Warning! The following contains SPOILERS for both The Four Seasons series and the original movie. Stream them with a Netflix subscription and read at your own risk!
From the moment I first watched The Four Seasons remake on Netflix, I knew that I wanted to check out Alan Alda's original movie. The series is one of the best shows on streaming, but I felt like I couldn't properly judge it until I saw just how much it took from the original and what it changed.
The Netflix show's cliffhanger ending that opened the door for Season 2 wasn't the only big change The Four Seasons show made from the original movie, and I have to say, I love the tweaks that were made. For those who haven't seen the movie, here are some key differences that really worked in the new version.
The New Series Combined The Old Jack And Danny Into One Person, Which Works Much Better
The original version of The Four Seasons featured widely different versions Jack and Danny, to the point it's hard to even compare them and the Netflix cersions. What's more apt to say is that the writers of the remake took the best of what's good in the original Jack, and the hypochondria of the original Danny, and folded it into the Jack we see played by Will Forte.
It's the perfect role for someone like Forte, who is criminally underrated in his ability to commit to a bit. I was initially surprised to see he was basically tasked with marrying the roles of two actors into one performance. However, I was not at all surprised to see he was able to make Jack still appear calm and unable to get a rise out of while still leaning into the fear that he's always dying of something when events are at their most stressful.
It adds to the dynamic of Jack and Kate's marriage, which is not really in question in the original movie. I much preferred seeing every couple struggle in their marriage in different ways, even if in reality, there might've been a couple who didn't have much going on in terms of drama compared to the others in their friend group. It makes for a more entertaining story and helped make Kate and Jack one of my favorite couples.
The New Danny And "Claude" Give Much-Needed Variety To The Couples
Combining the old Jack and Danny meant The Four Seasons remake needed to create a new Danny, and they picked the perfect, critically acclaimed actor for it. Colman Domingo was a great choice for the new Danny as a Black gay man. The original version of The Four Seasons came out in 1981, and while the opportunity was there, there was little to no diversity in the couples.
Of course, the other obvious change is that "Claude" replaced "Claudia" with Marco Calvani playing the Italian husband of Danny rather than than getting the Italian-American wife of Danny again, previously played by Rita Moreno. The difference between the two's personalities has some clear differences, with Claude bringing more of a foreign perspective to combat the American cast.
Had I watched the original version of The Four Seasons first, I don't think I would've noticed. After seeing the remake, however, it's apparent just how similar all the couples in the friend group of the original are, and that revamping Claude and Danny was necessary in order to keep the series from retreading the same ground in each storyline.
Anne Has More Support Of Her Friends In The New Version
Nick complains in The Four Seasons remake that Anne is a wet blanket who never wants to do anything, but he should've met the Anne in the original movie. While the former was addicted to farm games on her tablet, the other spent the prior two years photographing vegetables as a hobby. Additionally, it was all she talked about in her limited appearances in the movie, which made it a real bummer.
Anne has a much greater presence in The Four Seasons remake, in part due to her sneaking out to an adjacent resort and also due to her friends wanting to keep her included. The Anne of the original doesn't receive nearly as much support from her friends, who spend far more time with Nick and Ginny in comparison.
While Anne gets an arguably happier ending in the original movie with her own budding career compared to where Anne is at in the remake, Season 2 is going to give her a chance to continue her story. At least, I hope it will, but I don't think the show will let us down.
Killing Nick Was The Best Decision
I feel terrible admitting this, but after watching The Four Seasons movie, I have to say that the Netflix version made the right call in deciding to kill Nick off at the end. I feel a lot more sympathy for Nick in death than I do in life, as the movie doesn't really deliver the karmic justice he received in the form of a scathing play written by his daughter. The movie portrays him as a serial cheater, and he's rightfully called out for being selective in explaining to friends why his marriage to Anne didn't work out.
There's just more territory for the series to travel with Nick dead, and now that we know The Four Seasons will return for Season 2, I can't wait to see what's next for Ginny and Anne as they continue on with their lives. With him still in the picture, it just doesn't hit as hard, as evidenced by the movie of the same name.
I do think it's a shame that The Four Seasons Season 2 will have to push on without Nick, but I don't think it's impossible to work him into the story. I think the series could and should do a flashback episode that just shows us Nick and Ginny as a couple together since we didn't see a ton of that during the series. Specifically, I'd love to see their trip to Burning Man together, which is something the original movie would've never covered.
Both versions of The Four Seasons are currently available to stream on Netflix. While I prefer the series remake to the original movie, I think both are great to watch to see the difference between telling a story between two different eras of couples, and the similarities and differences between divorce at that time.
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