Endless Love (1981 film)

Endless Love
Theatrical release poster
Directed byFranco Zeffirelli
Screenplay byJudith Rascoe
Based onEndless Love
by Scott Spencer
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyDavid Watkin
Edited byMichael J. Sheridan
Music byJonathan Tunick
Production
company
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release date
  • July 17, 1981 (1981-07-17) (United States)
Running time
116 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$9.7 million[1]
Box office$32.4 million

Endless Love is a 1981 American romantic drama film directed by Franco Zeffirelli, and starring Brooke Shields, Martin Hewitt, Shirley Knight, Don Murray, Richard Kiley, Penelope Milford and Beatrice Straight. It also marked Tom Cruise's film debut.

Based on the 1979 Scott Spencer novel of the same name, the screenplay was written by Judith Rascoe. The original music score was composed by Jonathan Tunick. Although the novel is set in the summer of 1969, the movie transports the action to the early 1980s. The film also discards the non-chronological structure of the novel and tells all the events in chronological sequence.

Critics compared the film unfavorably to the novel, which showcased the dangers of obsessive love. Despite the poor reviews, its eponymous theme song, performed by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie, became a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.[2] The song spent nine weeks at #1 and received Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for "Best Original Song", along with five Grammy Award nominations.

  1. ^ "AFI|Catalog".
  2. ^ Novak, Lexi (February 13, 2014). "Then and Now: Romance, Endless Love Style". Allure. Retrieved November 16, 2023.