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The Cotton Club (1984)

Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
Starring: Richard Gere (Dixie Dwyer), Diane Lane (Vera Cicero), Gregory Hines (Sandman Williams), Lonette McKee (Lila Rose Oliver), James Remar (Dutch Schultz), Bob Hoskins (Owney Madden), Nicolas Cage (Vincent Dwyer), and a whole host of others including Glenn Withrow (Ed Popke)
Rated: R (violence, coarse language etc)


The Cotton Club revolves around the real life jazz club in Harlem. It's set in the early 1930s, during Prohibition and features two major storylines - that of cornet player Dixie Dwyer, who gets mixed up with mob boss Dutch Schultz and falls for his mistress Vera (while his brother gets in deep with the mob...) and tap dancer Sandman Williams and his relationships with his brother who's also an entertainer, and the lead chanteuse at The Cotton Club, Lila Rose Oliver.

The movie opens with Dixie "accidentally" saving Dutch Schultz's life, and Dutch repays him by employing him...not that Dixie is that keen on the idea. Dutch also gives work to Dixie's brother Vincent and his friend Ed, work which in the end, turns out to be in the less than glamorous roles of "mob goons."

Meanwhile Sandman is struggling to further his career, and finally gets a spot with his brother performing as a dancer at the Cotton Club. He meets singer Lila and attempts to convince her into a romance.

Dixie finds himself falling in love with Dutch's girl on the side, Vera Cicero. Vera doesn't love Dutch, but she is aware that a relationship with him will buy her exactly what she wants - a nightclub of her own. Dixie attempts to get himself out of the mess he's in with the help of club owner Owney Madden, who gets him into the movie business and out from under Dutch. However, his brother and Ed are still in deep with the mobster, and begins terrorizing the people and neighbourhood in the name of Dutch Schultz.

When Sandman essentially sells out his brother for a solo career, and it's years later before he attempts to fix things.

In the end, Dixie comes back for Vera, whose life owning her own club turns out to be as much of a prison as her relationship with Dutch. With the mobster trying too hard to take control of everything around him, things slowly begin to unravel, and Dixie tries to convince Vera to leave town with him.

The movie is absolutely beautiful to look at. The costumes, songs and dance routines are all gorgeous, and the film does a great job of recreating the era. Even the violence is done in an artistic and almost beautiful way. When Dutch attacks a fellow mobster at a party in a bloody knife fight, a drip of blood falls onto Vera's cheek, mimicking a tear (freaking genius ... it's that kind of "ugly beautiful" that FFC does so well ... that shot of Diane with the blood tear actually reminds me of the last shot of Glenn as Biff Wilcox in Rumble Fish, before the motorcycle hits the character).

Diane Lane is absolutely gorgeous. She plays the vampy Vera with just the right amount of a tough edge, not so over the top that you begin to hate her. She manages to keep Vera likeable. Even Richard Gere, whom I don't usually enjoy, was very good in this. And, surprisingly enough, I really like Nicolas Cage in this. He's so hit or miss with me, movie wise. There are some movies I just can't stand him in and other movies I really like him in (The Rock)

James Remar is creepy as hell as Dutch Schultz. I mean, the man disturbs me. He plays Schultz's raging, violent, mean and off balance personality really well. It's great, in a really creepy way. He always freaks me out though. Although I started to like his character by the end of the Drugstore Cowboy.

I have to admit I found the subplot story of the Sandman to be the slowest part of the movie for me.

Glenn plays Ed Popke, a friend of Vincent Dwyer, who gets pulled into the world of mobsters along with Vince, and begin to do the Dutchman's dirty work.

Purchase Information

DVD - From CDuniverse.com and Amazon.com

Links

Rumble Fish Online: Glenn Gallery from Cotton Club

Pictures
(Click to enlarge)



Ed (Glenn Withrow), Vincent (Nicolas Cage) and Dixie (Richard Gere) walk around the neighbourhood.



Vince, Dixie and Ed...still walking.



Vince and Ed at Dutch's party.



Dixie can't really believe the two of them are working for the Dutchman.



Dixie, Vince and Ed



Chatting about their new job.



Yeah...I like the suit. A lot.



Mob associate says 'get a move on boys.'



Yeah, again...the suit. It's nice.



Dixie gets picked up by Ed and finds out Vincent got shot.



Ed and Vince start shaking down the clubs in Harlem for the Dutchman. Smart move, guys.



Sol tells Ed and Vince to get lost when they want out.



You know...it's never good when a character is alone in a dark alley...



Even worse when he runs into Sol...



Ed seems a little worried , and who can blame him? It's Sol, with his hand out...in a dark alley.



The hand? Not empty so much as firing a big gun. He even shoots Ed once in the back. Not cool, Sol.



Yet again, Glenn's character gets to die.

 

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