The film became a blockbuster upon its release , grossing over $ 32 million , making it the sixth highest-grossing film of 1971 and one of the most successful films in history , with an expense-to-profit ratio of 1:32 ; beyond that , it is estimated video rentals and purchases in the United States since the 1980s have produced an additional $ 20.5 million . On this point , Raucher said in May 2002 that his ten percent of the gross , in addition to royalties from book sales , " has paid bills ever since . " As well as being a commercial success , '' Summer of ' 42 '' also received rave critical reviews . The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 77 % approval rating based on 22 reviews , with an average rating of 6.7 / 10 . It went on to be nominated for over a dozen awards , including Golden Globe Awards for " Best Motion Picture – Drama " and " Best Director " , and five Academy Award nominations for Best Original Music Score , Best Cinematography , Best Editing , Best Writing-Story and Best Screenplay . Ultimately , the film won two awards : the 1972 44th Academy Awards Oscar for Original Dramatic Score , and the 1971 BAFTA Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music , both to Michel Legrand
1972 44th Academy Awards
44th Academy Awards
Summer of '42