DeniDVD Vault: Ragtime (1981) The great James Cagney's last film
July 12th 2010 03:52
Category: Drama
While the movie cuts corners from the novel, it is still a sweeping epic of grandiose proportions. Forman doesn't give us an exact year of when the film takes place but rather sets the time by giving us certain parameters of newsworthy events for a general idea. Most likely because some of the actual events are a few years off
Elizabeth McGovern as Evelyn Nesbit
The minor characters included in the framework are Tateh (Mandy Patinkin), Mameh (Fran Dreschner) and their Little Girl. Mameh is forced to prostitute herself and when Tateh finds out, he takes their Little Girl and leaves and where their journey leads is based on the outcome of the central story-line. Forman brings us back to the attention of Coalhouse Walker, Jr. He's a man ahead of his time in an era where pride is reserved for the privileged. He's handsome, talented, well spoken, self-assured and unfortunately he's black - a crime of that time which automatically cancels out his virtues. He just secured work as a piano player for a ragtime band. His goal is to establish himself as a worthy suitor for Sarah (Debbie Allen) before he asks for her hand in marriage.
Howard E. Rollins Jr. as Coalhouse Walker, Jr.
With the wedding ceremony set, Coalhouse leaves in his Model T where he is later blocked by the volunteer fireman, lead by Willie Conklin (Kenneth McMillan), all of whom are are angry that a black man could possibly own his own car. After he returns from complaining to a policeman (Jeff Daniels), he finds a pile of horse manure dumped on his front seat. Coal simply wants his car restored to the way it was and he will not rest until it's cleaned. This incident sparks a chain of events which affects the rest of the characters. It's as if they are guided throughout the story in an elaborate flowchart based on choice that determines the outcome for each character by the end.
The pacing of the story speeds up and Coalhouse is on a mission to reclaim his pride by any means necessary. His
James Olson & Mary Steenburgen as Father & Mother
This is an incredible film inundated with superb acting by a wonderful cast, especially from the late Howard E. Rollins, Jr. When he's in the Library marked by indecision and perhaps regret at how far his obsession has taken him - possibly facing death, his moments of contemplation are
Brad Dourif as Younger Brother
Director Milos Forman has a very special gift for directing period movies. I just don't know of many other directors who can magically capture the life-blood of a historical era and make you believe that it's all there and actually happening before your eyes. I felt the same when watching Amadeus. The cinematography is amazing, the sets and costumes are elaborate and convincing and the background action enhances the performances of the central characters. Forman extracted such incredibly moving characters in James Cagney, in his final role, along with Elizabeth McGovern, Mary Steenburgen, Brad Dourif, and James Olson. This film also introduces future stars in smaller roles like, Fran Dreshner, Mandy Patinkin, Jeff Daniels, Jeffrey De Munn, and Samuel L. Jackson just to name a few, and Jack Nicholson is along for the ride in a small role as a Pirate.
James Cagney as Rhinelander Waldo
The only fault that I can think of lays in the differences from the novel. While the novel gives equal time to each story line, the movie wisely focuses only on one to avoid clutter, and leaves the other characters in the background, occasionally taking center stage throughout the film. Everyone plays an integral part in a carefully woven tapestry, however if you are not familiar with the novel, this can lead to a possible disconnect and some confusion as some characters seem to be randomly introduced and then used to tie up the ending in a neat package, as far as I can tell this is the only problem of an otherwise engaging film.
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Comment by ShaunK
Screen Adventure
Great one Deni!
Comment by Deni
Abstract Magick
Cinema Herald
Yeah when I first saw this movie, I was kind of confused but I came to appreciate at more recently after all these years - especially after familiarizing myself with the book. It's a good watch. It's long too...It think it's about 154 minutes, so make yourself comfortable.
You know what, after reading your review for Saturday Night Fever, I watched it again. I had a blast...it was great to revisit such a classic.
Cheers,
Deni
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Comment by Deni
Abstract Magick
Cinema Herald
David - Randy should have won hands down! But I'm of the mind that since it was his first nomination, they passed him up. That's my guess anyhow.
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I saw this one about 10 years ago out of curiosity for Cagney. While there is no denying that he was superb and the rest of the cast were fantastic. I thought the film lacked focus and for every good scene there seemed to be two that didn't forward the narrative and tended to repeat what had come before.
Still not a bad film over all, would probably be about a 6/10 for me.
I do love Milos' work, so i guess my expectations were quite high, especially as you said because he does historical period pieces well. Does capture the era well.
May revisit it someday.
Comment by Deni
Abstract Magick
Cinema Herald
What you refer to is what I mention in my review. It's the films only flaw in that there is some detachment. But once I understood the source material, I really enjoyed the film the second time around.
Cheers.