Customer Reviews

The Cotton Club

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The lines between jazz, bootlegging and race are blurred in Francis Ford Coppolas's wonderful 1984 feature set during the late 20's and early 30's in Harlem, NYC at the world famous Cotton Club. At long last, MGM has finally released The Cotton Club on its "Contemporary Classics" series. What this means is that die hard fans will get a reasonably priced DVD in the widescreen format but with virtually no extras included. MGM is notorious for being stingy on their DVDs. The theatrical trailer is included. You can watch the film in French or read French or Spanish subtitles. Nice hard case but only a card listing the cast and a brief description of the film, no booklet. As for deleted scenes: well, there aren't any. Unless you included a brief shot during the trailer or an exchange between Vince (Nick Cage) and Dixie (Richard Gere) in which Dixie asks "Why were you fighting niggers?" when he said "Why were you fighting the coloreds?" in the earlier version. This is not a restored version and the color has tinges of red from fade in indoor scenes, a few light scratches also visible. Still, one of the best movies ever. Wonderful musical scenes and a terrific cast featuring Gere, Diane Lane, Bob Hoskins, Lonette McKee, and Gregory and Maurice Hines. Usually ragged on for costing too much (it lost money in the theatre and was the most expensive film for its time) but for first time viewers (and there are a lot of you out there), I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. A must have for lovers of the film, but we can only hope a restored director's cut DVD with some of the many scenes that were cut from the film along with some commentary from the pricipals will be released in the future. Until then, enjoy this version and be wowed for 2 hours and 9 minutes.

This is one of Coppola all time greats. A must for any jazz fan. The sound track is also a must have. Coppola put a lot into this production; unfortunally it was underrated and under appreciated and never got the credit it deserved.

It's great to finally have this movie on video in the widescreen format. However, I am disappointed that the deleted scenes which were advertised here and on MGM's official website are not on this DVD. It would have been nice to view them but I guess MGM decided not to release them at the last minute (perhaps a special edition DVD is in the works in the near future) or Coppola didn't allow MGM to release them. Perhaps he's planning to extend this film like he did with Apocalypse Now. Anyway, despite the missing deleted scenes, it's great to see this film again in its original aspect ratio with the theatrical trailer which ironically has brief moments of scenes that were deleted from the film.

"THE COTTON CLUB" is one GREAT FILM!I loved everything about it,the cast,(even Richard Gere),the history of Harlem,the history of the rackets,the sets,the music,the dancing,but I especially LOVED the fantastic LONETTE MCKEE,who dominated every scene she appeared in.What beauty,what singing and dancing talent,what great emotional range of love,hurt,and tenderness she displayed, in this highly underrated(by the critics)motion picture.I cannot understand why she hasn't become a major star.Hollywood is notorius for it miss handling of actress,especially ladies of color and I guess Lonette is suffering the same fate as Lena Horne and Dorothy Dandridge,among others suffered,but that was over sixty years ago,you would have though that things would have changed.Bob Hoskins,Fred Gwynne,James Remar,Gregory Hines(as a hoofer and Lonettes' love interest),and Nick Cage are among the actors that add to the flavor of "THE COTTON CLUB".The GREAT GWEN VERDON has little more than a cameo as Geres and Cages mother.Diane Lane didn't do anything for me,but she wasn't bad as Dutch Schultzs' mistress,who falls in love with Dixie Dwyer(Gere).But this Lonettes' show and SHE STEALS IT!!

za za za zoom! the music, the cast and the dancing... gregory hines is absolutely un-hooked in this film. his unbearably cool tap solo centerpiece is filmed so well it is simply stupendous. it is spliced with the gangsters violence and the contrast between the art and destruction is astounding.
this movie is bliss if you love jazz, dance and great cinematography.
what a superior treat!

There are not enough superlatives for this movie. It brims with style, class, talent and low-down, no-good scum. There are the heartless ones trying to stay at the top of the dog heap juxtaposed against the ones with heart selling their souls to crawl higher on the heap.

Richard Gere and Diane Lane are young, star-crossed, and multi-talented. Gere does his own cornet solos and Lane sings a gravelly "Ain't I Blue" while carrying a torch for Dixie Dwyer (Gere) right before her mobster boyfriend's deadly jealous eyes. Gere and Lane hate each other for their impossible love: they dance a slapping fight on the dance floor of the club while other dancers imitate their brawl, believing it to be a new dance step. This is among the many classic moments not to be missed.

A sub-theme of segregation is interwoven with stunning tap numbers and loaded songs, showing the irony and snobbery of a famous club that allowed only black people to sing, dance, and hoof it on stage while not allowing them entry via the front door as patrons. (See The Cotton Club's own Website for more history.)

