Separate Tables (1958)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Delbert Mann

Writers:

John Gay (writer)
Terence Rattigan (play)
(more)

Release Date:

18 December 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

The stories of several people are told as they stay at a seaside hotel in Bournemouth which features dining at "Separate Tables."

Plot Keywords:

Hotel | Ex Convict | Alcoholism | Class Differences | Writer

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Deborah Kerr	...	Sibyl Railton-Bell
Rita Hayworth	...	Ann Shankland
David Niven	...	Major Angus Pollock
Wendy Hiller	...	Pat Cooper
Burt Lancaster	...	John Malcolm
Gladys Cooper	...	Mrs. Railton-Bell
Cathleen Nesbitt	...	Lady Matheson
Felix Aylmer	...	Mr. Fowler
Rod Taylor	...	Charles
Audrey Dalton	...	Jean
May Hallatt	...	Miss Meacham
Priscilla Morgan	...	Doreen
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hilda Plowright	...	Mabel (uncredited)

Directed by
Delbert Mann

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
John Gay		writer
John Michael Hayes		uncredited
Terence Rattigan		play
Terence Rattigan		screenplay

Produced by
Harold Hecht	....	producer
Harry Horner	....	associate producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
David Raksin

Cinematography by
Charles Lang		(as Charles Lang Jr.)

Film Editing by
Charles Ennis
Marjorie Fowler

Production Design by
Harry Horner

Art Direction by
Edward Carrere

Set Decoration by
Edward G. Boyle

Makeup Department
Harry Maret	....	makeup artist
Helene Parrish	....	hair stylist
Franz Prehoda	....	makeup artist
Joan St. Oegger	....	hair stylist
Robert J. Schiffer	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Gilbert Kurland	....	executive production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Tom Shaw	....	assistant director (as Thomas P. Shaw)
Harry Horner	....	second unit director: Bournemouth (uncredited)

Sound Department
Fred Lau	....	sound recordist

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Mary Grant	....	costume supervisor
Edith Head	....	gowns: Miss Hayworth

Music Department
Vic Damone	....	vocalist (uncredited)
Harry Warren	....	composer: theme music (uncredited)

Other crew
Harold Hecht	....	presenter (as Hecht-Hill-Lancaster)
James Hill	....	presenter (as Hecht-Hill-Lancaster)
Burt Lancaster	....	presenter (as Hecht-Hill-Lancaster)

Production Companies

• Hill-Hecht-Lancaster Productions (as Joanna A.G.)
• Clifton Productions
• Norlan Productions

Distributors

• United Artists (1958) (USA) (theatrical)
• United Artists (1959) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• United Artists (1959) (Finland) (theatrical)
• United Artists (1959) (France) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2005) (France) (DVD)
• FS Film Oy (200?) (Finland) (DVD)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording)

Certification:

Germany:12 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | West Germany:12 (f) | Finland:K-12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1998)

Filming Locations:

Stage 5, Samuel Goldwyn/Warnert Hollywood Studios, 1041 N. Formosa Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Hill-Hecht-Lancaster Productions

Trivia:

This was considered quite daring in its day with its frank discussions of sexual topics generally considered taboo.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Camera reflected in window in the last dolly shot.

Quotes:

Lady Matheson: [Reprovingly, talking about Sybil] I'm surprised at you, Mr. Malcolm. You should not have brought her into it.
John Malcolm: I suppose not. I thought I might get her once, just this once in her whole life, to publicly disagree with her mother. It'd save her soul if she ever did.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Laverne & Shirley: Separate Tables (#5.26)" (1980)

Soundtrack:

Separate Tables

Don't Look For Car Crashes or Special Effects

Just look over the reviews. This one said Niven and Kerr made the movie. That one felt it was all Hayworth and Lancaster.

Hiller was underrated, Hiller was superb. Cooper was a monster, Cooper was sensational.

First, I was a terrible fan of Niven (odd, seeing as how I have seen very little of his movies) so of course, I learned what his Oscar win was.

Separate Tables? Had no idea what that could be.

In his bio, The Moon's A Balloon, Niven would refer to his Oscar win for the Major.

He tripped going up the steps and received laughter. He sought to say "I fell because I was loaded with so many good luck charms, . . . " but he paused after 'loaded' so it sounded like he was admitting he was drunk, and more laughter. He let it go at that.

Lancaster, on the other hand, I had seen in "From Here To Eternity", "Rose Tattoo", "Come Back, Little Sheba", "Young Savages", "Barnum", "Airport" and even "The Cassandra Crossing" so I had a bit of a clue what to expect from this guy, basically never blink and be ready to duck.

I had actually rented "Pygmalion" to see both Wendy Hiller and Leslie Howard, and was thoroughly impressed by both. I knew Tables was her Oscar win as well, but still had no idea where she would go.

Deborah Kerr. Totally new to me.

Rita Hayworth. Ditto, but I did recall hearing about her problems later in life and what "Gilda" had done for her. "Men go to bed with Gilda and wake up with Rita," she said.

And a very young Rod Taylor!

So now here they all were. Under one banner.

I would get this movie in a set with Lillies of the Field, Mame and Pocketful of Miracles. Just something to watch and see what it is like, I thought. Then I would never watch it again.

I just watched it again.

It is truly watchable. This life, this existence, this order. Brittle and at peace. The boat is rocked, the cart is tipped. Will it steady once more?

The occupants of the hotel are pretty much like a movie about persons trapped in an elevator. The criss-crossing is most prevalent when Hayworth and Kerr have scenes together. I wonder why no encounter ever occured between Hayworth and Niven?

This was a totally different character for Niven and he made it work. It could have failed in lesser hands.

Hiller was a prize. When I would first see her (I guess in Pygmalion) I thought she bore an uncanny resemblance to Vivian Vance from "I Love Lucy", but she is much more than Vance could ever do.

She maintains the air of what is going on in absolute properness right up to the end when she calls Niven "Mr. Pollock" and inquires about his staying.

Deborah Kerr? She made me stop what I was doing every time.

Taylor and who I take it is Audrey Dalton were the weak point. They should have been in the fishbowl, not observing outside.

Cooper may have been an ugly old snob, but she is fun to watch. She even has her friend, Gladys, (notice that there would be a woman named Gladys and that Hiller's last name was Cooper, resulting in Gladys Cooper having to constantly call out to "Gladys" and "Mrs. Cooper").

She remains the only loose end however. How will Deborah now approach her mother after breakfast that final morning?

The final scene at breakfast is a stunner to watch. I have watched just the end before, and after having watched the entire thing again, I held my breath, even tho I knew what would happen.

I would inquire to my English mother what the title referred to; why was separate tables important, and I received a very British response. It is not proper to dine and associate with others not of your class and distinction.

And yes, the feel of the hotel was apparent as well. You do feel like you know when someone turns a corner or exits through a door where they will be.

Niven and Nesbitt would both refer to the television, but it is never seen. Good for the story, but a shame now, as it would be enligtening to see how these people handle television watching for this era.

And I also liked how the music said it was all civil and pleasant, after what all had happened.

And the tables were still separate. The tables were.