(2000 Album by Various Artists)
Christopher Guard
(Actor, Adventure/Science Fiction)
Little Night Music [Original Broadway Cast]
(1998 Album by Original Broadway Cast)
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