A Little Night Music (1977) User Reviews

Deserves a DVD release

[Jvbway · 5/10 · 13 December 2005]

This is probably one of the most maligned film versions of a stage musical ever made. And a while some of it's criticisms are well deserved, this film certainly has it's benefits. Among the better parts of the film there is, above all, Diana Rigg's Charlotte. Rigg ranks as one of the most under-appreciated actresses of all time, and her performance is simply pitch-perfect. It is also fortunate to have Len Cariou, Laurence Guittard and Hermoine Gringold re-create their stage roles, and Lesley Ann Down is a lovely addition, well cast as Anne, even if she doesn't do her own singing.

On the downside, the setting of the film is unwisely moved to Vienna, where there is . no midnight sun, and much of the score is eliminated. And then there is the controversial casting of Elizabeth Taylor as Desiree. Taylor is a very gifted actress, but in this role Taylor is simply a black hole, overly dramatic and lacking the warmth and joy Glyinis Johns brought to the stage role. Still, since it is based on one of the finest musicals of all time, this film deserves a DVD release

One of the Worst Screen Adaptations of one of Broadway's Best Musicals...

[ijonesiii · 4/10 · 16 December 2005]

The turgid screen adaptation of Stephen Sondheim's 1973 masterpiece A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC is probably in the top five of worst adaptations of Broadway musical to the motion picture screen. The musical, based on the Ingmar Bergman film SMILES OF SUMMER NIGHT, follows the revolving lives of three couples who clearly at the beginning are mismatched and how they end up being with their soulmates by the end of the film. Elizabeth Taylor, looking fat and tired, sleepwalks her way through the film and enough has been said about her singing so I won't even go there. Director Hal Prince did have the sense to hire Len Cariou and Laurence Guittard to repeat their stage roles Freidrich and the Count, who both think they are in love with Desiree, but even these two charismatic actors come off as stilted. Lesley Ann-Downe is a lovely woman but she just looked way too old to be playing Freidrich's young wife, Anne, who in the original script, was 18. The only completely satisfying performance in the film is by Diana Rigg as the Countess, who brings so much more to the role than the screenplay allows and also surprisingly gives the film its loveliest musical moment with her rendition of "Every Day a Little Death." Speaking of music, I found it interesting that Prince felt the need to completely overhaul one of the most beautiful musical scores ever written for the stage. Hermione Gingold's role as Desiree's mother is reduced to a glorified cameo since they chose to cut her song, "Liasons". The Count also has a gorgeous solo in the show called "In Praise of Women" which was also cut. The song "The Glamorous Life" was rethought and became a solo for Desiree's daughter, Fredrika, charmingly played by Chloe Franks. They also cut "The Miller's Son" a powerhouse of a song sung by Petra, the maid. I could go on ad nauseum about what's wrong with this movie, but that would be pointless. I just cannot fathom how Hal Prince so horrifically screwed up the screen version of a musical HE directed on Broadway. In an eggshell, the only reason to see this film is if you live for Diana Rigg.

Better than I thought it would be, but still no classic.

[mark.waltz · 5/10 · 25 July 2011]

This film version of one of Stephen Sondheim's greatest shows is a hard one to review. Having seen several versions of the show on stage, I had hoped that the movie would share the magic and romance of what I saw on Broadway. But in retrospect, I had to come to the conclusion that this would be a difficult stage show to film as presented in the theatre. You would have to obviously cut out the Greek chorus that circles around the major characters throughout the show, but here, the story is presented as a show within a show format that seems sort of false. And when leading lady Elizabeth Taylor starts singing the lyrics "Love Takes Time" in a not-too-strong singing voice, I had to predict that the original audiences of this film must have giggled much like audiences did later when Pierce Brosnan sang in the film version of "Mamma Mia".

As European stage star Desiree Armfeldt, Elizabeth seems like perfect casting. Indeed, in 1977, it must have seemed like the best idea, and acting wise, she is more than adequate in the part. Singing the part, on the other hand, is a different matter, even if the originator of the role on stage, Glynis Johns, was not a strong singer either. Add to that some disappointing photography that makes Taylor look heavy, and this comes off as really not a flattering movie portrayal in her gallery of classic films. Once she puts on the red dress, however, she is stunning, making it appear that there was a gap in the filming.

