Cafe Society (1995) | Frank Whaley, Peter Gallagher

Cafe Society (1995) | Frank Whaley, Peter Gallagher | Amazing

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Cafe Society (1995)

	Cafe Society (1995) Frank Whaley, Peter Gallagher Sony Pictures, 1999 average customer review:based on 5 reviews view larger image
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This 1995 curiosity by Raymond DeFelitta suffers from miscasting and some grating ideas about shooting and editing sex scenes for the ultimate visual dissonance. But it is also an insightful period piece that is set in the 1950s and is concerned with official efforts to secure trophy arrests and trump up charges for maximum career gain. A web is spun once an undercover cop (Peter Gallagher) steps into a Manhattan nightclub and sets his sights on a gossipmonger and part-time pimp (John Spencer), as well as the latter's ne'er-do-well playboy nephew (Frank Whalley). The stew thickens as a former call girl (Lara Flynn Boyle) with a reinvented identity enters the picture. Eventually, all the falsity causes this lot to tumble into a heap of depravity. DeFelitta tries too hard to make something artful of the anything-goes ambience of mindless (often criminal) pleasures. Whalley is the weakest link, his gifts as an actor lean more toward a young Jack Lemmon than a seductive bad boy. But as a window onto an American era and a self-aggrandizing government, there is much to view here. --Tom Keogh

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I LOVED IT

I thought this was a wonderfully acted, beautifully shot film. The dialog is also hilarious - really "period" and smart. If you like 50s movies, this one's for you.

Amazing

I had never heard of this. Rented on a lark. Found it fascinating, capturing the mood of gone time when sophisticated types partied in swanky joints. Go ahead. Indulge. LFB is beautiful. It will surprise you.

Sordid underside of 1950's glamour

This movie is based on a real-life scandal, the sting operation against call-girl operations in New York in the early 1950's that entrapped margarine heir Mickey Jelke, who had fallen in love with one of the targeted courtesans. It's a fascinating, if ultimately somewhat depressing, look at just how tawdry life in the chichi "cafe society" of 1950's Manhattan could be under the glittering surface. There aren't any really 100% sympathetic characters in this film, which undoubtedly causes some viewers a lot of problems. The costuming, particularly the gorgeous women's clothing (the "New Look" era is my favorite costume period along with the Regency and late Victorian/Edwardian eras), is first-rate.

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