Summary
Carnal Knowledge spans 30 years in the lives of two college friends, guys played by Jack Nicholson (you won't believe how young he looks) and Art Garfunkel (yes, one and the same). Jack Nicholson plays a tax lawyer with the hots for women who are, shall we say, well-endowed. Garfunkel plays the more temperate guy, a doctor who has quiet affairs. As they go from youth to middle age, the movie, revolutionary at the time and wonderfully directed by Mike Nichols, follows their paths, examining how their attitudes toward women and sex are a reflection of their life values. It's not a pretty picture, and despite the titillation of the title, it's not even particularly sexy. But it's worth seeing, even if only for the way in which it is viewed as a pioneer film of the early 70s, a time in which long-held Hollywood traditions were giving way to more adult-style movies.