Mike Nichols

Carnal Knowledge

Carnal Knowledge

Amid the sexual revolution and social upheaval of the early 1970s, acclaimed director Mike Nichols delivered a zeitgeist-defining examination of American mores. Sharply written by Jules Feiffer, this acerbic drama flashes through more than twenty years in the lives of two college buddies (Jack Nicholson and Art Garfunkel) whose casual chauvinism is all fun and games—until it’s not. As the women who suffer and see through the friends’ insecure posturing, Candice Bergen, Ann-Margret, Rita Moreno, Carol Kane, and Cynthia O’Neal form an extraordinary ensemble that gives the film its soul. So controversial it became embroiled in an obscenity case that went all the way to the Supreme Court, Carnal Knowledge remains startling for its unnervingly frank look at postwar masculinity.

Film Info

  • United States
  • 1971
  • 98 minutes
  • Color
  • 2.35:1
  • English
  • Spine #1270

4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES

  • New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
  • One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
  • New audio commentary featuring filmmaker and playwright Neil LaBute
  • New program with Mike Nichols biographer Mark Harris and film critic Dana Stevens
  • New interview with film-editing historian Bobbie O’Steen
  • Conversation from 2011 between Nichols and filmmaker Jason Reitman
  • Q&A with screenwriter Jules Feiffer
  • Radio spot and trailer
  • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • PLUS: An essay by scholar Moira Weigel and a 1971 piece from American Cinematographer about the look of the film

    New cover by Catarina Sampaio

Purchase Options

Coming soon, available Jul 22, 2025

4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES

  • New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
  • One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
  • New audio commentary featuring filmmaker and playwright Neil LaBute
  • New program with Mike Nichols biographer Mark Harris and film critic Dana Stevens
  • New interview with film-editing historian Bobbie O’Steen
  • Conversation from 2011 between Nichols and filmmaker Jason Reitman
  • Q&A with screenwriter Jules Feiffer
  • Radio spot and trailer
  • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • PLUS: An essay by scholar Moira Weigel and a 1971 piece from American Cinematographer about the look of the film

    New cover by Catarina Sampaio
Carnal Knowledge
Cast
Jack Nicholson
Jonathan
Candice Bergen
Susan
Art Garfunkel
Sandy
Ann-Margret
Bobbie
Rita Moreno
Louise
Cynthia O'Neal
Cindy
Carol Kane
Jennifer
Credits
Director
Mike Nichols
Produced by
Mike Nichols
Executive producer
Joseph E. Levine
Associate producer
Clive Reed
Screenplay by
Jules Feiffer
Production designer
Richard Sylbert
Director of photography
Giuseppe Rotunno
Editor
Sam O’Steen