Customer Reviews

Carnal Knowledge

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Mike Nichols was on a roll after "The Graduate" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" "Carnal Knowledge" is his most intimate film, and one of the most daring of the 1970s. Its frankness in dealing with young men's sexual psychology has not lost its edge after thirty years. On top of it all, it gives us Nicholson's first truly great performance. The early scenes between him and Garfunkel are fresh and sincere. Spanning some three decades of their friendship, we see how their attitudes towards sex, and women in general, shape their lives. Both actors do a fine job of communicating the gravity of those years, and the most devastating scene is the one where Jack delivers a long and furious tirade at Ann-Margret. "I don't want a job, I want you," she says, to which he replies, "I'm taken...by me!" Brutally honest, yes, but because we've seen what comes before, it's perfectly logical. These men are still affected by the innocence of their younger years, but that innocence is violently clashing with their adult understanding (or lack thereof)--the understanding that the personality is in perpetual motion, and that it becomes difficult to keep up. The movie is often bleak in its settings and its subject matter, but the characters are very real--they challenge you to challenge them. Their dysfunctions may enlighten you, and there is nothing bleak about being enlightened. Oh, and Ann-Margret achieves bombshell status with this movie, playing a woman who at first seems to be the answer to all of Nicholson's fantasies. "Bye Bye Birdie" it ain't.

One of the most controversial movies ever made, this early 1970s' masterpiece cemented the reputations of Jack Nicholson and Mike Nichols, proved that Art Garfunkel can act, gave Candice Bergen her big break, and turned Ann-Margret into a serious actress. Initially, "Carnal Knowledge" was greeted with mixed reactions, but over time has been considered groundbreaking in its frank portrayal of sexual relationships between two womanizing friends over a nearly 30 year period.

The film starts off in college, where two friends name Jonathan (Nicholson) and Sandy (Garfunkel) are roommates who dote on sex and nothing else. When Sandy meets Susan (Bergen) at mixer, he is immediately smitten with her, as is Jonathan, who takes her under his own wing. A few years go by as we see Sandy become involved with Jennifer (Carol Kane). Finally, Jonathan falls in love with the beautiful, and, yes, busty Bobbie (Ann-Margret, who deservedly got an Oscar nomination for her role). Their relationship becomes rougher as years go by, culminating in one of Nicholson's greatest fits of rage ever, matched by Ann's emotional breakdown as she begs him to marry her. The film seems to be very crowded, but the plot unfolds so smoothly, you never get a sense of "gosh, I wanna shut this off because I don't understand it", since every storyline in it grabs you and never lets go.

The performances in this film are perfect. Nicholson gives one of his best performances ever as Jonathan, while Ann-Margret gives what may well be her single greatest performance of her career. It was great to see these two perform together, as Nicholson is my favorite actor and Ann my favorite actress. The two play off each other so well that they make the film watchable for their chemistry alone. Garfunkel was a perfect choice to play Sandy. Everyone may know him as one half of Simon & Garfunkel, but watching him play the part, he embodies it so well you can't imagine anyone playing the role. Though she leaves the movie pretty early, Candice Bergen did a superb portrayal of Susan, and Carol Kane was great as Jennifer. Rita Moreno does not appear until the last scene, but she really does the make the most of her screen time.

"Carnal Knowledge" is a cinematic masterpiece that belongs in any dvd collectio. Do not hesitate in purchasing this movie. It is a must have.

This movie traces the male attitude toward sexual relations from the 1940s to the late '60s. Jack Nicholson and Art Garfunkel are the two male friends who are college roomies, fall in love with the same girl, and then go their separate ways. Nicholson is the women-hating, unable-to-become-committed one, who ends up impotent except when told how masculine and tough he is. Garfunkel never knows who he is or what he wants, and although he gets the right girl in college, throws it all away later on. A depressing look at this situation, to be sure (over the 20 years dealt with in the film, things only go from bad to worse to awful), but fairly on target, and again Nicholson as the male monster is excellent. Though somewhat outdated, the movie is perceptive and well done. Worth a watch.

The comedy isn't broad enough to make repeat viewings of CARNAL KNOWLEDGE very much fun, the characters are too riddled with the flaws and twisted desires of genuine people to make them great personalities, and the dysfunction of the relationships hardly gets any "rooting interest" going for anyone--but this movie still feels funny and real over thirty-some years later.

The performances are great, the writing extremely sharp. Jack Nicholson's selfish hedonistic heel is hilarious and his pointy eyebrows and mischevious grins perfectly embody his character. From his bellowing tirades to his bitter but funny "slideshow," he's great fun to watch.

Art Garfunkel plays a great sad sack romantic and Candace Bergen brings a genuine depth to the girl torn between them.

If anyone stands out, it has to be Ann Margaret, baring body and soul in her role as Nicholson's sex kitten.

