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Richard Gere, Gregory Hines, Diane Lane, Lonette McKee, Bob Hoskins ... see more see more... , James Remar , Nicolas Cage , Allen Garfield , Fred Gwynne , Lisa Jane Persky , Maurice Hines , Julian Beck , Novella Nelson , Tom Waits , Wynonna Smith , Charles "Honi" Coles , Larry Marshall , Woody Strode , Dayton Allen , Tracey Bass , Sandra Beall , Ralph Brown , Thelma Carpenter , Kim Chan , Rony Clanton , Bill Cobbs , Nick Corri , Joe Dallesandro , Derwin Jordan , Wendy Edmead , Giancarlo Esposito , Laurence Fishburne , Nicholas J. Giangiulio , Jennifer Grey , Rosalind Harris , Sonia Hensley , Paul Herman , Robert Earl Jones , Ron Karabatsos , Damien Leake , Bruce MacVittie , Zane Mark , Susan Mechsner , Randle Mell , Ed O'Ross , Mario Van Peebles , Gregory Rozakis , James Russo , John P. Ryan , Tom Signorelli , Tucker Smallwood , Brian Tarantina , Leonard Termo , Diane Venora , Gwen Verdon , Glenn Withrow , Ed Zang , Bill Graham , Henry Le Tang , Marc Coppola , Sarita Allen , Jacquelyn Bird , Carla Earle , Joe Lynn , Steve Vignari , Bruce Howard , George Cantero , Vincent Jerosa , Ed Rowan , Christopher Lewis

Combining electric song and dance performances with drama (both on and off screen), Francis Ford Coppola's The Cotton Club (1984) looks back to the 1920s-1930s peak of the legendary Harlem nightclub w... read more read more...here only blacks performed and only whites could sit in the audience. Mixing historical figures with characters loosely based on actual people, Coppola and co-writers William Kennedy and The Godfather's Mario Puzo create a panorama of love, crime, and entertainment centered on the Club. Among them are cornet player Dixie Dwyer (Richard Gere, playing his own solos), who escapes psycho gangster "benefactor" Dutch Schultz (James Remar) for a George Raft-type Hollywood career as a gangster film star; Schultz's nubile mistress Vera Cicero (Diane Lane), who loves Dixie against her mercenary instincts; Cotton Club Mob owner Owney Madden (Bob Hoskins) and close associate Frenchy Demarge (Fred Gwynne); Vincent (Nicolas Cage), Dixie's no-good Mad Dog Coll-esque brother; Club tap star Sandman Williams (Gregory Hines), who woos ambitious light-skinned Club singer Lila Rose Oliver (Lonette McKee); and cameos by Charles "Honi" Coles and Cab Calloway impersonator Larry Marshall. Complementing the period story, Coppola evokes the style of '30s gangster movies and musicals through an array of old-fashioned devices like montages of headlines, songs and shoot-outs. Conceived by producer Robert Evans as his crowning achievement and directorial debut, Evans had to hand over the troubled production to Coppola, but the budget spiraled out of control as the script was repeatedly re-written throughout the chaotic shoot. By the time it was released, The Cotton Club's epic production story of power struggles, financial bloat, and even a murder overshadowed the "reunion" of The Godfather's creative team. Neither a Heaven's Gate-sized failure nor a wallet-saving hit like Coppola's Apocalypse Now, The Cotton Club got some favorable critical notices (although it drew fire for subordinating the African American stories). It did not, however, find a large enough audience to justify its expense and controversy, becoming another mark against 1970s "auteur" cinema in increasingly blockbuster-driven 1980s Hollywood. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

Flixster Users

52% liked it

6,680 ratings

Critics

74% liked it

23 critics

R, 2 hr. 7 min.

Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola

Release Date: December 14, 1984

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DVD Release Date: January 19, 2000

Stats: 236 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (236)

  • fb100002359227440
    May 21, 2011
    fb100002359227440
    Good motion picture, but The Cotton Club presents some cliches of gangsters movies. Whatever, Coppola made a remarkable film.
  • kenstachnik
    October 13, 2010
    kenstachnik
    While not the Godfather (and what is really...besides Godfather 2, but I digress)
    The Cotton Club is a great entertaining little movie. All controversy about it's making aside Coppola and Evans managed to craft a thoroughly entertaining film with several great scenes and mostly s... read moreolid performances (I'm looking at you Nic Cage and James Remar). I can say however, that this is hands down, the single best tap dancing gangster film ever made.
  • garyX
    March 8, 2007
    garyX
    Period gangster drama set around a nightclub in the 20s that's a little lacking in substance.
  • crossbladezero
    August 29, 2011
    crossbladezero
    I know he wrote it, but one can only wonder how many times they had to tell Francis Ford Coppola that they weren't actually sticking cotton in their mouths. See, a joke like that should tell you that I'm am drained of creative juices and it doesn't help that there's not much that... read more's very outstanding film. It's just kind of bland and not terribly original, making it pretty easy to lose interest in the film. The film also suffers from a lack of development and slow spots. Also, although anthologies feel smoother when we see the stories are split into segments layered on top of each other, whether then whole back-to-back stories, there is still a very real chance that the transition between story segments with kind of throw you off. That's definately the case here, as the messy storytelling makes our jumps between the multiple segments feel rather bumpy. Also, Diane Lane puts on a pretty weak performance and although she's rarely given anything to do, she's not the most enjoyable thing to see, outside of the pretty face, of course. Still, that short leg isn't enough to knock the chair over, because the other performances, keep the film going, among other things.

