The Ballad of the Sad Café (film)

The Ballad of the Sad Café
The Ballad of the Sad Café
	Film poster
Directed by	Simon Callow
Written by	Edward Albee; Michael Hirst; Carson McCullers
Produced by	Ismail Merchant
Starring	Vanessa Redgrave; Keith Carradine; Rod Steiger; Cork Hubbert; Austin Pendleton; Beth Dixon; Lanny Flaherty; Mert Hatfield; Earl Hindman; Anne Pitoniak;
Cinematography	Walter Lassally
Music by	Richard Robbins
Release date	February 1991;
Running time	100 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

The Ballad of the Sad Café is a 1991 Merchant Ivory film, produced by Ismail Merchant and directed by Simon Callow,^[1] starring Vanessa Redgrave and Keith Carradine.^[2] Michael Hirst adapted the Edward Albee play, which in turn was based on a novella in a collection of short stories of the same title by Carson McCullers. The film was entered into the 41st Berlin International Film Festival.^[3]

The story's protagonist is a lonely moonshiner named Miss Amelia who dominates a small Georgia town. She changes in attitude and kindness as two men, Cousin Lymon (a small, hunchbacked man claiming to be Miss Amelia's cousin) and Marvin Macy (Miss Amelia's ex-husband) enter her life. Her general store becomes a center for culture and music, and The Sad Café itself becomes a symbol of Miss Amelia's disposition. Amid this plot, issues of work vs. pleasure, material vs. psychological health, and conflicting loyalties emerge. The short story is told in flashback—giving the reader, first, a look at the ruined café before describing its heyday and subsequent demise.

Cast

Vanessa Redgrave as Miss Amelia
Keith Carradine as Marvin Macy
Cork Hubbert as Cousin Lymon
Rod Steiger as Rev. Willin
Austin Pendleton as Lawyer Taylor
Beth Dixon as Mary Hale
Lanny Flaherty as Merlie Ryan
Mert Hatfield as Stumpy McPhail
Earl Hindman as Henry Macy
Anne Pitoniak as Mrs. McPhail
Frederick Johnson as Jeff
Lauri Raymond as Sadie Ricketts
Joe Stevens as Henry Ford Crimp (as Joe Stephens)
Keith Wommack as Tom Rainey
Kevin Wommack as George Rainey
Laura Burns as Molly Kelly

References

^ "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1991)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
^ "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1991)". NY Times. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
^ "Berlinale: 1991 Programme". berlinale.de. Retrieved 21 March 2011.

External links

The Ballad of the Sad Café at IMDb

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[1] "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1991)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 1 June 2012.

[nytimes-2] "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1991)". NY Times. Retrieved 8 June 2012.

[Berlinale-3] "Berlinale: 1991 Programme". berlinale.de. Retrieved 21 March 2011.

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