Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice

R

Released Oct 8, 1969

1 hr. 45 min.

Comedy

List

82%

61 Reviews

Tomatometer

66%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

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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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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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

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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

steve d

Once you get beyond the shock, there isn't much here.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

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Paul Mazursky

Director

Natalie Wood

Carol Sanders

Robert Culp

Bob Sanders

Elliott Gould

Ted Henderson

Dyan Cannon

Alice Henderson

Horst Ebersberg

Horst

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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

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

Madeleine Harmsworth

Sunday Mirror (UK)

Performances are sparkling, sharp and rounded. Each star is beautifully cast.

Jun 16, 2022

Full Review

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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
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

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