Fortunately, Len Cariou and Hermoine Gingold repeat their roles from the stage production and are wonderful. Every moment Gingold is on screen is priceless, whether she is talking about her former lovers, the tragedy of loosing one's teeth, or the tale of the wooden ring. She can be candidly bitchy, totally wise, hysterically droll, or in the case of the wooden ring, downright heart-wrenching. Lesley Anne Downe appears a bit too old to be playing Anne Egerman, but Diana Rigg is the right touch as the Countess.

For Sondheim affictionados (I am a major fan of his work), it will be easy to pick on the negative aspects of this film. Certainly, a PBS version of the show (later done via the New York City Opera Company) is a better idea than a full-scale film, but what they do get out of what they've done is merely acceptable. The problem is in the filming; It has the look of one of Anna Neagle's color British films of the late 40's and 50's, and it is easy to see why it failed. When Taylor breaks into "Send in the Clowns", I had to sympathize with the actress, if not the character. Sadly, the movie omitted two of the best songs from the stage production, "The Miller's Son", sung by the Egerman's maid, and "Liasons", Madame Armfeldt's 11:00 number. In retrospect, I gave this film a higher rating than I did the first time I saw it 20 years ago. Maybe, like a fine wine, the film seems a little better with age.

Not without interest, but without feeling

[didi-5 · 22 October 1999]

I really wanted to like this film - the songs are fabulous, and, together with Follies and Company, it really is one of Sondheim's best musicals. But this is a wasted opportunity. The strongest overlapping trio (Now/Soon/Later) on stage sounds terrific, here it just doesn't work. Other songs - particularly Liaisons and The Miller's Son - are missing. It looks drab and empty. But it does have its good points - Send in the Clowns is quite touching (it doesn't have to be sung - look at what Judi Dench and Elaine Stritch have done with it if you're not convinced) and Elizabeth Taylor is the perfect choice for Desiree. It Would Have Been Wonderful works well and is by far the musical high point. As some kind of record of the show, it is adequate, mildly satisfying, and passes the time. But it certainly isn't great art and fails to engage any hint of interest in the characters.

Dame Diana Rigg is a goddess!!!

[dancesong4 · 2/10 · 22 November 2008]

There are only about four or five good reasons why anyone should want to watch this film. If you are not a fan of bad movies, the number is immediately reduced to one (MAYBE two). The most important reason for watching this movie is to see the performance of Dame Diana Rigg. She is absolutely flawless, and she is certainly a breath of fresh air in a film that is often quite stagnant and misguided. Some of the wit from the original stage version shows through, thank God, but director Harold Prince simply did not know how to transfer his work to film. (It didn't help, of course, that A Little Night Music was his first film.) If you're interested in seeing Harold Prince's film work, a better choice would be Something For Everyone.

Elizabeth Taylor clearly had no idea what she was doing for most of the film, and everyone else was decent enough, but nothing to shout about. This wasn't even a so-bad-it's-good movie. It was painfully mediocre. If you want to see an example of why Sondheim's musicals have mostly not made it to the screen or you want to see Ms. Taylor in one of her less-than- stellar moments, then by all means, watch this film. However, if neither of those reasons interest you and you find yourself stuck in a situation in which you must watch this film, focus on Diana Rigg as Charlotte Mittelheim. She is fabulous!!

Mis-Blamed Mis-terpiece

[fshepinc · 7/10 · 6 August 2005]

There are several misunderstandings about this woefully mis-guided film floating around.

First, Liz Taylor cannot be blamed for the sound of her singing -She was dubbed! I've heard her actual vocals -be very, very glad that another singer was used. Only Len Cariou, Diana Rigg, and Laurence Guittard's singing voices are their own.

The decision to move the locale from Sweden to Austria had nothing to do with art and everything to do with finances. The picture was financed by an Austrian company... And woefully underfunded, which limited neophyte director Prince's re-shoot options (re the ever-expanding, ever-contracting Liz).