    The story is not terribly original nor complex, but still rather compelling and the fabulous production designs really bring everything to life. Coppola really knows how to bring life to this film's period in how he sets the tone and even though you've seen this period explored to death, it's still fascinating to see. What further captures the time are the performances, which - with the exception of Lane, of course - capture the time, but still enough spirit and charisma in them to make the characters strong ones. Wow, this review isn't as bad as I feared. I mean, it's pretty bad, but not as bad as the opening joke promised. I guess I'm just no good at jokes or producing enough sentences to close out a paragraph, leaving me to resort to this stupid monologue to close out this paragraph. Okay, let's just close this thing out.

    Overall, although the lack of originality and the somewhat messy storytelling keep it from delivering as well as a Coppola gangster film should, "The Cotton Club" holds the fabulous production design and compelling, well-acted ensemble that make a film like this an enjoyable one.
  • michaelcorleone
    August 18, 2009
    michaelcorleone
    Another underrated work from Francis Ford Coppola. I feel that this movie's triumphs outnumber its shortcomings, and it is a satisfying experience overall. It gets off to a weak start, and within the first twenty minutes I thought I was in for a tedious watch, but it really finds... read more itself in the second act. The screenplay went through numerous re-writes and alterations during the process of making the film, and that's definitely evident. Nevertheless, it pieces together nicely and aside from some poor dialogue, it's actually a well-written movie. As I have come to expect from Coppola, it is a technically astonishing piece with stunning art direction and some awe-striking film editing.
  • fb611440691
    May 6, 2012
    fb611440691
    Coppola turns out a polished music-video quality film with a script that isn't worth the paper it's printed on. Quality attributes include set design and wardrobe; but every line of dialogue is hackneyed eye-rolling silliness.

    Two plots are followed all around the setting of the... read more famous club in the Harlem, circa late-1920's. One involves Richard Gere, a musician who is in the wrong place at the wrong time when he accidentally saves the life of a crazed mobster. This guy takes a shine to him and puts Gere under his thumb. All the while, of course, while the musician secretly shares the mobster's girlfriend.

    The other plot is more entertaining, if still a little trite. But it involves the dancing aspirations of Gregory Hines. Here, Coppola films some really great performances from some truly beautiful people. The two plots interact under the club roof. But those don't serve as anything other than pretty time fillers. The direction is one-note, as are the performances of virtually all of the actors. Fred Gwynne and Tom Waits being exceptions. And, as I said, the script is little more than a precursor to Dick Tracy.
  • Adamkarchmer
    January 15, 2012
    Adamkarchmer
    The acting in this movie was horrible. I don't u derstand how people can call this movie enjoyable. The acting was so bad
  • PinkMinkPrincess
    June 14, 2011
    PinkMinkPrincess
    I love this Film, Diane Lane and Richard Gere's 1st Movie Together.Gere a Mobster's Underling & Diane Lane the Mobster's Mual they have a secret affair.The Cotton Club In Harlem , where only Blacks performed & was an Upscale Hangout of the Times is Done Justice to in the Movie I ... read morehave seen many times .
  • berigan
    March 9, 2009
    berigan
    Being a jazz fanatic, a fan of gangster films and enamored with Diane Lane since Rumblefish, of course I'm going to love this movie. I know that I'm swimming up-stream against the critics (and many movie buffs) - but it?s a near-perfect film IMHO. The half-star off, is for length... read more. Francis could have edited out at least 10 minutes.
  • terryc1000
    February 13, 2008
    terryc1000
    Period piece that is a little off but entertaining for Gere fans. Gere fans should watch it at least once.

View All The Cotton Club Reviews

Critic Reviews

Richard Corliss
March 13, 2009
Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine

Given its garish production history, one rather expected The Cotton Club to sing with hot-jazz desperation. Instead, we get the mediocre craftsmanship of a pit band in Vegas. Full Review

Dave Kehr
December 11, 2007
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

It was the most assured film Coppola had made in a decade, full of casual wit and visual invention. Full Review

Roger Ebert
October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Whatever it took to do it, Coppola has extracted a very special film out of the checkered history of this project. Full Review

March 13, 2009
Film4

This musical gangster movie is a tour de force, even if a little muddled. Full Review

December 11, 2007
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Lavish, interesting, evocative but strained and self-conscious, Cotton Club is all watchable curiosity. Full Review

June 24, 2006
Time Out

The narrative is a mess despite the simplistic twinning of tales. Full Review

Rich Cline
June 5, 2004
Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall

Energetic and involving.

Jeffrey M. Anderson
January 17, 2003
Jeffrey M. Anderson, San Francisco Examiner

Coppola's most shamefully underrated movie.

Chuck Rudolph
July 25, 2002
Chuck Rudolph, Matinee Magazine

Ambitious, but like many post-Apocalypse Coppola films, it doesn't quite hit the mark.

Jimmy Summers
June 5, 2002
Jimmy Summers, Boxoffice Magazine

There're always something and someone interesting just around the corner; and, if Coppola seems to have difficulty with the story's narrative line, he does manage to help the audience keep straight th... Full Review

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The Cotton Club Trivia

  • Renaissance Man Waiting To Exhale White Nights The Cotton Club Taps Who am I?  Answer »
  • Who directed the 1984 movie The Cotton Club?  Answer »
  • In the 1984 film Cotton Club Lawrence Fishburn's character was based on a real life Harlem gangster ?  Answer »
  • Nicolas cage's character in The Cotton Club -Mad Dog Dwyer was based on a n actual Irish Gangster ?  Answer »
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