I've always believed that the 1970's was the last great period of movies. CARNAL KNOWLEDGE is one of the reasons why.

This was a ground breaking movie for 1971. THey not only talked about sex, but you saw ann margaret topless. But thats only a minor issue. You become immersed thinking you are there for the 98 minutes. It moves along at a fast pace and the acting, oh the acting. Nicholson is at his classic best. He mesmerizes and garfunkel acts like he has been acting for 30 years. amazing. its not a comedy. why others say it is baffles me. its a rather dark look at two people, one never happy who treats relationships like gutter garbage and one who is more softer and kinder who at times is led astray by the other. What can I say. its riveting movie making. and a true classic. DONT MISS IT.

This movie was one of the first movies to really push the envelope when it came to sex and relationships. The movie explored the relationship between two college buddies as they started out their single lives just trying to get laid. As time went on, one of them decided to get married and experience the "typical" life(Art Garfunkel), while the other one went about just trying to get laid(Jack Nicholson). The idea of "looks are everything" was portraied by Jack Nicholson, who just wanted a girl that was well-endowed. Art Garfunkel on the other hand was more sensitive to what a woman wanted, but still did not fully understand what love is. Both characters had very different ideas on what they wanted in a woman, but both were unable to appreciate what they had, and often went looking elsewhere. One of the most important lines in the movie comes in the opening credits where the two debate if it is better to love and not be loved back, or to be loved and not love them. This is the theme the director uses to define the movie. Nicholson is loved, but has no love to give. Garfunkel loves, but is not loved back. It is interesting to watch their lives play out as they grow older, but seems to be missing something that would make it a classic. I think this could be helped with a better ending, more closure to their lives.

B+

...as they were here to their more contemporary selves. Nicholson's portrayal of the misogynistic half of a college roommate duo reveals even here a developing gift for playing cynics. The term his character uses here--"ballbusters"--what he sees as women's power to use a man's own libido as a weapon against him--is in spirit a lot like his court-martialled military officer's sneer in "A Few Good Men": "You can't HANDLE the truth!". In contrast, the role Candice Bergen plays here--a cutesy coed who in one scene gets goofy drunk and giggles her way through that old Sunday school joke about the hymn about a bear with crossed eyes--doesn't even seem like the same woman who would later become a lot more famous as the world-weary know-it-all Murphy Brown. Art "Simon and" Garfunkel isn't much of an actor, but he doesn't really have to be as Nicholson's nice-guy roomie (which casts him as sort of a double-foil to BOTH of his more talented costars).

I rented this and was pleasantly shocked. A very mature movie with genuinely great dialogue. The banter and over analysis by each character truly is Seinfeldian and I'm sure YEARS ahead of its time. The use of the camera is also delectible; often you will hear conversations by characters off screen while the camera is focused on someone merely "listening". Often a character will be looking straight at the camera (YOU) while they are speaking to another making you feel like you are more connected to the movie. And of course Jack has a big tirade that brings the house down!

The only unfortunate aspects are Candice Bergen disappearing midway through and an ending that was less than fulfilling. A perfect rental and a good buy; if your a Jack fan it's good, if your a fan of thoughtful conversation it's a MUST! And I hear that "Arthur" Garfunkel fella has a side project... something to do with.. music? And a decent actor to boot.

This 1971 film is about the relationships that two male friends have with the women in their lives and covers a period of about 20 years starting in the late 1950s. It stars Jack Nicholson and Art Garfunkel and begins in their college days. It seems the only thing they talk about is women and sex and there a touch of humor in their quest for their first intimate experience.

There's a comic quality to their early liaisons they both have with Candice Bergen but they are still very young. Fast forward a few years and Nicholson is now romancing Ann Margaret. Their relationship is based on their mutual attraction and is doomed from the beginning. Eventually Ann Margaret stops working and does nothing but sleep. Garfunkel is having his own problems with his wife. The two men commiserate but neither of them see how they are sabotaging their own interests by their objectifying the women in their lives.

The film moved slowly and many of the shots were filmed against a stark background in an attempt to be arty. There were lots of close up shots of sorrowful faces. The acting was good, of course and I especially liked the role of Rita Moreno who appears only in one dynamic scene which sums up the relations that Jack Nicholson has with his women.

Even though the film was intense and well acted, I just plain didn't like it. I was a bit bored and annoyed at the characters. Yes, it was a window into relationships between the sexes and it was well done but it was just too downbeat for my taste.

This film shows us how certain people handle relationships and once sex is added in. Nicholson is the sly smooth talking guy who Garfunkel thinks is his buddy, but doesn't realize he is being used to set up Nicholson with his newly found crush Candy Bergen. They remain friends and we are shown how their lives go on and how they fall into certain traps due to weaknesses in their character. A very realistic look at life's relationships in the modern world that may appear a little tame by today's standards, But the driving forces remain the same. The acting is superb, the settings are fine, and the story is gripping and ageless.