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Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

Play trailer Poster for Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice R Released Oct 8, 1969 1h 45m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
82% Tomatometer 62 Reviews 66% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
After returning to Los Angeles from a group therapy session, documentary filmmaker Bob Sanders (Robert Culp) and his wife, Carol (Natalie Wood), find themselves becoming vigilante couples counselors, offering unsolicited advice to their best friends, Ted (Elliott Gould) and Alice Henderson (Dyan Cannon). Not wanting to be rude, the Hendersons play along, but some latent sexual tension among the four soon comes bubbling to the surface, and long-buried desires don't stay buried for long.

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Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

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Critics Consensus

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice isn't as subversive as it thinks it is -- but it is smart & sophisticated & funny & well-acted.

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Critics Reviews

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Thomas Goldthwaite Arizona Republic It is another product of the industry's Dream Machine Movies, aimed at the deprived, indigent and needy who find they can peep better in the dark than in sunlight. Jun 16, 2022 Full Review Marjory Adams Boston Globe An exciting example of the new morality in cinema terms, intelligently and colorfully acted by a quartet of attractive players. Jun 16, 2022 Full Review Derek Malcolm Guardian One has the suspicion that they have nothing better to do. Be that as it may, the sexual games they play make a very funny film. Jun 16, 2022 Full Review Noah Gittell Washington City Paper Paul Mazursky’s 1969 comedy speaks to its moment, when normies everywhere were wondering how they could partake in the pleasures of the counterculture, but Mazursky has his eye on something more universal. Jul 19, 2024 Full Review John Bustin Austin American-Statesman This controversial new film is a slickly made, superbly acted, deftly satirical but vaguely sick comedy exploring two couples who get comically caught up in the modern sexual revolution. Jun 16, 2022 Full Review R.H. Gardner Baltimore Sun It is an extremely funny movie, certainly the best Natalie Wood has ever made and one of the best turned out by any Hollywood studio during 1969. Jun 16, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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David H When this movie came out in 1969, I was eight years old. It played at the local drive-in theater in Kailua, Hawaii; where I lived at the time, and I was under the impression that it was X-rated. All these years later, I came across the DVD of the film in the public library, read the sleeve, and discovered that it’s not X-rated at all. For reasons of nostalgia, I brought it home and watched it, and I discovered that it does feature some nudity toward the beginning, but it’s a pretty tame film otherwise. It’s very much a product of the 1960s, and some of the dialogue has that stilted Beat-era-inspired dialogue that you get in films from that time. But it was interesting enough, and I enjoyed watching it just as I enjoy an occasional episode of the original Hawaii Five-0 from that era, one episode of which was filmed in a house in our neighborhood while we watched from the sidelines. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/11/24 Full Review crustina d This is Mazursky at his best. The writing is hysterical, totally feels real and on point. The actors are all superb. This film is essentially perfect. And if you don't like it, you must not get it, or you just have shitty taste. This is a masterpiece. And not PM's only one either. Watch it for the first time if you haven't seen it, and watch it again if you have. It never misses. No matter what this Rottentomatoes moron-meter reads. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member The least funny 1.75 hours ever!!!!!!! Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Audience Member I made the mistake of watching this movie just because I saw Natalie Wood in the cast, and it said "romance/comedy." Comedy? Where's the comedy? There's not one joke. And don't get me started on the romance. There's no plot. Just unpleasant scenes that seem to go on forever, and disgusting noises. It makes a Woody Allen movie seem like a trip in comparison. The only positive thing that could be said about the movie is how it depicts a specific era (free love), but that's pretty much it. Don't waste your time and watch this movie. There are many better ones. Leave this for when you're out of movies to watch or something. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review david l Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice is an important product of the free love time period of the late sixties. This is a film that deals with the moral ambiguities of cheating, having sex with your friends and orgies through excellent dialogue with many terrific discussions and a firm grasp of the psyche of young people. The sophisticated cinematic ending is the highlight. The men were inferior, but the ladies were excellent here as both Natalie Wood and Dyan Cannon stole the show. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Raises some interesting points about open marriage and the risks/limits of it. As a culture time capsule, it highlights the difference between "those crazy Californians" compared to more traditional types, as represented here, it seems, by the relatively nebbish, Elliot Gould. But to take it as a comedy, even back in '69, seems a real stretch. Interesting open-ended finish, quite "New Hollywood." Unfortunately, this must be one of Natalie Wood's least memorable films. The whole cast, except for Wood, seems at ease in an improvisational style. In some ensemble scenes Wood, who I adore in "Splendor in the Grass" and the tragically underrated "This Property is Condemned," looks like a little girl lost in a very adult-themed picture. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis After returning to Los Angeles from a group therapy session, documentary filmmaker Bob Sanders (Robert Culp) and his wife, Carol (Natalie Wood), find themselves becoming vigilante couples counselors, offering unsolicited advice to their best friends, Ted (Elliott Gould) and Alice Henderson (Dyan Cannon). Not wanting to be rude, the Hendersons play along, but some latent sexual tension among the four soon comes bubbling to the surface, and long-buried desires don't stay buried for long.
Director
Paul Mazursky
Producer
Larry Tucker
Screenwriter
Paul Mazursky, Larry Tucker
Distributor
Columbia Pictures
Production Co
Columbia Pictures Corporation
Rating
R
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 8, 1969, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 16, 2012
Runtime
1h 45m
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