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''Café Society'' is a 2016 American romantic
comedy drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
film written and directed by
Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...
. It stars Jesse Eisenberg,
Kristen Stewart Kristen Jaymes Stewart (born April 9, 1990) is an American actress and director. She has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and a César Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe ...
, Steve Carell, Jeannie Berlin,
Blake Lively Blake Ellender Brown (born August 25, 1987), known professionally as Blake Lively, is an American actress. A daughter of actor Ernie Lively, she made her professional debut in his directorial project ''Sandman'' (1998). She had her breakthrou ...
, Parker Posey,
Corey Stoll Corey Daniel Stoll (born March 14, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Congressman Peter Russo on the Netflix political thriller series ''House of Cards'' (2013–2016), for which he received a Golden Globe nomination in ...
, and
Ken Stott Kenneth Campbell Stott (born 19 October 1954) is a Scottish stage, television and film actor who won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 1995 in the play ''Broken Glass (play), Broken Glass'' at Royal National Thea ...
. The plot follows a young man who moves to
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
in the 1930s, where he falls in love with the assistant to his uncle, a powerful talent agent. The film had its premiere at the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
on May 11, 2016, and was theatrically released in the United States on July 15, 2016, by
Amazon Studios Amazon MGM Studios is an American film and television production and distribution company owned by Amazon, and headquartered at the Culver Studios complex in Culver City, California. Launched on November 16, 2010, it took its current name on O ...
and
Lionsgate Lions Gate, Lion Gate or similar terms may refer to: Gates *Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the ancient Hittite city of Hattusa, now in Turkey *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the gardens of Hampton Court Pala ...
. It received generally positive reviews and grossed $43 million. It received nomination at the Golden Eagle Award in 2017 for Best Foreign Language Film.


Plot

Bobby Dorfman is the youngest son of a Jewish family in New York City in the 1930s. His elder sister Evelyn is a married school teacher, while his elder brother Ben is a gangster. Discontented with working for his father, a jeweler, Bobby decides to move to Hollywood, where he takes a job running menial errands for his uncle Phil, a powerhouse talent agent. Phil introduces Bobby to his secretary Veronica, nicknamed Vonnie, who is tasked with helping Bobby settle into Hollywood. Bobby is drawn to her unpretentiousness as opposed to most young women living in Hollywood, and falls deeply in love with her. She rebuffs his advances, telling him she has a journalist boyfriend named Doug. In reality, "Doug" is Phil, with whom Vonnie is carrying on an illicit romance; he promises to divorce his wife and marry her. On the first-year "paper anniversary" of their affair, Vonnie gives Phil a letter written and signed by
Rudolph Valentino Rodolfo Pietro Filiberto Raffaello Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguella (May 6, 1895 – August 23, 1926), known professionally as Rudolph Valentino and nicknamed The Latin Lover, was an Italian actor who starred in several well-known sile ...
as a gift. However, Phil proceeds to tell her that he is incapable of divorcing his wife, so he ends the affair. Vonnie subsequently surrenders to Bobby's love for her and their friendship turns into a romance. A forlorn Phil confides in Bobby about his affair—without naming his mistress—before telling him that he is determined to divorce his wife. Bobby passingly mentions his relationship with Vonnie and his intention to marry her and return to New York. Phil begins petitioning Vonnie privately to leave Bobby and marry him instead. While having a conversation with Phil in his office, Bobby notices the Valentino letter. Recognizing it from Vonnie's account on her breakup with "Doug", he confronts her and asks her to choose between himself and Phil. Vonnie chooses Phil. A heartbroken Bobby returns to New York City where he begins to run a high-end nightclub with his gangster brother, Ben. It soon becomes a famous hangout for the rich and powerful, from politicians to gangsters. Bobby meets divorcée Veronica Hayes at the nightclub, and they begin dating, soon getting married. On an extended visit to New York, a happily married Phil and Vonnie stop at the nightclub and insist on seeing Bobby. Vonnie has become a pretentious name-dropper and Bobby is at first repulsed by her. However, he agrees to show her around New York—as she had once done for him in Hollywood. They spend an evening without Phil, visiting Bobby's favorite haunts and, as dawn breaks over
Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...
, share a kiss; but it is clear that it can go no further. Bobby's sister Evelyn asks their brother, Ben, to "talk to" her disagreeable neighbor; Ben promptly kills him. He is arrested and convicted of murder and racketeering. Shortly before he goes to the electric chair, he converts to
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
, mortifying his parents. His late brother's notoriety propels the nightclub to new heights, and Bobby travels to Los Angeles to contemplate opening a Hollywood version. He ultimately decides against it, but before he leaves, he and Vonnie have lunch together, where she mentions that she and Phil will be returning to New York for a short visit. However, they both agree to avoid seeing each other. Months later, on New Year's Eve, a pregnant Veronica asks Bobby if he has ever cheated on her, saying she had a dream in which he slept with Vonnie while he was in Hollywood, but he denies it. Bobby is in New York City hosting festivities in his nightclub, while Vonnie is with Phil at a Hollywood house party. As the new year is rung in, they both seem distant to their spouses, and both have a faraway look in their eyes.