Prince has said he simply couldn't figure out a way to use the vocal quintet for the film, so they and their songs were cut. Sondheim wrote new lyrics for Liaisons, and the song was filmed (as was In Priase of Women) but for some reason they were cut from the final version of the film. Perhaps length. Perhaps to keep the focus on the Cariou-Taylor plot line. The new version of The Glamorous Life was extremely well-done, and shows the potential of the piece in surer, better-financed hands.

Casting the film proved extremely difficult. Liz Taylor's name value was crucial to the production. Many different leading men were considered, and in the end Cariou was only brought in at the very last minute because no one else had been signed. Ditto with Laurence Guittard. It's ironic that their performances are the best in the film.

Most of the blame for this shambles falls on Hal Prince. He allowed the movie to be far too dark and Taylor to be far too desperate and clutching. Stephen Sondheim is said to have encouraged the dark tone. Perhaps another director would have lightened things up a bit and allowed the film to be more romantic and fun.

A DVD transfer is extremely unlikely -The original negatives are all but destroyed, not having been preserved properly. Image Entertainment had the title on their release list for some time, but eventually gave up on it, saying the original elements were unusable and the title not likely to sell nearly enough copies to make a restoration worthwhile. The sound, in particular, is problematic -as it was terrible to begin with. There is a very good laserdisc release of the film, which is much clearer than the VHS version, but it's exceedingly hard to find.

So -What was good about this film? The new Glamorous Life song/sequence worked wonderfully, as did the expanded Everyday A Little Death sequence. Cariou, Guittard, and Rigg gave excellent performances. Jonathan Tunick's new orchestrations and underscoring were, as always, first-rate -particularly during Erik's attempted suicide. (Tunick has a cameo as the conductor at the film's opening.) Prince's transition from the theatre stage to "real life" was well done, and the movie has a very promising start. Fans of the original stage musical will forever be frustrated by this film version, which could have been wonderful.

UPDATE: Since I wrote this the film has been (at last!) released on DVD, and the soundtrack recording is now on CD. Several reviewers have complained of the poor quality of the DVD, but the video and audio restoration work was extremely well done. The film never looked or sounded better. According to the new liner notes for the soundtrack CD there were four additional songs from the stage score that were to be filmed, but the production ran out of money. I'm upped my original rating of the film, as each time I see it I find more to enjoy.

Why did they tamper with perfection?

[ToddAO70 · 2/10 · 26 May 2002]

A Little Night Music was one of the most sophisticated and stylish stage musicals ever written. It was inspired by an Ingmar Bergman film and played on Broadway in 1973, winning six Tony Awards including Best Musical. When it was decided to make a film version, the original creative team (Stephen Sondheim, Hugh Wheeler and director Harold Prince) decided to alter their work. They shifted the setting from Sweden to Austria, which eliminated the aspect of a sun-lit evening ("perpetual sunset is rather an unsettling thing"). Also eliminated was the important Quintet, who provided a Greek chorus effect, commenting on the action with the songs "Remember?", "Perpetual Anticipation" and the "Night Waltz". I could understand their elimination, but when it came to the remainder of the score, gone was Carl-Magnus' solo "In Praise of Women", Madame Armfeldt's biting and nostalgic "Liaisons", and Petra's poignant "The Miller's Son". A new solo version of "The Glamorous Life" was written, there were new lyrics for "A Weekend in the Country". Elizabeth Taylor, dramatically, makes a good Desiree, but vocally, she makes Broadway original Glynis Johns look like Lily Pons. Bright spots in the film include Len Cariou, Laurence Guittard and the magnificent Hermione Gingold, reprising their original stage roles. Basically, the reconception did not work for the story. This musical is best seen on stage. If it was transferred correctly, this could have been one of the classics of film, but its best to steer clear of this and listen to the marvelous original Broadway cast recording.

Jewels in the Mud

[eschetic · 6/10 · 26 November 2006]

Seldom has a better composer/lyricist been more ill served by the movies than Stephen Sondheim and his long list of stage masterworks.

