''A Cold Wind in August'' (1961) is a low-budget, drama-exploitation film directed by

Alexander Singer Alexander Singer (born 18 April 1928, in New York City, New York, died 28 December 2020) was an American director. He began his career behind the camera in 1951 as a cinematographer on the short documentary '' Day of the Fight'', directed by his ...

and adapted from the eponymous novel by Burton Wohl. The film stars

Lola Albright Lola Jean Albright (July 20, 1924 – March 23, 2017) was an American singer and actress, best known for playing the sultry singer Edie Hart, the girlfriend of private eye Peter Gunn, on all three seasons of the TV series ''Peter Gunn''. Early ...

as a mentally unbalanced

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

show

stripper A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. Mo ...

in her 30s who becomes involved in a torrid romance with a 17-year-old boy played by

Scott Marlowe Scott Gregory Marlowe (born Ronald Richard DeLeo; June 24, 1932 – January 6, 2001)''Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014''. Social Security Administration was an American actor who had a starring role in the 1957 teen exploitation film '' ...

. In reality, Marlowe was actually 28, only eight years Albright's junior.

Plot

Iris (

), a woman with a background as a burlesque show stripper, is visited at her New York City apartment by her estranged husband. He requests that she star in an upcoming show in Newark, New Jersey for which he is obliged to supply performers. She resists the idea as she maintains her privacy by not working in shows local to the New York area. However, her husband is desperately in need of assistance. While she has no romantic feelings for him, expressing puzzlement as to why she ever married him, she nonetheless is friendly with him and feels sorry for his predicament, so she agrees to consider it. In the meantime, Iris meets Vito Perugino (

), the 17-year-old son of the superintendent of the apartment building (

Joe De Santis Joseph Vito Marcello De Santis (June 15, 1909 – August 30, 1989) was an American radio, television, movie and theatrical actor and sculptor. Biography Joe De Santis was born Joseph Vito Marcello De Santis to Italian immigrant parents in Ne ...

) and experiences an instant and powerful physical attraction to him. In their first meeting, she is shamelessly flirtatious; in their second, she completes her sexual seduction of him, marking the start of a passionate affair between the two. Iris unexpectedly finds herself experiencing an emotional attraction on top of her sexual one and a relationship she had originally intended to be brief turns serious. Vito asks Iris "to go steady" with him, and though she laughs a bit the teenager's use of that phrase to describe a committed relationship, she nonetheless happily accepts. After Vito's immaturity brings turbulence into the relationship in the form of jealousy, Iris makes an attempt to pull away from him, but the attempt only serves to make her miserable. She finds herself obsessed and wanting nothing but to return to him and resume a sexual and emotional satisfaction she's never experienced with any other man. She returns to Vito and they begin to patch their relationship, declaring their love for one another, but Vito is still unaware of her occupation, believing her to be a model or actress. When Iris performs in the Newark burlesque show, one of Vito's friends sees her and informs Vito. He initially refuses to believe it, but he attends the next night's show and sees for himself. With his youth, Vito lacks the ability to cope with the destruction of his idealistic view of Iris, and an explosive, and even momentarily violent, argument ensues between the two. After a week, Iris reaches out to Vito, hoping to make up with him by inviting him to her apartment for dinner. But upon his arrival, she quickly realizes that his interest in her has waned. While he had been sincere in his declarations of love for her, those feelings of "love" were just as prone to be fleeting as with any typical 17-year-old inexperienced in romantic relationships. Although he is no longer angry with Iris over her occupation, the discovery and subsequent argument have been enough so that even as his temper cooled, so did his passion for the relationship. Continuing to be sincere in expressing his feelings for her, Vito acknowledges what Iris has sensed. He is truly sorry for the pain that it is causing her and tries his best to console her, telling her that he wishes the fight between them that changed his feelings had not happened. But beyond that, there is nothing else he can do. Lest Vito have any doubt, the devastated Iris assures him that her love for him was, and still is, genuine. With that, Vito leaves, on his way to a date with the new object of his romantic attention – a girl his own age – and Iris is left alone sobbing.

