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| Love Story | |
|---|---|
| Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Arthur Hiller |
| Screenplay by | Erich Segal |
| Based on | Love Story by Erich Segal |
| Produced by | Howard G. Minsky |
| Starring | Ali MacGrawRyan O’NealJohn MarleyRay Milland |
| Cinematography | Richard Kratina |
| Edited by | Robert C. Jones |
| Music by | Francis Lai |
| Production companies | Paramount Pictures Love Story Company |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date | December 16, 1970 |
| Running time | 101 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $2.2 million |
| Box office | $173.4 million |
Love Story is a 1970 American romantic drama written by Erich Segal, who was also the author of the best-selling 1970 novel of the same name. It was produced by Howard G. Minsky and directed by Arthur Hiller and starred Ali MacGraw and Ryan O’Neal, alongside John Marley, Ray Milland, and Tommy Lee Jones in his film debut in a minor role.
A tragedy, the film is considered one of the most romantic by the American Film Institute (#9 on the list) and is one of the highest-grossing films of all time. It was followed by a sequel, Oliver’s Story (1978), starring O’Neal with Candice Bergen.
Production
Erich Segal originally wrote the screenplay and sold it to Paramount Pictures. While the film was being produced, Paramount wanted Segal to write a novel based on it, to be published on Valentine’s Day to help pre-publicize the release of the film. When the novel came out, it became a bestseller on its own in advance of the film.
The original director was Larry Peerce. He backed out and was replaced by Anthony Harvey. Harvey dropped out and was replaced by Arthur Hiller. Jimmy Webb wrote a score for the film that was not used.
The lead role of Oliver Barrett IV was turned down by Jeff Bridges, Michael Douglas, Beau Bridges, Michael York and Jon Voight.[5] Christopher Walken auditioned for the role [6] but Ryan O’Neal was cast on the recommendation of Erich Segal, who had worked with him on The Games; he was paid $25,000.[7]
Filming Love Story on location caused significant damage to the Harvard campus. This experience, followed by a similar experience with the film A Small Circle of Friends (1980), caused the university administration to deny most subsequent requests for filming on location.
The main song in the film, “(Where Do I Begin?) Love Story” was a major success, particularly the vocal rendition recorded by Andy Williams.
Release
The premiere for Love Story took place at Loews’s State I theatre in New York City on Wednesday, December 16, 1970.[9]
Critical reception
Overall, Love Story has received generally positive reviews. Rotten Tomatoes retrospectively collected reviews from 28 critics and gave the film a score of 68%. The critical consensus reads: “Earnest and determined to make audiences swoon, Love Story is an unabashed tearjerker that will capture hearts when it isn’t inducing eye rolls.”[10]
Roger Ebert gave the film four out of four stars and called it “infinitely better than the book,” adding, “because Hiller makes the lovers into individuals, of course we’re moved by the film’s conclusion. Why not?” Charles Champlin of the Los Angeles Times was also positive, writing that although “the plot-line has been honored many times … It’s the telling that matters: the surfaces and the textures and the charm of the actors. And it is hard to see how these quantities could have been significantly improved upon in Love Story.”
Newsweek felt the film was contrived and film critic Judith Crist called Love Story “Camille with bullshit”.[13] Vincent Canby of The New York Times wrote, “I can’t remember any movie of such comparable high-style kitsch since Leo McCarey’s ‘Love Affair‘ (1939) and his 1957 remake, ‘An Affair to Remember.’ The only really depressing thing about ‘Love Story’ is the thought of all the terrible imitations that will inevitably follow it.” Gene Siskel gave the film two stars out of four and wrote that “whereas the novel has a built-in excuse for being spare (it is told strictly as the boy’s reminiscence), the film does not. Seeing the characters in the movie … makes us want to know something about them. We get precious little, and love by fiat doesn’t work well in film.” Gary Arnold of The Washington Post wrote, “I found this one of the most thoroughly resistible sentimental movies I’ve ever seen. There is scarcely a character or situation or line in the story that rings true, that suggests real simplicity or generosity of feeling, a sentiment or emotion honestly experienced and expressed.” Writer Harlan Ellison wrote in The Other Glass Teat, his book of collected criticism, that it was “shit”. John Simon wrote that Love Story was so bad that it never once moved him.
The film was ranked number 9 on the AFI’s 100 Years…100 Passions list, which recognizes the top 100 love stories in American cinema. The film also spawned a trove of imitations, parodies, and homages in countless films, having re-energized melodrama on the silver screen, as well as helping to set the template for the modern “chick flick“.
