Star 80 (1983)

Director:

Bob Fosse

Writers:

Teresa Carpenter (article)
Bob Fosse (written by)

Release Date:

10 November 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Plot:

In Bob Fosse's film about the murder of Playboy centerfold Dorothy Stratten (Mariel Hemingway), the...

Plot Keywords:

Marital Rape | Conjugal Rape | Ambition | Centerfold | Lurid

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Mariel Hemingway	...	Dorothy Stratten
Eric Roberts	...	Paul Snider
Cliff Robertson	...	Hugh Hefner
Carroll Baker	...	Dorothy's Mother
Roger Rees	...	Aram Nicholas
David Clennon	...	Geb
Josh Mostel	...	Private Detective
Lisa Gordon	...	Eileen
Sidney Miller	...	Nightclub Owner
Keith Hefner	...	Photographer
Tina Willson	...	Bobo Weller
Shelly Ingram	...	Betty
Sheila Anderson	...	Exotic Dancer
Cis Rundle	...	Meg Davis
Kathryn Witt	...	Robin

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Australia:M | USA:R (#26722) | Argentina:18 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1984) | Sweden:15 | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Blue Horizon Hotel, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Ladd Company, The

Trivia:

The photographer who takes the initial photos of Dorothy for submission to Playboy is played by Hugh M. Hefner's younger brother, Keith Hefner.

Goofs:

Continuity: While Paul harangues Dorothy about her upcoming trip to New York while she soaks in the bathtub her face and hair are alternately wet/dry between shots.

Quotes:

Snider: You won't forget Paul Snider.

Movie Connections:

References "Fantasy Island" (1978)

Soundtrack:

Big Shot

Eric Roberts dominates.

Eric Roberts stole the show big time in this movie. He created one of the most despicable characters in all movie history, the small-time hustler Paul Snider. From the moment early on in the film when he's seen practicing his falsely sincere greetings in a mirror, the viewer takes an instant dislike to him. As he manipulates the naive and beautiful Dorothy Stratton (Mariel Hemingway) for his own selfish purposes the feeling gets almost exponentially larger. Hemingway is unlucky in a way to have to go up against such a dominating performance. She can't hope to match it, but she does a good enough job to make the film work. Cliff Robertson is excellent in the role of Hugh Hefner, which probably wasn't an easy situation, given that that man is both a well-known figure yet still a mysterious legend to some. Contrary to what a lot of people thought, I don't think Hefner came out looking that badly in the way that he was portrayed. This was a sad and ugly story but he wasn't the villain.

The movie serves as an epitaph to an ordinary young woman with extraordinary beauty who never had a chance once she got in the clutches of such a self-serving user. For me the most painfully sad moment in the movie came when Dorothy's mother (Carroll Baker) contemptuously tells Snider, "She never even used to go around in her bathrobe before you came along."

This movie is obviously not a lot of laughs but it's still worthwhile, especially for the outstanding performance of Roberts.