Cast


Production

By March 9, 2015, Jesse Eisenberg,
Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is a retired American actor. He achieved fame with a leading role on the comedy-drama series ''Moonlighting (TV series), Moonlighting'' (1985–1989) and has appeared in over one hundred films, gaining ...
and
Kristen Stewart Kristen Jaymes Stewart (born April 9, 1990) is an American actress and director. She has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and a César Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe ...
were added to the cast of the
Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...
film, which was produced by Letty Aronson, Stephen Tenenbaum and Edward Walson. On May 6, 2015,
Blake Lively Blake Ellender Brown (born August 25, 1987), known professionally as Blake Lively, is an American actress. A daughter of actor Ernie Lively, she made her professional debut in his directorial project ''Sandman'' (1998). She had her breakthrou ...
was cast, followed by Parker Posey in mid-July. By August 4, 2015, more cast was added, including Jeannie Berlin,
Corey Stoll Corey Daniel Stoll (born March 14, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Congressman Peter Russo on the Netflix political thriller series ''House of Cards'' (2013–2016), for which he received a Golden Globe nomination in ...
and
Ken Stott Kenneth Campbell Stott (born 19 October 1954) is a Scottish stage, television and film actor who won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 1995 in the play ''Broken Glass (play), Broken Glass'' at Royal National Thea ...
, along with Anna Camp, Stephen Kunken, Sari Lennick and Paul Schneider. In August,
Tony Sirico Genaro Anthony Sirico Jr. (; July 24, 1942 – July 8, 2022) was an American actor. Often cast as a mobster, he portrayed Paulie Gualtieri in ''The Sopranos''. Born in Brooklyn to an Italian-American family, Sirico had a tumultuous early life ...
was cast and Max Adler had also joined the cast. Vittorio Storaro is the
cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...
. On August 24, 2015, it was reported that Willis had exited the film due to his scheduling conflicts with the Broadway stage adaptation of the
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...
novel '' Misery''. On August 28, 2015, Steve Carell was cast to replace Willis. In March 2016, the title was confirmed as ''Café Society''.


Filming

Principal photography on the film began on August 17, 2015, in and around Los Angeles. On September 8, 2015, filming moved to New York City, where it was shot in Brooklyn. Allen moved to
digital Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits. Businesses *Digital bank, a form of financial institution *Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) or Digital, a computer company *Digital Research (DR or DRI), a software ...
for the first time, using a Sony CineAlta F65 camera for this, his 47th film. The film began with a budget of $18 million; however it went over budget, and by the end of production, its budget reached $30 million, making it one of the most expensive films of Allen's career.