After bursting into the spotlight with impressive contributions to the first season of TV's TOPPER and with then with the lyrics to the Prince produced stage Bernstein/Laurents/Robbins WEST SIDE STORY (and later film), Sondheim's stage to film transfers seemed to take a downward trajectory (GYPSY, A FUNNY THING..., A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC) even as his stagecraft was soaring to a position of America's premier working theatrical composer lyricist. This would change when his unparalleled stage shows would begin to be preserved with video of the original stage productions starting with the Tokyo broadcast (filmed on Broadway) of his 1976 masterpiece, PACIFIC OVERTURES, but the commercial BIG screen - which always seems intent on reinventing the wheel by making a workable round design trapezoidal - would have to wait to find a way to use Sondheim's brilliance to best advantage.

Thirty years after its initial release, the Harold Prince directed (as he had on stage) 1977 A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC film still rankles with inexplicably changed lyrics, lines and even character names - the locale had been shifted from Sweden to Austria which Prince had used to far greater effect in his first film, SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE - and the effort to appreciate what is there (which IS worth appreciating) is complicated by the faded "fool-screen" prints which appear all to have survived on the released 1983 Embassy Home Entertainment VHS tapes (labled 110 minutes, but actually 125 minutes).

There are pleasures and even treasures to be found here though. Passing over the mildly disastrous appearance of Ms. Taylor who was at an awkward transition in her career between playing over praised sexpots and more appropriate, more mature women (and whose weight fluctuated wildly even between takes of the same scene[!] - at the upper end of the scale she is at least historically accurate; they liked 'em beefy at the turn of the century), there are wonderful performances from Len Cariou, Laurence Guittard and Hermione Gingold, recreating their original Broadway cast performances and an unexpectedly fine one from (now Dame) Diana Rigg in Patricia Elliott's stage role of Guittard's wife.

Gingold's culminating character song, "Liaisons," was cut after much reputed rejiggering which must remain a major disappointment since she is heard BEST in the number on the post-Broadway RCA London Cast album which gave every indication that laGingold had grown in her interpretation, but given the odd dubbing of the non-stage cast roles (Lesley Anne Down's Anne and Christopher Guard's Henrik/Eric sound like refugees from Sondheim's EVENING PRIMROSE TV soundtrack and less than ideal singers), perhaps it would not have lived up to expectations.

One other unexpected joy however, is the extremely rare on-screen appearance of Jonathan Tunick as the stage conductor in the film. Tunick spent the last 30 years of the 20th century as Broadway's outstanding orchestrator (starting with his groundbreaking layered work with Sondheim), and won the film's only Academy Award for "Adaptation of Score." The film, for all its flaws, begs for restoration and a widescreen DVD release. So much there is still strong all these years after the first time I encountered the show at its first Pre-Broadway preview at Boston's Colonial Theatre the evening after LBJ died and the day the first of several cease fires was announced in Vietnam (Cariou announced the latter from the stage at the curtain call). I'd see it frequently again over the years (it's a strong latter day operetta) on Broadway and at the end of the U.S. National Tour (this time at Boston's Shubert Theatre with Jean Simmons who would later do "Desiree" in London and the wonderful Margaret Hamilton in the Gingold role). That first night in Boston though, we sang "A Weekend In The Country" half the way back to Hartford in the car - I was inclined to today after re-watching the movie again for the first time in several years.

Lovely locations and talented performers but a miss

[jjnxn-1 · 5/10 · 16 May 2013]

With this much talent on the table this should have been so much better. Liz was a great star, not a singer though, just the wrong actress for the role she should never have been cast. Not only does she not seem comfortable in the role she is not looking her best. It is a shame they didn't cast Glynis Johns in the stage role she created, she would have been perfection as the flighty, melancholy aging actress and she and Hermoine Gingold make sense as mother and daughter. Hermoine and Elizabeth Taylor bear no resemblance in either feature or gesture making it even harder to get into the material. Diana Rigg, Hermoine Gingold and Len Cariou do what they can with their parts and the settings are lovely but the direction is flat, in this sort of whimsy that is deadly. It has moments of pleasure but overall a miss.

What a Tragedy . . .

