Ragtime

Ragtime

New York, early 20th century. Architect Stanford White is shot by millionaire Harry K. Thaw for the alleged affair with his wife Evelyn. Coalhouse Walker Jr. is a prosperous black ragtime pianist, but his success is not appreciated by everyone, which leads to a lot of racist harassment by the mainly white population. Coalhouse is seeking justice by any means necessary, legal or not.

Mother from a family in New Rochelle takes in Coalhouse's girlfriend and their newborn child, but Father intends to hand the child over to the police to use as a bargaining chip against the urban terrorism that Coalhouse is causing as a protest. Simultaneously, Younger Brother, the brother of Mother, begins a romantic affair with Evelyn, leading to an entanglement of both situations.

Commentary

This iconic, quintessentially American classic, based on the historical bestseller of the same name by E.L. Doctorow, tells of class struggle, social change and the gap between rich and poor.

Although Robert Altman (Nashville, The Long Goodbye) was originally selected to direct the film, it was two-time Oscar winner Milos Forman who took his place after a disagreement between Altman and producer Dino De Laurentiis.

An unexpected appearance by the already retired 81-year-old James Cagney helped the film gain even more recognition, the role being his very last in a feature film. The film earned 8 Academy Award nominations, including Best Supporting Actor for Howard E. Rollins Jr., who debuted with Ragtime, and Best Original Music and Best Original Song for the work of composer Randy Newman.

More info

Fiction / 1981 / United States/ English
director Milos Forman cast James Cagney, Elizabeth McGovern, Howard E. Rollins Jr. and others