10 Things to Know About Until September

10 Things to Know About Until September

10 Richard Marquand’s Unexpected follow up to Return of the Jedi

Director Richard Marquand, fresh off directing Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983), chose this intimate, adult romantic drama as his follow-up. It marked a deliberate shift from big-budget sci-fi to a smaller, location-driven love story.

9 Bad Poster Copy

Try and make sense of this poster copy, And try not going insane trying to rearrange the sentence.

“Only Once in Your Life will you meet that one person who changes you forever.”

That wasn't the only bad copy for Until September. The American poster for the film features this cheesy gem:

"He promised to love her... Until September."

8 Debuted at the 1984 Montreal Film Festival

Until September held its premiere showing at the 1984 Montreal Film with stars Karen Allen and Thierry Lhermitte and director Richard Marquand all in attendance.

7 Scripted from Personal Experience

Janice Lee Graham drafted the screenplay using her own eleven-year stint residing in Paris as inspiration. This marked her debut feature script, which she managed to sell to Michael Gruskoff in 1982 while employed as a secretary for Fox executive Edward S. Feldman. Gruskoff reportedly discovered the script in a neighboring office, and the film project was fast-tracked shortly thereafter.

6 Filmed Almost Entirely in Paris

Production kicked off on July 18, 1983, with filming spanning roughly 55 days and utilizing authentic Parisian locations. The production utilized an apartment situated on Avenue Charles Floquet in close proximity to the Eiffel Tower to serve as Xavier’s residence. Other notable settings featured Avenue Foch, Rochefort-en-Yvelines for the country estate, and a scenic Bateau Mouche cruise along the Seine.

Scenes were also captured at the Apocalypse disco, a grand mansion in Bois de Boulogne for a musical performance, and at Charles de Gaulle Airport. Additionally, a small unit traveled to La Napoule on the French Riviera to complete specific shots.

5 A $4 Million Dollar Budget

While MGM initially allocated a $4 million budget for the production, producer Michael Gruskoff successfully delivered the film for approximately $3.5 million. This financial efficiency was largely attributed to a highly advantageous exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and the French franc, as well as the strategic decision to employ local crew members to minimize daily expenses.

4 Even Scenes Set in Missouri Were Shot in France

The sequences featuring Mo Alexander’s plant nursery, though situated in St. Louis, were truly captured on a set designed to resemble America and erected in a Parisian outskirts field.

3 A Rare Zero on Rotten Tomatoes

The film holds the dubious distinction of a 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, gathered from a limited selection of critical reviews. Noted critic Roger Ebert delivered a scathing assessment, taking aim at the unconvincing romantic spark between the leads, the vacuous script, and the clumsy execution of the film’s central extramarital premise.

2 Even Filming in Paris, 80s Style Product Placement Made it Into the Film

The film’s closing credits feature specific acknowledgments for brands such as Chloe, Chemises de Charvet, Knoll International, Chanel, and Trans World Airlines. These inclusions highlight the 1980s-era penchant for product placement and corporate partnerships during the extensive Parisian production.

1 The Score by John Barry is The Best Reviewed Part of Until September

The iconic John Barry, hot on the heels of scoring Octopussy, composed and led the film's musical accompaniment, which was captured at London's CTS Studios. The score is a showcase of his hallmark orchestral richness, weaving together a primary theme of piano and strings with delicate motifs for flute and guitar. To enhance the film's emotional palette, Barry utilized a harmonica to evoke a sense of longing and a soprano saxophone for more intimate moments. In subsequent years, specialized labels like Intrada and Kritzerland have issued expanded versions of this celebrated work.