The Cotton Club (1984)
The Cotton Club (1984)
1984’s The Cotton Club marks Francis Ford Coppola’s return to the world of mobsters…and to mixed results. If you are familiar with the director’s filmography, you will know he is the creative mind behind The Godfather films. I thought being back in his wheelhouse, he would create another masterpiece. While not a completely bad film, the highly energized film is rather bland, and the strong cast is not able to live up to its complete potential. It is an interesting movie to dissect and the making of the movie itself is somewhat interesting.
Robert Evans, the famed producer behind Chinatown, had his eyes on to direct the film. He backed out and suggested Coppola to direct this movie. In purely financial terms, this was a mistake for the studio as the budget ballooned under his supervision. Mario Puzo, who had written The Godfather and its sequel, actually had a script that was already completed. Coppola hired William Kennedy at the last minute to make intense script rewrites. Coppola insisted on using his own crew which added to the increased costs. I find it noteworthy that the film had financial backing from an eccentric mix such as an Arab arms dealer and a vaudeville performer. In the end, the film bombed at the box office and was a major loss for the studio. Unfortunately, the film’s quality is not The Godfather.
While the film may not be my favorite, it still is imminently watchable. There are stuff I enjoyed. The look and detail are excellent. I felt like I was in 1920’s/1930’s Harlem. Not being a big jazz fan, I found myself enjoying the music. The music is essential to the film’s structure. The performances are mostly rock solid, especially Bob Hoskins as one of the film’s gangsters. He does know how to play the villain. The tapdancing sequences with Gregory Hines and his brother are well-staged. The issues I have boil down to the script, the story itself, and Richard Gere’s performance.
Coppola’s film tells the intersecting stories of Sandman Williams (Gregory Hines) and Michael “Dixie” Dwyer (Richard Gere). Sandman performs at the Harlem jazz club, “The Cotton Club.” He is a black man performing for white audiences. He falls in love with one of the chorus singers, Lila Rose Oliver (Lonette McKee). She aspires to be a Broadway star. Dixie is one of the club’s patrons. He saves the life of a gangster, Dutch Schultz (James Remar) which allows him to join the inner circle. He falls in love with Dutch’s teenage girlfriend, Vera Cicero (Diane Lane). Growing tired of the gangster’s senseless violent actions, he wants a way out. That means going through another gangster, Owney Madden (Bob Hoskins) who actually owns “The Cotton Club.”
The film has a large cast of awesome actors, I’ll give it that. Richard Gere and Diane Lane are the lead actors, but I felt their performances were rather bland. Their chemistry was not believable. The supporting cast was much better. Bob Hoskins stole the show as Owney Madden. He makes a fun gangster. Gregory Hines is a performer so it’s no surprise I liked his tap-dancing routine. James Remar was a bit over-the-top, but it is still a fun performance. Other supporting actors that show up are Nicolas Cage, Laurence Fishburne, and Fred Gwynne to name a few.
The Cotton Club is not my favorite movie of 1984. It relies heavily upon style over substance. If Coppola took a moment to pause and review the story, I think it would have made a difference. Ironically enough, Coppola actually made a director’s cut a few years back and was released to solid reviews. I was interested enough throughout the film to warrant the new cut a look. That said, this can be seen as a slight disappointment given the pedigree of the cast and crew.
My Grade: C+
1984’s The Cotton Club marks Francis Ford Coppola’s return to the world of mobsters…and to mixed results. If you are familiar with the director’s filmography, you will know he is the creative mind behind The Godfather films. I thought being back in his wheelhouse, he would create another masterpiece. While not a completely bad film, the highly energized film is rather bland, and the strong cast is not able to live up to its complete potential. It is an interesting movie to dissect and the making of the movie itself is somewhat interesting.
Robert Evans, the famed producer behind Chinatown, had his eyes on to direct the film. He backed out and suggested Coppola to direct this movie. In purely financial terms, this was a mistake for the studio as the budget ballooned under his supervision. Mario Puzo, who had written The Godfather and its sequel, actually had a script that was already completed. Coppola hired William Kennedy at the last minute to make intense script rewrites. Coppola insisted on using his own crew which added to the increased costs. I find it noteworthy that the film had financial backing from an eccentric mix such as an Arab arms dealer and a vaudeville performer. In the end, the film bombed at the box office and was a major loss for the studio. Unfortunately, the film’s quality is not The Godfather.
While the film may not be my favorite, it still is imminently watchable. There are stuff I enjoyed. The look and detail are excellent. I felt like I was in 1920’s/1930’s Harlem. Not being a big jazz fan, I found myself enjoying the music. The music is essential to the film’s structure. The performances are mostly rock solid, especially Bob Hoskins as one of the film’s gangsters. He does know how to play the villain. The tapdancing sequences with Gregory Hines and his brother are well-staged. The issues I have boil down to the script, the story itself, and Richard Gere’s performance.
Coppola’s film tells the intersecting stories of Sandman Williams (Gregory Hines) and Michael “Dixie” Dwyer (Richard Gere). Sandman performs at the Harlem jazz club, “The Cotton Club.” He is a black man performing for white audiences. He falls in love with one of the chorus singers, Lila Rose Oliver (Lonette McKee). She aspires to be a Broadway star. Dixie is one of the club’s patrons. He saves the life of a gangster, Dutch Schultz (James Remar) which allows him to join the inner circle. He falls in love with Dutch’s teenage girlfriend, Vera Cicero (Diane Lane). Growing tired of the gangster’s senseless violent actions, he wants a way out. That means going through another gangster, Owney Madden (Bob Hoskins) who actually owns “The Cotton Club.”
The film has a large cast of awesome actors, I’ll give it that. Richard Gere and Diane Lane are the lead actors, but I felt their performances were rather bland. Their chemistry was not believable. The supporting cast was much better. Bob Hoskins stole the show as Owney Madden. He makes a fun gangster. Gregory Hines is a performer so it’s no surprise I liked his tap-dancing routine. James Remar was a bit over-the-top, but it is still a fun performance. Other supporting actors that show up are Nicolas Cage, Laurence Fishburne, and Fred Gwynne to name a few.
The Cotton Club is not my favorite movie of 1984. It relies heavily upon style over substance. If Coppola took a moment to pause and review the story, I think it would have made a difference. Ironically enough, Coppola actually made a director’s cut a few years back and was released to solid reviews. I was interested enough throughout the film to warrant the new cut a look. That said, this can be seen as a slight disappointment given the pedigree of the cast and crew.
My Grade: C+
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