[Otto-20 · 6/10 · 7 December 1998]

"A Little Night Music," is absolutely brilliant as a Sondheim stage musical. Emotionally touching, artistically powerful, it's got it all. And then there's this film. *sigh* Elizabeth Taylor is a lovely lady. But she can't sing. "Send In the Clowns" was not intended to be a spoken piece. Many of the incredible stage numbers have been cut or replaced, with the most magnificent survivor being "A Weekend In the Country," the best-performed song in the film. Unfortunately, it is not the most artistically pleasing one, and, without an intermission, its exuberance falls a bit flat. The visual aesthetics of the film are not well done -- it's not night, it's obviously just daytime with a filter -- and are disappointing. The best reason to see this would be for the opportunity of seeing the gorgeously voiced Len Cariou recreate his incredible performance as Frederik.

Is it weird that I had higher hopes for this one?

[AlsExGal · 5/10 · 24 November 2019]

I love Stephen Sondheim's shows (except for Pacific Overtures), and was interested to see this film adaptation.

Liz Taylor plays an actress named Desiree Armfeldt, who tours around the world with her theatre troupe, while her 12/13 year old daughter, Fredericka, stays with Desiree's mother, Madame Leonora Armfeldt. Desiree has had an on-again, off-again affair with lawyer, Frederick Egerman (who has just married an 18 year old girl named Anne, who, after 11 months of marriage, is still, unfortunately, a virgin). Unbeknownst to Frederick, his new wife, Anne, and his grown son, Henrik, are in love, and Desiree is also having an affair with another man, Karl-Magnus Mittelheim. Anne and Frederick are invited to Desiree's house for a "weekend in the country;" she initially does not want to go, but Karl-Magnus' wife, Charlotte, convinces her to in the hopes that Frederick and Desiree will end up together, and her husband Karl-Magnus will stop fooling around with Desiree.

Liz seemed very watered down to me as Desiree Armfeldt. I don't really know why, I just feel like she could have given more of a performance. I liked Len Cariou in this; he reprised his role of Frederick (from the original Broadway production); I enjoyed Lesley-Anne Down's singing voice, but I felt like her acting was not believable. I guess I was the most impressed by Diana Rigg as Charlotte. She seemed to be fairly consistent the entire film.

Considering everything it's really quite good!

[bestactor · 8/10 · 31 December 2003]

I love this Sondheim masterpiece and having seen what Sondheim considers the finest staging ever (New York City Opera) live and on video many times over, the movie still has significant virtues. It was widely panned and dismissed as if all the film critics secretly met and took a vote to hate it together. Yes, some songs have been cut and some themes (most sadly, Mme. Armfeldt's) basically eliminated. But there are still some truly definitive performances and beautifully mounted scenes. And Elizabeth Taylor is far from terrible in her part. Unfortunately the current film on video is in terrible deterioration. This film deserves to be preserved as a rare film adaptation in Sondheim library. Remember the horrible film versions of Funny Thing Happened..., South Pacific and other great Broadway musicals that received poor screen adaptations. Taken in context of how seldom movie versions successfully transfer to the screen, A Little Night Music is not great but is certainly good, and far better than many other movie musicals that seem to be held in higher esteem than they deserve.

Liz Taylor sends in the clowns

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 30 September 2017]

The musical film gets fewer and fewer every year because the talent that was under contract in the golden years of the studio system is no longer there. You have to pay the market rate for the talent you do get since the 60s. It's like when free agency came to team sports.

So it was with A Little Night Music which ran for 601 performances on Broadway stage. It's a curious film with a number of genuine musical performers like Broadway lead Len Cariou together with actresses like Elizabeth Taylor, Diana Rigg, and Lesley Anne Down who don't exactly have any great musical ability.

It's a mishmosh, but it does work more or less. The show is based on an old Ingmar Bergman film and the plot location is shifted from Sweden to Austria at the turn of the last century. Starting with Len Cariou everyone is either married to or kanoodling with someone they're really not suited for. Cariou is married to the much younger and still virginal Ms. Down. Feeling he has an itch he wants some scratching for, Cariou goes out one night and hunts up an old mistress, a notorious actress Elizabeth Taylor.