Release

In February 2016,
Amazon Studios Amazon MGM Studios is an American film and television production and distribution company owned by Amazon, and headquartered at the Culver Studios complex in Culver City, California. Launched on November 16, 2010, it took its current name on O ...
acquired distribution rights to the film. In March 2016, the film was selected to open the
2016 Cannes Film Festival The 69th Cannes Film Festival took place from 11 to 22 May 2016. Australian filmmaker George Miller (filmmaker), George Miller was the president of the jury for the main competition. French actor Laurent Lafitte was the host for the opening and ...
. The film also opened the
Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) is a film festival held annually in Seattle, Washington, United States, since 1976. It usually takes place in late May and/or early June. It is one of the largest festivals in the world, and feature ...
, on May 19, 2016, and served as the closing night film of the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. It was announced that
Lionsgate Lions Gate, Lion Gate or similar terms may refer to: Gates *Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the ancient Hittite city of Hattusa, now in Turkey *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the gardens of Hampton Court Pala ...
would team up with Amazon to release the film on August 12, 2016. It was then moved up to July 15, 2016, in a
limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...
, before the wide expansion will starting July 29 and the widely release on August 5.


Reception


Box office

''Café Society'' grossed $11.1 million in the United States and Canada and $32.7 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $43.8 million. The film was released in five theaters on July 15, 2016, and grossed $359,289 in its opening weekend, an average per-theater gross of $71,858, the biggest average of 2016 to that point (its record was broken the following week by '' Don't Think Twice''s $92,835 average). The film had its wide release on July 29 and grossed $2.3 million, finishing 12th at the box office.


Critical response

On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, the film has an approval rating of 71% based on 258 reviews, with an average rating of 6.2/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "''Café Society''s lovely visuals and charming performances round out a lightweight late-period Allen comedy whose genuine pleasures offset its amiable predictability." On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the film has a score of 64 out of 100, based on 37 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Writing for ''New York'', David Edelstein gave the film a positive review, stating: "''Cafe Society'' is a surprisingly graceful work. It's a young man's tale of woe rendered with an old man's aversion to dawdling over what can't be helped, over questions of human nature that have long been settled to everyone's dissatisfaction. The worldview is weary, and Allen narrates in a voice that, for the first time, suggests his 80 years of age. But his touch lightens with each film, and the melancholy bubbles up from below and catches you off guard."
Owen Gleiberman Owen Gleiberman (born February 24, 1959) is an American film critic who has been chief film critic for '' Variety'' magazine since May 2016, a title he shares with . Previously, Gleiberman wrote for ''Entertainment Weekly'' from 1990 until 2014. ...
of '' Variety'' gave the film a mixed review, writing, "''Café Society'' leaves you dreaming of the movie it might have been had Woody Allen made it by doing what he's done in his best work: nudging himself out of his comfort zone." Wendy Ide of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' gave the film three stars out of five, commenting, "From the reassuring chug of Woody Allen's trademark trad jazz score to Jesse Eisenberg's disconcertingly accurate channeling of the director's jittery introspection, this handsome, nostalgia-sodden romance feels rather familiar. But just when you are about to dismiss the picture as pure cappuccino froth, the bittersweet bite kicks in. It's not in the same league as Allen's finest work, but nor is it a honking misfire like '' Magic in the Moonlight''." Todd McCarthy of ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' added, "Layered with a rich soundtrack of romantic tunes from the period, this is a familiar tale of love yearned for, gained, lost and savored after the fact. In other words, it's a format Allen has relied upon many times before, but even past the age of 80, the still-fertile writer-director, amazingly sticking to his one-film-per-year rhythm (not to mention his upcoming TV series, also with Amazon), has created a small fiction of amiable appeal and vibrancy which goes down as easily as a fizzy cocktail."


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cafe Society (film) 2016 films 2016 romantic comedy-drama films 2010s American films 2010s English-language films Amazon MGM Studios films American romantic comedy-drama films English-language romantic comedy-drama films FilmNation Entertainment films Films about adultery in the United States Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles Films about Jews and Judaism Films directed by Woody Allen Films produced by Letty Aronson Films produced by Stephen Tenenbaum Films set in the 1930s Films set in Los Angeles Films set in New York City Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in New York City Films with screenplays by Woody Allen