Box office
The film was an instant box office smash. It opened in two theatres in New York City, Loew’s State I and Tower East, grossing $128,022 in its first week. It expanded into another 166 theatres on Christmas Day and grossed $2,363,767 for the weekend, becoming the number one film in the United States and grossed $2,493,167 the following weekend. It remained number one at the US box office for the next 4 weeks before finishing second behind The Owl and the Pussycat for one week and then returning to the top of the box office for another six weeks. It went into general release in the United States on June 23, 1971 expanding into an additional 143 theatres in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and St Louis, grossing $1,660,761 in five days and returned to number one at the US box office for another 3 weeks, for a total of 15 weeks at number one. It was the sixth highest-grossing film of all time in U.S and Canada with a gross of $106,397,186. Adjusted for inflation, the film remains one of the top 50 domestic grosses of all time. It grossed an additional $67 million in international film markets for a worldwide total of $173.4 million.
Watch the movie
Television
The film was first broadcast on ABC television on October 1, 1972 and became the most watched film on television surpassing Ben-Hur with 27 million homes watching, a Nielsen rating of 42.3 and an audience share of 62%. The rating was equalled the following year by Airport and then surpassed in 1976 by Gone with the Wind.
The Crimson Key Society, a student association, has sponsored showings of Love Story during orientation to each incoming class of Harvard College freshmen since the late 1970s. During the showings, society members and other audience members mock, boo, and jeer “maudlin, old-fashioned and just plain schlocky” moments to humorously build school spirit.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack from the film was released separately as an album, and distributed by Quality Records.
All tracks are written by Francis Lai, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Theme from Love Story“ | 3:20 |
| 2. | “Snow Frolic” | 2:58 |
| 3. | “Sonata in F Major (Allegro)” (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) | 2:17 |
| 4. | “I Love You, Phil” | 2:04 |
| 5. | “The Christmas Trees” | 2:48 |
| 6. | “Search for Jenny” (Theme From Love Story) | 3:04 |
| 7. | “Bozo Barrett” (Theme From Love Story) | 2:43 |
| 8. | “Skating In Central Park” (John Lewis) | 3:04 |
| 9. | “The Long Walk Home” | 1:30 |
| 10. | “Concerto No. 3 in D Major (Allegro)” (Johann Sebastian Bach) | 2:35 |
| 11. | “Theme from Love Story” (Finale) | 3:52 |
| Total length: | 30:15 |
Snow Frolic
I Love you, Phil
The Christmas Trees
Search for Jenny
Bozo Barrett
Skating Central Park
The Long Walk Home
Concerto No. 3 in D Major (Allegro)
Theme from Love Story” (Finale)
Charts
| Chart (1971) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report) | 18 |
Accolades
Awards and nominations
Later recognition and rankings
American Film Institute recognition
| Year | Category | Nominee | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies | Love Story | – |
| 2002 | AFI’s 100 Years…100 Passions | Ali MacGraw and Ryan O’Neal | 9 |
| 2005 | AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movie Quotes | “Love means never having to say you’re sorry“ | 13 |
| 2007 | AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) | Love Story | – |
Quotations
Two lines from the film have entered popular culture:
What can you say about a 25-year-old girl who died? That she was beautiful and brilliant? That she loved Mozart and Bach? The Beatles? And me?
The latter is spoken twice in the film, once by Jennifer when Oliver is about to apologize to her for his anger. It is also spoken by Oliver to his father when his father says “I’m sorry” after hearing of Jennifer’s death.
The quote made it to No. 13 onto the American Film Institute‘s AFI’s 100 Years … 100 Movie Quotes, a list of top movie quotes.
The comedy What’s Up, Doc? (1972), which stars O’Neal, refers to this line at the end, when Barbra Streisand‘s character says “Love means never having to say you’re sorry”, then bats her eyelashes. O’Neal’s character responds in deadpan fashion, “That’s the dumbest thing I ever heard.”
Sequels and remake
O’Neal and Milland reprised their roles for a sequel, Oliver’s Story, released in 1978. It was based on Segal’s 1977 novel. The film begins with Jenny’s funeral, then picks up 18 months later. Oliver is a successful, but unhappy, lawyer in New York. Although still mourning Jenny, he manages to find love with heiress Marcie Bonwit (Candice Bergen). Suffering from comparisons to the original, Oliver’s Story did poorly with both audiences and critics.
NBC broadcast Love Story, a short-lived romantic anthology television series, in 1973–1974. Although it shared its name with the novel and movie and used the same theme song – “(Where Do I Begin) Love Story” – as the movie, it otherwise was unrelated to them, with no characters or storylines in common with either the novel or the movie.
The original film was remade in India in the Hindi language entitled Sanam Teri Kasam in 2016. The film is a modern rendition of the novel Love Story by Eric Segal. The film was released worldwide on 5 February 2016 under the production banner of Eros Now.
In February 2021, remodeled ViacomCBS streaming service Paramount+ announced a remake of Love Story as a TV series, to be part of their new lineup of content. The series is to be produced by young adult stalwarts Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, made prominent due to young adult hits such as The O.C., Gossip Girl and Looking for Alaska. It is to be made for Schwartz and Savage’s production house, Fake Empire, as a co-production between Paramount Television Studios and CBS Studios.
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