The Four Seasons (1981 film)

The Four Seasons is a 1981 American romantic comedy film written and directed by and starring Alan Alda, which co-stars Carol Burnett, Len Cariou, Sandy Dennis, Rita Moreno, Jack Weston, and Bess Armstrong. It draws its title from the four concerti composed by Antonio Vivaldi. Those compositions, along with others by Vivaldi, comprise the musical score.

The film spawned a short-lived CBS series in 1984 produced by Alda.

Plot
Three middle-class married couples—Jack (Alan Alda) and Kate Burroughs (Carol Burnett); Nick (Len Cariou) and Anne Callan (Sandy Dennis); Danny (Jack Weston) and Claudia Zimmer (Rita Moreno)—live in New York City and are the best of friends. Jack is a moralistic lawyer, Kate a Fortune Magazine editor, Nick an insurance salesman and estate planner, Anne a housewife and photographer who enjoys taking pictures of vegetables, Danny a cheap dentist who displays symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder and hypochondriasis, and Claudia an insensitive Italian painter. Quarterly (in each of the four seasons), the three couples go on vacations planned by Kate.

Spring

In the month of May, the six friends rent a cottage in the forest. The husbands cook Chinese food and go bike racing, while the wives look at and discuss Anne's latest photos. While out gathering firewood one day, Nick reveals to Jack how unhappy he is being married to Anne and plans to divorce her, wanting a woman who can excite him. When Jack asks Nick if there is another woman involved, he denies it. That rainy night, Kate is devastated when Jack tells her of Nick's intentions, and both are worried about Anne.

Summer

Nick has separated from Anne and is now dating Ginny Newley (Bess Armstrong), a younger, beautiful, yet naive woman. The Burroughses and the Zimmers are not impressed with Nick giving Ginny a new present daily and her believing in all his stories. All three couples, except Anne, spend the summer in a sailboat around St. Thomas. During their vacation, the sailboat gets stuck in a sandbar, and the Burroughses and the Zimmers are unable to sleep well due to Nick and Ginny having loud sexual intercourse every night. When the group gets the sailboat unstuck and resume its journey, the Burroughses privately discuss the effects Nick and Ginny's relationship is having on the others. After witnessing Nick and Ginny swimming in the sea naked, the Zimmers do the same.

Autumn

In autumn, the group rides Danny's new Mercedes-Benz to Connecticut to spend Parents' Weekend with two of the couples' daughters: Beth Burroughs (Elizabeth Alda) and Lisa Callan (Beatrice Alda). While checking in to the university inn, the couples awkwardly encounter Anne, who is also there to spend time with Lisa. Kate and Claudia apologize to Anne for not inviting her to their previous vacations, claiming that Nick would always bring Ginny along. Anne, who has become depressed over her marriage, tells the other women that she is moving on by trying new (but unusual) things such as taking a vacation in Czechoslovakia and adopting a pet snake. Beth reveals to her mother that despite being childhood friends, she and Lisa are no longer close. Danny, meanwhile, has become increasingly upset with Claudia's insensitivity to others, which she defends on her heritage ("I'm Italian!") and refuses to apologize. Nick is unable to cheer up Lisa, who has become withdrawn and unhappy over her parents' separation. Danny reveals to Jack that Nick is a womanizer, having secretly cheated on Anne with multiple other women. At lunch, Beth and Lisa are amused at the couples' argument over who gets to pay the bill. During a game of soccer, Jack bruises his knee from tackling Nick, whom he is becoming estranged with. That night, the Burroughses fight about Nick and Ginny, and Kate confesses that she actually hates planning the group's quarterly vacations.

Winter

The Callans have divorced, with Nick marrying Ginny and Anne becoming a magazine photographer. In winter, the three couples take a vacation at a ski resort, where they rent a lodge. A skiing match between Nick and Jack results in the former breaking an ankle and the latter tearing his ligament. To cheer everyone up, Ginny invites the others to a bar to drink and listen to music. When Danny's friends laugh at his irrational fears over his health, Ginny surprisingly defends him. When they return to the lodge, Kate insults Ginny, telling her that she will never understand the group, who have been together longer than she has. Upset, Ginnny calls out the others for not accepting her and viewing her as nothing but the "other woman", before leaving the lodge. Despite his lack of concern, Nick reveals that Ginny is pregnant. The group have another fight, culminating in Jack vandalizing pieces of furniture before Kate calms him down. When Ginny still has not returned the following morning, Danny goes to look for her himself. Danny finds Ginny jogging, but accidentally falls through thin ice while calling out to her. Ginny quickly runs back to the lodge to tell the others of Danny being in danger. They all get into Danny's Mercedes-Benz and successfully rescue him, although the car falls through the ice and sinks into the freezing water. The friends, however, reconcile and walk back to the lodge, with Kate jokingly saying they should all return to the resort next winter.

