The Tavern (1999)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

Walter Foote

Writer:

Walter Foote (writer)

Plot:

Two men beg and borrow money to start a neighborhood bar. Initially the bar thrives, then the crowds start to dwindle...

Plot Keywords:

Independent Film

Cast

Cameron Dye	...	Ronnie
Greg Zittel	...	Kevin
Margaret Cho	...	Carol
Nancy Ticotin	...	Gina
Kevin Geer	...	Dave
Phyllis Esposito	...	Angela
Carlo Alban	...	Tommy
Steven Marcus	...	Jerry
Tom Ryan	...	Jimmy
Michael Baker	...	Freddie
Heather King	...	Jeannette
Kym Austin	...	Sharon
Tyler Foote	...	Dave's Child
Lilian Foote	...	Dave's Child
Jennifer Harmon	...	Ronnie's Mother
Frank Girardeau	...	Ronnie's Father
Davy Carton	...	Subway Band
Leo Moran	...	Subway Band
Pearse Doherty	...	Subway Band
John Donnelly	...	Subway Band
Derek Murray	...	Subway Band
Henry Strozier	...	Customer 1
Pete Zias	...	Boy 1
Edward K. Thomas	...	Cliff
Eric Kornfield	...	Customer 2
Don Creech	...	Shank
Gary Perez	...	Miguel
John Pero	...	Customer 3
Donald Roman Lopez	...	Waiter
Al Espinosa	...	Busboy
Jesse Doran	...	Marino
La Donna Mabry	...	INS Clerk
Bruce Katzman	...	George
Richard Mover	...	Killer
David Runco	...	Jackie's Fiancé
Simon Jutras	...	Frenchman
Susan Cella	...	Irate Woman
Carol Goodheart	...	Real Estate Agent
Richard Petrocelli	...	Sal
Robert Turano	...	Nick
Sharon Mayberry	...	Interviewer
Harold Alvarez	...	Tavern Busboy
Bernie McInerney	...	John Mahoney
Marla Sucharetza	...	Jackie
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jay Charan	...	Bar Customer
Héctor González	...	Impatient customer
Michele Youells
Maura Kirzon Malone	...	Shop Customer (uncredited)

Directed by
Walter Foote

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Walter Foote		writer

Produced by
Walter Foote	....	producer
Johnny North	....	associate producer (as John North)
Rene Veilleux	....	line producer

Original Music by
Bill Lacey		(as William Lacey)
Loren Toolajian

Cinematography by
Kurt Lennig

Film Editing by
Josh Apter

Casting by
Jerry Beaver

Production Design by
Gonzalo Cordoba

Costume Design by
Lisa Padovani

Makeup Department
Gloria Cruz	....	key hair stylist
Gloria Cruz	....	key makeup artist
Lorraine Godfrey	....	key hair stylist

Production Management
Matthew Chilsen	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Michael A. Moffa	....	second assistant director
Jody Solomon	....	first assistant director

Sound Department
Michelle De Chiara	....	sound mixer
Tammy Douglas	....	additional boom operator
Terrell Tangonan	....	boom operator

Camera and Electrical Department
Yan Vizinberg	....	second assistant camera

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Frank Avanzo	....	set costumer
Julia Van Vliet	....	assistant costume designer

Other crew
Amy Brillhart	....	production coordinator
Jeff Crandall	....	location manager
Ray Filippazzo	....	production accountant
Stephanie A. Marquardt	....	script supervisor
Laura Pinto	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Foote Speed Productions
• Redeemable Features

Distributors

• Castle Hill Productions (2000) (USA)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Foote Speed Productions

Soundtrack:

How Can U Be Down

Like Father, Like Son

Horton Foote has often written incisive character studies that are dramatically underpowered, and this effort by his writer-director son follows in Dad's footsteps. The very model of a small, well-meaning, late-1990s independent movie with no major stars (the biggest, third-billed Margaret Cho, has about five minutes of screen time), it's a little-people-about-their-tasks slice-of-life drama where the good guys mess up, clean up, mess up, clean up, and commit some business errors that seem improbably naive. Cameron Dye has a nice Aidan Quinn soulfulness and Kevin Geer is quietly excellent, but they haven't much to play. As another poster mentioned, it's unconvincingly telescoped -- does all the action take place within a year, with the tavern trying so many formats and suffering so many twists of fate? Also, for what it's worth, where would the "Tavern on Main" be? It's a New York-set film with some authentic-looking locations (and others that smack of Toronto), but the only Main Street in the five boroughs is in Flushing, and these bar patrons are definitely not East Queens stock.