Tempest (1982)

Tempest is a 1982 American adventure comedy-drama romance film directed by Paul Mazursky. It is a loose modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare's The Tempest. The picture features John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, Susan Sarandon, Raúl Juliá, and Molly Ringwald in her feature film debut.

The film won the People's Choice Award at the 7th Toronto International Film Festival.

Plot

Phillip Dimitrius is a middle-aged New York City architect who is going through a difficult mid-life crisis.

After learning that his wife Antonia has been having an affair with his boss, Alonzo, Phillip leaves New York and travels to Greece with his teenage daughter, Miranda. In Athens, he meets Aretha Tomalin, a singer, and they become lovers. To escape Alonzo and his wife, who also come to Greece, they move to a remote Greek island. Phillip takes a vow of celibacy after they move to the island.

On the island, they encounter Kalibanos, an eccentric hermit, who was previously its only resident.

Phillip finally seems happy, until one day Alonzo, Antonia and others are spotted in a boat approaching the island. A storm, apparently called up by Phillip, shipwrecks the boat and the passengers land on the island. Phillip and Antonia reconcile, and they leave the island together with Miranda.

Cast

John Cassavetes as Phillip Dimitrius

Gena Rowlands as Antonia Dimitrius

Susan Sarandon as Aretha Tomalin

Vittorio Gassman as Alonzo

Raúl Juliá as Kalibanos

Molly Ringwald as Miranda Dimitrius

Sam Robards as Freddy

Paul Stewart as Phillip's Father

Jackie Gayle as Trinc

Anthony Holland as Sebastian

Jerry Hardin as Harry Gondorf

Paul Mazursky as Terry Bloomfield

Lucianne Buchanan as Dolores

Vassilis Glezakos as Captain

Luigi Laezza as Sailor

Sergio Nicolai as Sailor

Cookie Mueller as New Year's Eve Party Girl

Background

The picture was filmed on location, including: Alypa Beach on the Mani Peninsula of the Peloponnesus; Athens, Greece; Atlantic City, New Jersey; and New York City, New York. Susan Sarandon's character's last name, Tomalin, is her own maiden name. She took her husband's last name when she married Chris Sarandon. The aerial footage of New York City at the end is accompanied by the song Manhattan, sung by Dinah Washington.

Distribution

The film premiered in the United States on August 13, 1982.

It was screened at various film festivals, including: the Venice Film Festival, Italy; the Toronto International Film Festival, Canada; the Davao City Film Festival, Philippines; and others.

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has a rotten rating of 55% from 11 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. Vincent Canby, film critic for The New York Times, was harsh in his review. He praised Paul Mazursky for some of his earlier works but Canby did not like this film, and wrote, "Tempest is an overblown, fancified freak of a film. Experiencing it is like watching a 10-ton canary as it attempts to become airborne. It lumbers up and down the runway tirelessly, but never once succeeds in getting both feet off the ground at the same time. The spectacle is amusing in isolated moments but, finally, exhausting." Roger Ebert gave it a negative review, writing: "The movie is an ambitious experiment, but a long and tedious one, and our revels end long before Mazursky's."

Box office

The film was a box office flop, only making $5,005,245 against a budget of 13 million.

Accolades

Wins

Toronto International Film Festival: People's Choice Award, Paul Mazursky; 1982.

Venice Film Festival: Pasinetti Award - Best Actress, Susan Sarandon; 1982.

Nominations

Golden Globe Awards: Golden Globe; Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Raul Julia; New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture - Female, Molly Ringwald; 1983.

Young Artist Awards: Best Young Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture, Sam Robards; Best Young Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture, Molly Ringwald; 1983.

See also

List of William Shakespeare film adaptations

References

External links

Tempest at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films

Tempest at IMDb

Tempest at the TCM Movie Database (archived)

Tempest at Rotten Tomatoes