Characters

 * Jack Burroughs (Alan Alda). Jack is a lawyer and happily married to Kate. He enjoys asking deep and probing questions and then volunteering an answer. Jack is moralistic, expressing disapproval of Nick for leaving his wife. He competes with the more athletic Nick in dirtbike racing, soccer, and skiing. His friends and wife consider him too judgmental at times. Instead of keeping true feelings to themselves, Jack thinks it's better for everyone to clear the air, when some feelings could be better off hidden.
 * Kate Burroughs (Carol Burnett). Kate works as an editor for Fortune Magazine. She suspects that her husband has fantasies of being worshipped by an attractive, younger woman the way Nick has. Since she comes across as well-organized and even perfect, Kate can feel invisible and neglected.
 * Beth Burroughs (Elizabeth Alda). Beth is Jack and Kate's daughter. She attends college at the University of Vermont and is an excellent student. Noting her upbeat attitude, Danny observes that she "takes a real bite out of life." Beth's relationship with Lisa, a classmate, has deteriorated at college.
 * Nick Callan (Len Cariou). Nick is an insurance salesman and estate planner. He is bored with his wife Anne and divorces her. He admits to Jack that he wants a woman who can excite him. Ginny, a younger woman, begins joining him on seasonal vacations with the Burroughses and Zimmers. Although his four friends disapprove, Nick is happy. Ginny marries him and becomes pregnant with his child.
 * Anne Callan (Sandy Dennis). Anne is a housewife, mother, and aspiring photographer. She takes pleasure in taking photos of vegetables, much to Nick's chagrin. After being left for a younger woman, Anne falls into depression. She believes that both Kate and Claudia deserted her following her divorce. To break out of her rut, Anne attempts to try new (but unusual) things such as buying a snake and planning a vacation to Czechoslovakia. Eventually she is able to support herself as a magazine photographer (taking "pictures of people, not kumquats," as Nick observes).
 * Lisa Callan (Beatrice Alda). Lisa Nick and Anne's daughter. Her parents' divorce greatly affected her and caused her to become sullen, withdrawn, and isolated at school. Lisa confesses her unhappiness to her father, who is unable to cheer her up.
 * Ginny Newley (Bess Armstrong). Ginny begins a relationship with Nick after meeting him on a flight. She is attractive, bubbly, and a bit naive. She is in awe of the older Nick, whom she regards as quite accomplished. Although the Burroughses and Zimmers resent her as "the other woman," they eventually accept her as a friend. Ginny defends Danny when the group mocks him for his irrational fears. Ginny marries Nick and she becomes pregnant with his child.
 * Danny Zimmer (Jack Weston). Danny is a dentist and married to Claudia. He shares with his male friends a passion for cooking and exotic dishes. He is oldest of the group and fears that he is approaching death. This has prompted diet changes and even irrational fears, like pressing strange elevator buttons. Danny can be quite cheap when it comes to money and often displays symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
 * Claudia Zimmer (Rita Moreno). Claudia is an accomplished painter. She can be quite outspoken, even to the point of being insensitive to others. Whenever her candor is criticized, Claudia refuses to apologize and cites her heritage ("I'm Italian!"). She expresses the desire to feel in love the way Nick does with Ginny. After witnessing Nick and Ginny swim naked, Claudia and Danny try it themselves.

Release
The film had its premiere at the Denver International Film Festival on April 30, 1981 before opening May 22.

Reception
The Four Seasons was a critical and box office success. Produced on a budget of $6.5 million, the film grossed $50,427,646, making it the ninth highest-grossing film of 1981. It holds a 76% "Fresh" rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes from 17 reviews.

The film also renewed interest in the Vivaldi concerti after which it was named and which its musical score included.