Stardust Memories
Stardust Memories is a 1980 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, who stars alongside Charlotte Rampling, Jessica Harper, Marie-Christine Barrault, and Tony Roberts. Sharon Stone has a brief role, in her film debut. It follows a filmmaker who recalls his life and his loves—the inspirations for his films—while attending a retrospective of his work. The film is shot in black and white and is reminiscent of Federico Fellini's 8½ (1963), which it parodies.
Plot
Sandy Bates is a director of comedy films. His latest film ends with a surreal sequence in which a character (played by Sandy) is trapped on a train carriage surrounded by grotesque and unhappy figures. The character looks out the carriage window and sees another train filled with beautiful and happy people. Convinced he is on the wrong train, he tries unsuccessfully to get off the train before it speeds away. In the next scene, all the characters from the train wander aimlessly through an immense garbage dump. Sandy's character sees that the passengers from the other train have also ended up at the dump. Studio executives, having watched Sandy's film, complain that it is uncommercial and depressing. When this is conveyed to Sandy, he insists that he no longer wants to make shallow comedy films, as this no longer feels honest to him.
Cast
- Amy Wright
- Anne De Salvo
- Armin Shimerman
- Brent Spiner
- Charlotte Rampling
- Cynthia Gibb
- Daniel Stern
- Eli Mintz
- Filomena Spagnuolo
- Helen Hanft
- Jack Rollins
- James Otis
- Jessica Harper
- John Rothman
- Judith Crist
- Laraine Newman
- Leonardo Cimino
- Louise Lasser
- Marie-Christine Barrault
- Roy Brocksmith
- Sharon Stone
- Tony Roberts
- Woody Allen
More details
author | Woody Allen |
---|---|
director | Woody Allen |
editor | Susan E. Morse |
genre | comedy-drama |
keywords | end faint flying saucer force garbage dump haunt id jersey shore listen lose louis armstrong married meet mental illness morning panic attack pass psychiatric hospital psychotic fan read stardust studio executive surround talk train carriage trap wait young couple |
musicBy | Dick Hyman |
producer | Robert Greenhut |
productionCompany | Jack Rollins–Charles H. Joffe Productions |
publisher | United Artists |
recordedAt | New Jersey |
theme | narrative retrospective |