Cariou invites all the dramtis personae to his country estate where all the romantic problems are solved and everyone is now properly mated. Everyone but Hermione Gingold who plays Taylor's mother and is past interest in participating. Now sex is a spectator sport for her. Gingold repeats her role from Broadway as well.

Stephen Sondheim's score contained one big mega hit Send In The Clowns. A slew of artists recorded it even older generation singers like Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby. But Judy Collins's best seller is the one most remembered.

I'd have liked to have heard any one of the others sing it, but Elizabeth Taylor God Bless her was a talented actress and one of the most beautiful women ever. But a singer she was not.

A Little Night Music got an Oscar for Best Adapted Musical score and a nomination for costume design. Not the best musical adaption out there, but still a decent film.

A missed opportunity

[ajm-8 · 3/10 · 15 April 2007]

A misguided film adaptation of the 1973 Broadway smash, and indirectly a remake of Ingmar Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night. What should have been a small, character-driven musical gets swallowed up in elaborate sets and costumes, and sadly much of Stephen Sondheim's score was cut. The stage play and Bergman film were set in Sweden; for tax purposes the movie was filmed in Vienna, thus losing Sweden's "perpetual sunset" which served as the story's sexual metaphor. Harold Prince expertly directed the stage version, but he's simply all wrong here; Stanley Donen or Herbert Ross would have been better behind the camera.

In 1990 PBS telecast the New York City Opera's production of Night Music (starring Sally Ann Howes and George Lee Andrews) as part of its "Live from Lincoln Center" series. That production captured this musical's wit, sensuality and lyricism. A pity it's not available on DVD.

It COULD Have Been Wonderful!

[peacham · 4 December 2001]

The most baffling thing about this disaster of a film is the fact that it was directed by Hal Prince..the director of the original Broadway production. Unfortunately Prince,who managed to create a stage masterpiece gave us a film flop! Miscasting,poor editing and excising of songs really hurt this one. Elizabeth Taylor is terrible as the wistful Desiree Armfeldt,clodhopping through the film like a bull in a china shoppe.Her singing is pitiful(in send in the clowns she actually can be heard trying to find the note!)Christopher Guard and Leslie Anne Down are dull as Henrick and Anne,no emotion,no passion.

There are some strong performances however, Len Cariou,Laurence Giuttard and Hermione Gingold shine in the roles they created on Broadway (even with Guittard's and Gingold's big solos being cut)and Diana Rigg is outstanding as Charlotte,giving the film some much needed life. Altogether its a big miss,but with some small rewards.

From a masterpiece to a flop!

[TheLittleSongbird · 4/10 · 16 May 2011]

Sondheim's stage musical is a masterpiece, with a great, sophisticated story, stylish and relateable characters and wonderful songs. Send in the Clowns for me is one of the pinnacles of his career. This film musical had a fair few ingredients to be good, with the musical as good as it was, a beautiful talented actress such as Elizabeth Taylor and some of the original stars reprising their roles. But the film in many ways was incredibly disappointing. I am not someone who says that any movie that deviates from its source is an immediate disaster, I personally intensely dislike that attitude towards films and adaptations, but on its own terms, A Little Night Music is rather poor even on its own merits.

I will start off by saying that it is not a complete abomination like Mame was, as the production values from the settings, cinematography and costumes are top drawer, the songs and beautiful orchestration even with the tampering(plus some of the musical's best bits such as Lisasons and The Miller's Son are cut) are great and Len Cariou, Hermione Gingold and Laurence Guittard are wonderful, and the opening is fantastic. The best of the lot is the outstanding performance of Diana Rigg though, who has the best lines, her performance is wickedly enjoyable and her Everyday a Little Death is very touching. Converesely, there is so much that spoils it.

Much of the blame lies with Prince, whose direction is surprisingly inept and his decision to make the film darker than the stage musical was a massive no-no as it takes away from the romance and fun that made the stage musical such a joy. The story due to several deviations, for the worse I feel as they serve no purpose to the story, is sluggishly paced and in all honesty uninteresting and devoid of feeling complete with underdeveloped subplots, while the script and some of the lyrics are lacking in wryness. The pace is pedestrian, the characters I felt nothing for even Desiree, and the sound is problematic.

