Lovers and Other Strangers (1970)

• Year: 1970
• Released: 12 Aug 1970
• Country: United States
• Adwords: Won 1 Oscar. 1 win & 8 nominations total
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066016/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lovers_and_other_strangers
• Metacritics:
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English
• MPA Rating: GP
• Genre: Comedy
• Runtime: 104 min
• Writer: Joseph Bologna, Renée Taylor, David Zelag Goodman
• Director: Cy Howard
• Cast: Gig Young, Bea Arthur, Bonnie Bedelia
• Keywords: adultery, wedding reception, dysfunctional family, wedding, catholic, wedding rehearsal,

	6.6/10
	100% – Critics
	75% – Audience

Lovers and Other Strangers Photos

Lovers and Other Strangers Torrents Download

Lovers and Other Strangers Subtitles Download

Lovers and Other Strangers Movie Reviews

Funny if dated

Mike (Michael Brandon) and Susan (Bonnie Bedelia) are getting married. The movie deals with them and their various families preparing the wedding. Bedelia’s parents are played by Gig Young and Cloris Leachman–and Young is sleeping with a cousin played by Anne Jackson. Mike’s parents are played by Beatrice Arthur and Richard Castellano who hate each other. Also Mike’s brother Richie is divorcing his wife played by Diane Keaton (in her film debut). There’s also Jerry and Brenda who just date for the wedding–and fall in love and Anne Meara and Harry Guardino as a couple constantly bickering over who’s the boss. Meara’s husband Jerry Stiller also appears unbilled and her daughter Amy (who is billed).

As you can see there’s a LOT going on in this film–you’re never bored. It is very dated–the talks about sex, marriage, relationships and male and female roles are VERY 1960s…but they are quite interesting. The script is sharp and the characters believable and there are funny lines flying nonstop throughout the movie. It’s also amusing to see how Mike and Susan are living together before they get married–but can’t tell any of their parents as it would kill them! Some of the sexual stereotypes get to be a bit much (Guardino especially is just appalling) but that’s a sign of the times. A song in this movie (“For All We Know”) won the Academy Award for Best Song at the Oscars but it’s sung by a man here not the Carpenters (who had a BIG hit with it).

This was originally rated R for the frank (for the time) sex talk, a flash of nudity and some mild swearing. It’s PG now but I wouldn’t let kids watch it–it’s not too dirty they just wouldn’t understand it.

Bssically a fun movie with an outstanding cast. Worth seeing.

Surprisingly intelligent and honest comedy of sex and relationships.

What could have been several episodes of “Love American Style” rolled into one, this lovely romantic comedy turns out to be a delightful surprise. Mike (Michael Brandon) and Susan (Bonnie Bedelia) are roommates and lovers, engaged to be married. It is right before the wedding, and Mike has second thoughts. Their families are excited about the event but dealing with issues of their own. The mamas are soon-to-be TV stars Beatrice Arthur and Cloris Leachman, whose characters of Maude and Phyllis on their perspective shows would go down in TV comedy history. Susan’s sister Wilma (Anne Meara) is having sexual control issues with her husband Johnny (Harry Guardino) who insists on being in control in the marriage. It’s obvious from the get-go that this would never sit well with the brassy Wilma.

The bride’s parents Hal (Gig Young) and Bernice (Cloris Leachman) have a marriage that is best described as boring, because Bernice simply is content being the perfect wife, mother and socialite. He has begun an affair with Bernice’s sister Kathy (Anne Jackson), but seems to have no intention of leaving Bernice. Mike’s family is equally as wacky. We learn from Bea Arthur’s matriarch (also named Bea) that it doesn’t pay to be happy in a marriage. That only brings on misery. In fact, she and her husband Frank (Richard Castellano) are more content with their arguing than on settling on just “happy”. Their older son Richie (Joseph Hindy) has separated from his wife Joan (newcomer Diane Keaton) which displeases his parents very much, as they are extremely “devoted” Catholics.

Add on a playboy best man and a virginal bridesmaid, and you have as much soap opera that a 100 minute movie can have, yet it’s all very funny. Talk about “As the Stomach Turns!” The cast is simply outstanding, yet it is the humour and tenderness of each of the story lines that really makes the film work. The philosophy of the older couples isn’t preachy, and gives a statement that the passage of time doesn’t change marriages-people and society do. Fans of TV veterans Leachman and Arthur will tune in to see them together, but they don’t exchange any dialogue, only their husbands in a reception dance scene.

Leachman has little to do as the perfect wife and mother unaware of what her husband and sister are doing, but Arthur steals every scene she is in, playing an Italian matriarch that seems like a pre-cursor of her own “Golden Girls” Sicilian mama, Sophia Petrillo. Meara is totally on fire in her role, although it seems a bit ridiculous that she would be Leachman’s daughter, as she is only 3 years younger than her! The Oscar winning “For All We Know” plays beautifully over the wedding, and later became a hit for Karen Carpenter. It is certainly one of the most deserving songs to ever take home the gold statue. Be sure to stay through the closing credits.

Totally charming, lovable, very funny and moving old favourite!

Having just purchased the DVD of this movie, and not having seen it for more than ten years, I feared perhaps it would too antiquated and dated to still be worthwhile owning. This was certainly not the case.

Lovers And Other Strangers is totally charming and lovable movie that despite the emphasis on the year it was made(there are many references to 1970) is still very relevant and moving. I admit to being close to tears at one scene, between a father and son, towards the end. I was also laughing out loud at many other scenes such as the hysterical Italian parents trying to scare their son into remaining in his unhappy marriage(a classic scene with hilarious dialogue you won’t ever forget) and the furtive passionate embraces with the bride’s father and his mistress in every available bathroom.

The themes that are relevant to today is the search for love in an increasingly uncertain age. The film opens with an outpouring from the groom to be, about all his fears of the future of the world and his doubts about marriage. Today all those fears are still there plus many many more. There is also power struggles between the genders, casual sex, extra-marital affairs and the dilemma of staying in an unhappy relationship. Some of these were very new themes explored in movies at the time it was made.

Having said that there are elements of the film that are charmingly dated which obviously include the music, the clothes and some of the social attitudes(it was at a time when divorce was still a disgraceful scandal for many families, particularly Catholic families). These dated elements though give it more of a nostalgic feel rather deter any enjoyment.

Michael Brandon and Bonnie Bedilia are lovable as the newly weds and Bea Arthur and Richard Castellano are the hilarious parents of the groom. The whole of the ensemble cast is great and watch for Dianne Keaton’s film debut as the estranged daughter-in-law.