Rent The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
3.8 of 5 from 162 ratings
1h 18min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- Lonely Depression-era waitress Cecilia (Mia Farrow) is hopelessly addicted to Hollywood movies. Spellbound by her new favorite, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Cecilia is astonished when the leading man (Jeff Daniels) suddenly walks off the screen to meet her. Wooed by his charm, Cecilia finds herself falling for him - until she meets the real actor who plays him. Romanced by both a fictional character and a famous star, Cecilia struggles to locate the shifting line between fantasy and reality, only to discover that sometimes it's just a heartbeat away.
- Actors:
- Mia Farrow, Jeff Daniels, Danny Aiello, Irving Metzman, Stephanie Farrow, David Kieserman, Elaine Grollman, Victoria Zussin, Mark Hammond, Wade Barnes, Joseph G. Graham, Don Quigley, Maurice Brenner, Paul Herman, Rick Petrucelli, Peter Castellotti, Milton Seaman, Mimi Weddell, Tom Degidon, Mary Hedahl
- Directors:
- Woody Allen
- Producers:
- Robert Greenhut
- Writers:
- Woody Allen
- Others:
- R, Greenberg Associates
- Studio:
- MGM
- Genres:
- Classics, Comedy, Romance
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch if You Like Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, 10 Films to Watch if You Like: Day For Night, A Brief History of Archaeology on Screen: Part 1, A History of Cinemas in Films, A History of Films about Film: Part 1, Films & TV by topic, Films to Watch If You Like..., Fred and Ginger: Duets and Solos, Holidays Film Collection, New waves of Polish Cinema, Romantic Film Pairings for Valentine's Day, A Brief History of Film..., What to watch by country, What to Watch Next If You Liked Nomadland
- Awards:
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 09/01/2017
- Run Time:
- 84 minutes
- Languages:
- English Dolby Digital 1.0, English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.85:1
- Colour:
- Colour and B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
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Reviews (2) of The Purple Rose of Cairo
Purple rose of cairo - The Purple Rose of Cairo review by VK
Wonderful film. Woody Allen is the best of the best filmmakers. The film is funny but not clownish and not a 4 letter word or violent action in sight. Just great.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Period Heartbreaker (spoiler). - The Purple Rose of Cairo review by Steve
Cute fantasy set in New Jersey in the 1930s. Mia Farrow plays a bullied housewife so starved of love that she dreams, or wills, an explorer (Jeff Daniels) off the cinema screen and into her arms. As he is a celluloid character from a screwball comedy, the clean cut adventurer must learn to live in the real world of the depression.
Then, in a spellbinding echo of Buster Keaton's 1924 classic, Sherlock Jr, Mia ultimately enters the screen herself, and experiences all the glamour of the Hollywood dream. This is a brilliant technical feat from cinematographer Gordon Willis, in which characters enter/leave the screen, transforming from black and white to colour. The sets and period detail are exceptional.
Beyond the comic and romantic premise, this is a heartbreaking work of illusion in which cinema becomes the drug that palliates the horror of reality. Unfortunately, the misogynistic, violent and impoverished world that Mia inhabits is so appalling that it is difficult to reconcile this barbarity with such a sentimental diversion.
This conflict is mainly due to a most effective performance from Danny Aiello as the abusive husband. Still, the final scene in which his wife has been let down so badly she struggles to lose her heart to the magic one more time, while Fred and Ginger dance on the big screen, is a killer. If you don't shed actual tears, call for an ambulance.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.