I was really disappointed in Taylor, I do love her so very much but she does look very fatigued and her overall performance comes across as too desperate. Plus her singing is not good at all, Send in the Clowns was disappointingly all over the place where you can clearly hear her trying to find the notes. Then we have Lesley Ann-Downe and Christopher Guard who both give dull and passionless performances. Overall, despite the odd bon-bon this film is a complete mess. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Imagine it without the music... and it's good!

[ekeby · 7/10 · 29 November 2021]

I've seen innumerable productions of this musical, but somehow I was unaware of this film until just now. I came here to read reviews, most of which-as I predicted-were only to eager to blame The Big Movie Star for all the problems.

IMO, Elizabeth Taylor brought something quite original to the role and her performance deserves applause. I found her rendition of Send In The Clowns incredibly moving. For those that complained she "spoke" the lyrics, well, I can only say I wish some of the other songs had been spoken as well.

Frankly, I think the music just gets in the way of this film. Imagine if it had been played as a non-musical comedy. It would have worked fine, and in fact, probably improved without the constraint of musical actors. I understand perfectly what it is meant to be, I just think if you segregate the music from the story you get some insight into the quality of the movie. Which is pretty good when viewed from the perspective of 2021. It looks practically masterful compared to some of the musical films of more recent vintage.

If you're a Sondheim fan, you gush over it ~ but I'm a regular movie goer.

[661jda · 1/10 · 4 March 2021]

I saw the film in '77 and fell asleep. Nothing has changed in the 44 years since then. Let's talk about the good things - 1) the costumes - impeccably tailored and fit the period precisely. 2) Diana Rigg - a very good performance. 3- Hermoine Gingold - a treasure to watch regardless what she appeared in. Now the downside. Sondheim is a complex lyricist - while the music is melodious, the words do not make for singable songs - the one exception of course, is SEND IN THE CLOWNS. Sondheim works well on the theatre stage, but unless you know the story, you don't want to listen to his songs. (WEST SIDE STORY vs. COMPANY) (GYPSY vs. SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE). The movie plays as a play within a movie and at the opening you know what you're in for: half of the cast in dubbed singing voices or a bad dvd transfer or both. Actually it seems like they used several voices for Elizabeth Taylor because the voice at the beginning sure doesn't sound like the same that sings SEND IN THE CLOWNS. Then we go into the bad parts of the film: first off - the cinematography which really seems like someone painted this and just splashed color on the screen. It actually distracts from what should be happening rather than contributing. A better idea would have been to shoot in B&W as an homage to the source material Ingmar Bergmann. Next the screenplay - not done with the camera in mind. Then the editing - never realized that a picture could jump so seamlessly. The director - Harold Prince - should have stuck to the theatre - his only other film outing SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE should have been an indication this wouldn't work. Finally and I hate to say it because I'm one of her biggest fans -- Elizabeth Taylor. While she is the correct age, that's about the only thing good about her in this role: her make-up is horrible; the dubbed voice doesn't even sound like her; there was no discipline in the role and the director didn't do anything to keep her on target.

I would love to see this re-filmed but do this right and learn from the mistakes made here. This is uppity trash and not very good trash at that.

A curious--if not entirely delightful--film with a stand-out performance by Diana Rigg.

[archcorenth · 7/10 · 29 November 2021]

I just watched this on youtube because of Sondheim recent passing. I'd never seen the play before, but I have seen the Ingmar Bergman film it is rather closely based on. I can't really think of any reason for the bad reviews. Some of the dubbing is bad, particularly for Fredericka who is a teenager but for some reason has an adult woman's voice. Also, it is a bit unfortunate that Leslie-Ann Dowd and the actor who plays her stepson have no onscreen chemistry (and I blame her since sparks do fly when the maid teases him). But both of these are small things considering Fredericka is such a minor character, and the relationship between stepmother and stepson is really just there as the prime example of Frederick's mistakes. The rest is wonderful. The lines are good and delivered with good humor. The songs are interesting and have a few lyrics here and there that I kept thinking about after the movie was over. And best of all is Diana Rigg, who is reason enough to watch the movie all by herself. She steals every scene she is in, if not walk away with the entire picture. She is revelatory, like Edith Evans' Lady Bracknell. The character Diana is playing is a bit sad and the lines she has been given rather pathetic, and yet Diana finds in every one a great deal of humor and self sufficiency. She really must be seen. Probably she is responsible for the majority of the stars in my rating.