Cast

as Iris Hartford *

as Vito Pellegrino *

Joe DeSantis Joe DeSantis (born September 24, 1957) is the color commentator for the radio and TV broadcasts of Fairfield Stags men's basketball and is a member of the New England Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the second longest tenured head men's basketbal ...

as Papa Pellegrino * Clark Gordon as Harry *

Janet Brandt Janet may refer to: Names * Janet (given name) * Janet (French singer) (1939–2011) Surname * Charles Janet (1849–1932), French engineer, inventor and biologist, known for the Left Step periodic table * Jules Janet (1861–1945), French psych ...

as Shirley * Skip Young as Al * Ann Atmar as Carol *

Jana Taylor Jana Taylor (July 27, 1943 – April 27, 2004) was an American actress best known for her role as Angie Costello on the ABC soap opera '' General Hospital''. Early life Taylor was born on July 27, 1943, in Far Rockaway, Queens, New York. Ca ...

as Alice * Dee Gee Green as Mary *

Herschel Bernardi Herschel Bernardi (October 30, 1923 – May 9, 1986) was an American actor and singer. He is best known for his supporting role in the drama television series '' Peter Gunn'' (1958–1961) and his leading role in the comedy television se ...

as Juley Franz

Reception

Frank for its time in its depiction of the sexual relationship between Vito and Iris, ''A Cold Wind in August'' was made and marketed simply as a low-budget,

exploitation Exploitation may refer to: *Exploitation of natural resources *Exploitation of labour ** Forced labour *Exploitation colonialism *Slavery **Sexual slavery and other forms *Oppression *Psychological manipulation In arts and entertainment * Exploi ...

movie.Kael, Pauline. (1982). ''5001 Nights at the Movies'', New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, But unlike most entries in that genre, the film managed to find something of a positive critical following. It received positive reviews from the ''New York Herald Tribune'',Stafford, Jeff.
A Cold Wind in August
, tcm.com ''Variety'' and ''Saturday Reviews Arthur Knight.

Robert Osborne Robert Jolin Osborne (; May 3, 1932 – March 6, 2017) was an American film historian, television presenter, author, actor and the primary host for more than 20 years of the cable channel Turner Classic Movies (TCM). Prior to hosting at TCM, Os ...

has called it one of the best of all films exploring the theme of a

May–December romance Concepts of age disparity in sexual relationships, including what defines an age disparity, have developed over time and vary among societies. Differences in age preferences for mates can stem from partner availability, gender roles, and evoluti ...

, echoing Lloyd Shearer's contemporary opinion that it was "probably the best treatment of a youth's affair with an older women Hollywood has ever produced". More negative were ''The New York Times'', asserting that the film "confused art for blatant sex", and ''Time'', labeling it as a "nutty melodrama". While by no means offering universal praise for the movie,

Pauline Kael Pauline Kael (; June 19, 1919 – September 3, 2001) was an American film critic who wrote for ''The New Yorker'' magazine from 1968 to 1991. Known for her "witty, biting, highly opinionated and sharply focused" reviews, Kael's opinions of ...

called it "shrewdly conceived and well-acted" and, agreeing with a consistent theme in the film's positive reviews, offered high praise for Albright's performance. In 1985, even ''The New York Times'', this time under the voice of a different critic, lauded Albright's acting in the film. At the time of the film's making, Albright said that she thought it was her best role to that date. Filmmaker

John Waters John Samuel Waters Jr. (born April 22, 1946) is an American filmmaker, writer, actor, and artist. He rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films, including '' Multiple Maniacs'' (1970), '' Pink Flamingos'' (1972) and '' Fe ...

has touted ''A Cold Wind in August'' as one of his favorite films.

Release

''A Cold Wind in August'' was released on July 26, 1961, in theatres. The film was released on DVD on March 29, 2011.

References

External links