Separate Tables (1958)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Delbert Mann

Writers:

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

Release Date:

18 December 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

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 | Sexual Repression | Beautiful Woman | Ostracism | Blockbuster

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

Distributors

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

Hotel Miramar, Bournemouth, Dorset, England, UK

Company:

Hill-Hecht-Lancaster Productions

Trivia:

The musical theme of the terrace sequence and a few other pieces were re-written by David Raksin on the request of the producers following a bad preview.

Goofs:

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

Quotes:

Miss Meacham: And what do I know of morals and ethics? Only what I read in novels. And as I only read thrillers, that doesn't amount to much.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Deux hommes dans Manhattan (1959)

Soundtrack:

Separate Tables

What a pity most of today's cinemagoers will never see this very moving film

This is without doubt one of the best films I have ever seen. The fact that it all takes place in one small Bournemouth (England) hotel, no violence, no special effects, no thousands of extras, or vast expenditure says it all. Excellent performances from a star studded cast, especially David Niven. It is gripping from start to finish, but by modern standards in a gentle way. A movie possibly mainly for women, but as a man I can only say that I found it very moving. A film I will always watch whenever it comes around as it always will. A classic.