Star 80
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| Star 80 | |
| Directed by | Bob Fosse |
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| Produced by | Wolfgang Glattes Kenneth Utt |
| Starring | Mariel Hemingway Eric Roberts |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | November 10, 1983 |
| Running time | 100 min. |
| Country | U.S.A. |
| Language | English |
Star 80 is a 1983 film about the true story of Playboy Playmate of the Year Dorothy Stratten, who was murdered by her estranged husband Paul Snider in 1980. The film was shot on location in Vancouver, British Columbia and Los Angeles, California; the death scene was filmed in the apartment in which the murder actually took place. The story is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning Village Voice article "Death of a Playmate" by Teresa Carpenter; the film's title was taken from the vanity license plates of Paul Snider.
The fictionalized director Aram Nicholas is based on Stratten's real-life lover, Peter Bogdanovich. Hugh Hefner sued the producers of the film because he did not like the way he was portrayed, perhaps in part because the article the film was based on suggested that Stratten was as much a victim of Hefner and Bogdanovich as she was of Snider. Hefner also later sued Bogdanovich for the negative portrayals in Bogdanovich's book about Stratten, The Killing of the Unicorn. In a later interview in 1998, Hefner stated that he still disliked the film on account that it was a poor portrayal of Dorothy Stratten, although he did commend Eric Roberts for "an excellent portrayal of the sick husband who murdered her".
Star 80 is not the first movie to be based on the murder of Dorothy Stratten. In 1981, there was television film Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story in which Jamie Lee Curtis portrayed Stratten and Bruce Weitz portrayed Paul Snider.
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[edit] Reception
The film received a mixed reception upon release. The Washington Post called it "Bob Fosse's latest stylish stinker." Gene Siskel placed the film on his top ten list of the best films of 1983, taking into account that the film was very unpleasant to watch. It was generally agreed, however, that Eric Roberts gave a startlingly impressive performance as Snider. [1] Roger Ebert gave the film four out of four stars.[2]
[edit] Cast
- Mariel Hemingway as Dorothy Stratten
- Eric Roberts as Paul Snider
- Cliff Robertson as Hugh Hefner
- Carroll Baker as Nelly Hoogstraten
- Roger Rees as Aram Nicholas
- Dean Hajum as George
- Josh Mostel as Private Detective
- David Clennon as Geb
- Lisa Gordon as Eileen
[edit] Crew
- Bob Fosse - Director/Screenwriter
- Wolfgang Glattes - Producer
- Kenneth Utt - Producer
- Sven Nykvist - Director of Photography
- Grace Blake - Associate Producer
Roberts earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Dramatic Actor. Star 80 was the last film Fosse directed.
[edit] References
- ^ "The Best of 1983", Siskel & Ebert At The Movies, 1983.
- ^ :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews :: Star 80 (xhtml)
[edit] External links
- Star 80 at the Internet Movie Database
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