At times, although the rivalry and bloodshed was riveting (I abhor gratuitous violence in movies but this one could not be told without depicting the violence of the era) there were moments when I wished we could just cut to the stage for an entire performance--instead of seeing snatches cut, albeit skillfully, into the mob and romance scenes. The song and dance numbers were sensational; it left me longing to transport myself back to the hey day of The Cotton Club for a year's worth of stellar entertainment.

My one disappointment was Cab Calloway. The actor chosen for the role certainly had the energy and crazy spontaneity of the real Cab, but not near the voice. It was like hearing a lukewarm sound coming out of a powerhouse body.

I spent years not realizing that Richard Gere is a very talented man, not just an actor. After seeing him in Chicago we found him ballroom dancing in Shall We Dance. A chance look at Laurence Fishburne's bio at the end of Tuskegee Airmen led us to The Cotton Club and we pounced when we saw Gere in the cast line-up. I've gone from feeling so-so about Richard Gere to wishing he would make more movies of this ilk.

I don't know what ever happened to Lonette McKee, but the 5 minute sequence at the heart of this picture, wherein she belts out "Ill Wind" over a Coppola photo-montage of the roaring 20s, was one of the great cinematic moments of all time -- true "movie magic."

There are many other priceless gems here too: the Gregory Hines' and partner dances, especially Hines' eerie, slow, dark screen finale, Cab Calloway himself as if sprung straight from time-travel, only a little messed and maybe better for it, even Richard Gere himself doing his clarinet, to name just a few.

Simply, this film must be seen as a talent showcase, not a drama. The format is rather dated and unknown to us, but was common during the early talkie era, and revived during World War 2 for USO show films. It has largely disappeared since, and indeed it is perhaps not the most clever use of cinema -- it can be a little irritating like an old 50s/early 60s TV variety show, where the format finally died the long death. Younger viewers may never well have even seen the format.

Actually though, the now lite/now heavy background plot stringing the segments along is hardly the worst. Gere, in superb lite touch mode, aids it greatly. Diane Lane is perfect. And finally Nicholas Cage actually convinces you something serious is going on -- just the right edge before Hoskins and Gwynne come back for the laughs.

Coppola sends his heavy "Godfather" infatuation up the flagpole here with the running gag on the idiot-looney tune gang leader Dutch Schultz, expertly added by little known James Remar. Yeah, the character is introduced a little heavily at the start, but remember, this is a Coppola movie. Actually, the greatest gift is that most often, that's hard to remember during this brilliantly entertaining 2 hours.

There was a lot of truth in "The Cotton Club" e.g., Blacks not allowed into a nightclub in the heart of Harlem yet allowed to perform for a white audience. That was then. Richard Gere and Diane Lane and all the other actors in this film are exceptional and the costumes and sets are gorgeous. Gere especially fits in nicely with a sense of the 20's as a trumpet player. With his thin mustache and swagger, he looks like one of those thick and hunky members of the band you see in the background of a 30s or 40s musical. Diane Lane is stunning as the mobster's moll who gets involved with Gere. It was also nice to see Broadway's former dance star, Gwen Verdon, still red-haired and sassy as Gere's mother. One of the highlights of the film for me was watching Lonette McKee in the role of one of the club's dancers. To hear her sing is pure delight and so is this film.

This movie is brilliant and fascinating from beginning to end. It's so romantic, stylish and beautiful. I always loved everything about it, and was really surprised to know it wasn't a huge hit when it first came out. To me, it's a cult movie.
Diane Lane's character, the tough adolescent who looks like a grown woman and whose face is her fortune, is a personal favourite of mine. I love her wardrobe and hair style, as well as how she starts out as a brunet in the movie and turns blond by the end. People talk a lot about Richard Gere's trumpet playing and not enough about what a nice singing voice she has. I always thought she was a very underestimated actress.
The musical scenes are unforgettable. I loved the late great Gregory Hines, both as a dancer and as an actor, and he really excelled in this picture.
It's a master piece and no one should miss it.

Absolutely brilliant recreation of the atmosphere of the cotton club and its music and dancing. The opening credits with the Mooche is electric. So is the musical Montage at the end. Unfortunately the plot is pretty awful. The gangster part should have been played down considerably and the musical aspect of the Cotton Club should have been the focus. The entire Nicolas Cage and Dutch Shultz subplot could have been removed. They should have kept the Gere / Lane and the Hines / Mckee love story. The gangster part need only have been represented by Hoskin and Gwynn at the club itself. The rest of the gangster stuff could have just been represented by more montages combined with music.
The Mckee scene with Ill Wind, I can watch over and over again. It was criminal that her other performance at Vera's Club was cut short by the gangster scenes.
Whenever I watch the movie now, I just fast forward to the Brilliant Music and Dancing. This movie could have been one of the greatest musicals, but instead it was released as a mediocre gangster movie.