The Four Seasons

Directed by Alan Alda, The Four Seasons follows three couples (Alda’s Jack and Carol Burnett’s Kate, Len Cariou’s Nick and Sandy Dennis’ Anne, and Rita Moreno’s Claudia and Jack Weston’s Danny) as their friendship is tested after one of the marriages unexpectedly breaks up. Filmmaker Alda, armed with his own screenplay, delivers a slightly erratic yet predominantly rewarding endeavor that benefits from the first-class efforts of its various performers, as Alda elicits compelling, down-to-earth work from his various players (and from himself) that goes a long way towards cultivating (and perpetuating) the movie’s compulsively watchable atmosphere. And although the picture admittedly does boast a small handful of questionable (and mostly needless) attempts at comedy, including a fairly pointless sequence wherein two of the couples overhear the sexual exploits of the third, The Four Seasons has been packed with engaging, engrossing interludes and conversations (eg Jack learns from his friend that he’s planning to divorce his wife) that cumulatively cement its place as an honest and often relatable relationship drama – with the better-than-initially-anticipated vibe heightened by a completely satisfying finale that ensures the picture ends on a top-notch note.

*** out of ****