Absolutely Awful!

[honkycat97 · 1/10 · 8 May 2007]

I was so excited to see a film adaptation of A Little Night Music, but grew suspicious when I saw that Elizabeth Taylor is in it. Don't get me wrong, I love Elizabeth, but a musical actress she is definitely not. I tried to watch this disastrous movie and then just decided to skip to "Send in the Clowns" which about an hour and 45 minutes into the picture. I thought that, at least, would redeem it. Elizabeth sings this in the absolute worst version (bar none) that I have ever heard.

Please don't waste your money on buying or renting this film. It was worse than the film version of A Chorus Line and, up until now, I thought that was the worst adaptation of a musical.

I am so very disappointed.

I think I know why this is so bad.

[callingbrian · 1/10 · 30 December 2006]

Could it be they wanted it to be this bad so they could somehow cash in on it ala Mel Brooks' "The Producers"? It's the only reason I can think of for this great big stinking road apple of a disaster to exist.

Absolutely the worst filming of a great musical ever. Wouldn't you think a red light would have gone on somewhere when they started talking about Elizabeth Taylor (whom I love) as Desiree? Wouldn't someone have said "Can we talk this over, please"? All the more unfortunate because there is precious little of Sondheim's work that has been preserved.

What a shame.

Not definitive but definitely under-appreciated

[michaelanderson65 · 10/10 · 2 October 2006]

Based on Ingmar Bergman's film SMILES OF A SUMMER NIGHT, this musical film adapted by its Broadway creators Hugh Wheeler (screenplay), Stephen Sondheim (Music and Lyrics) and Harold Prince (director), concerns three mismatched couples.

Actress Desiree Armfeldt (Elizabeth Taylor), is seeing Count Mittelheim (Laurence Guittard) who is married to Charlotte Mittelheim (a delicious scene stealing performance from Diana Rigg). Frederick Egerman (Len Cariou), Deseiree's past lover, is married to the still-virginal Anne (Lesley-Anne Down), who is half his age. Frederick's son Erick (Christopher Guard) is hopelessly in love with his stepmother Anne (who is actually only a year younger than he.)

Petra (Lesley Dunlop); Frederick and Anne's maid, Madame Armfeldt (Hermione Gingold); Desiree's mother, and Frederika (Chloe Franks); Desiree's daughter - round out the action which occurs in town and culminates during a hectic "Weekend in the Country" at Madame Armfeldt's sprawling manor.

Forget what you've heard or read about the film. Yes, it is flawed in context to the Broadway original, but considering it was made when film musicals were all but dead in Hollywood, it is amazing that it even exists. The score is still just as witty and romantic and features a wonderful new version of THE GLAMOROUS LIFE written specifically for the film. The cast, many of them reprising their original stage roles, is uniformly superb! And despite all the nasty comments, Elizabeth Taylor is quite charming as Desiree (especially in the duet YOU MUST MEET MY WIFE with Cariou.) Sondheim even added a new verse or two for the marvelous song EVERY DAY A LITTLE DEATH.

If you get a chance - see this film anyway that you can as it may just steal your heart.

Perfectly dreadful adaptation of brittle and whimsical musical

[simon_sparrow · 2/10 · 14 August 2001]

The first atrocity made by director Prince, whom should know better, was casting Elizabeth Taylor in the part originated by Glynnis Johns. E. T. is a total fish out of water in this film. Filming the stage play would have been infinitely superior to this garbage. Only Hermoine Gingold offers some bright moments.

Mess-two-three, bad-two-three

[rsb-2 · 3/10 · 10 December 1998]

What a misguided translation of what was on stage an absolute jewel. Watching this mess, one wonders what anyone ever saw in the orginal stage production. Utterly charmless, even if it is all in three/four time.