''The Battle of Love's Return'' is a 1971 American

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

written, directed, produced, and starring

Lloyd Kaufman Stanley Lloyd Kaufman Jr. (born December 30, 1945) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer and actor. Alongside producer Michael Herz, he is the co-founder of Troma Entertainment film studio, and the director of many of their featu ...

, the co-founder of

Troma Entertainment Troma Entertainment is an American independent film production company, production and film distributor, distribution company founded by Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz (producer), Michael Herz in 1974. They are the longest running independent film ...

, his first major film after his student production '' The Girl Who Returned''.

Plot

Abacrombie is a down-on-his-luck loser. After being fired from his job, he sets out on a quest to find himself, encountering a variety of oddball characters who only make it harder for him. Sooner or later, he stumbles upon the girl of his dreams, and he is determined to overcome his stupidity and win her heart.

Reception

The film was favorably reviewed by Howard Thompson of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' and Judith Crist of ''

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Clay Felker and Milton Glaser in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'' a ...

'', who compared Kaufman to

Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...

and

Mel Brooks Melvin James Brooks (né Kaminsky; born June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and songwriter. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodie ...

. The worst review, however, came from Kaufman's father: when asked what his favorite part was, he responded "''the part where Lloyd gets killed''".

Home media

The film has never been released on DVD individually, but is included in its entirety (and as a deconstructed version) on Kaufman's instructional box set, '' Make Your Own Damn Movie!'', and is included as an

Easter Egg Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are commonly used during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). The ...

on ''The Sexy Box'', a DVD boxset of ''

Squeeze Play! ''Squeeze Play!'' is a 1979 American comedy film directed by Lloyd Kaufman. Plot A group of New Jersey women, upset over their boyfriends' tendency to pay more attention to softball than their love lives, decide to beat them at their own game. ...

'', '' Waitress!'', '' Stuck on You!'' and '' The First Turn-On!''.

Production notes

*Future directors Allan Moyle and

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born ) is an American filmmaker. Stone is an acclaimed director, tackling subjects ranging from the Vietnam War and American politics to musical film, musical Biographical film, biopics and Crime film, crime dramas. He has ...

worked on the film as an A.D. and an actor, respectively. *During filming of the battle scene, which was shot in a meadow in the backyard of Kaufman's mother's house, a smoke bomb ignited a large patch of grass and grew out of control, almost destroying the neighbors' house before the fire department arrived just in time. Mrs. Kaufman was not pleased. *To promote the film, Kaufman and friends would run around New York City with a stencil of the film's logo and spraypaint it on streets and sidewalks.

References

External links

*
The Battle of Love's Return
– at the ''