Ragtime (1981)
- Starring:
- James Cagney, Brad Dourif, (more)
- Director(s):
- Milos Forman
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG
My RatingTheatrical Release Information | See Details About All Versions
E. L. Doctorow's novel Ragtime was a sprawling fictional account of American manners and mores in the years between 1900 and 1913. Among the mosaic of colorful factual and fictional characters in the novel were escape artist Harry Houdini and radical Emma Goldman. Both characters are all but eliminated in the film version, which only concentrates on three of Doctorow's many plot threads: The story of an immigrant artist (Mandy Patinkin) who becomes a movie director; the saga of "Gibson Girl" Evelyn Nesbit Shaw (Elizabeth McGovern), for whose sake playboy Harry K. Thaw (Robert Joy); kills architect Stanford White (Norman Mailer) and a lone black man's (Howard Rollins Jr.) quest for justice when his car is destroyed by a racist fire chief (Kenneth McMillan). This last subplot consumes most of the film's running time, to the overall detriment of the pacing. There are also several scenes involving an unnamed upper-middle-class family (headed by James Olson and Mary Steenburgen) who are evidently meant to be the audience's eyes and ears, but are frankly not terribly interesting. Back in 1981, Ragtime was given plenty of press coverage as the "comeback" picture for James Cagney, after twenty years in retirement. The problem is that Cagney's character (a police commissioner) isn't in the book, and his inclusion not only throws the story off balance, but necessitates the removal of several potentially interesting characters and events. Another detriment is the gratuitous (and illogical) nudity in the Evelyn Nesbit scenes, which earned the film its "R" rating. An ornate misfire, Ragtime is of interest today only for its remarkable cast of veterans and stars-to-be, including Pat O'Brien and Eloise O'Brien, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Allen, Moses Gunn, Jeff Daniels and Fran Drescher. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 155 mins
Complete Cast:
- James Cagney - NY Police Commissioner Rheinlander
- Moses Gunn - Booker T. Washington
- Kenneth McMillan - Willie Conklin
- Donald O'Connor - Evelyn's Dance Instructor
- Mandy Patinkin - Tateh
- Mary Steenburgen - Mother
- Jeffrey DeMunn - Houdini
- Norman Mailer - Stanford White
- Hoolihan Burke - Brigit
- Jeff Daniels - P.C. O'Donnell
- Bessie Love - Old Lady (T.O.C.)
- Jenny Nichols - Little Girl
- Eloise O'Brien - Mrs. Thaw
- Ted Ross - Black Lawyer
- Zack Norman - Manager
- Frankie R. Faison - Gang Member
- Calvin Levels - Gang Member No. 3
- Hal Galili - Police Captain
- Richard Griffiths - Delmas's Assistant
- Robert Arden - Foreman of the Jury
- Thomas A. Carlin - Vice President Fairbanks
- Robert Dorning - Man with Stanford White
- Geoffrey Greenhill - Police Guard (T.O.C.)
- Ray Hassett - Policeman
- Joel Cutrara - Policeman
- Patrick M. Hughes - Policeman
- Anthony Powell - Policeman
- Bob Sherman - Policeman
- George Harris - Band Leader, Clef Club
- Val Pringle - Chef Club Manager
- John Clarkson - Plainclothes Detective
- Brian E. Dean - Fireman
- Jake Dengel - Fireman
- Sonny Abagnale - Evelyn's Driver
- Donald Bisset - J.P. Morgan
- Patrick Connor - Waldo's Aide
- Robert Coffin - Desk Clerk
- Britt Walker - Black Butler
- Dave Griffiths - Thug
- Stan Simmons - Thug
- Natalia Dobrer - Woman
- Peter Witman - Stock Reporter
- Richard Oldfield - Stock Reporter
- Robert Henderson - Elderly Man
- Al Matthews - maitre d'
- Colette Hiller - Lawyer's Female Companion
- Nelly Polissky - Woman in Window
- John Sterland - Library guard
- Jan Triska - Special reporter
- Ed Wiley - Conductor
- Brad Dourif - Younger Brother
- Elizabeth McGovern - Evelyn Nesbit
- Pat O'Brien - Delmas
- James Olson - Father
- Howard E. Rollins, Jr. - Coalhouse Walker, Jr.
- Debbie Allen - Sarah
- Robert Joy - Harry K. Thaw
- Bruce Boa - Jerome
- Edwin Cooper - Grandfather
- Fran Drescher - Mameh
- Herman Meckler - Vernon Elliott
- Max Nichols - Little Boy
- Don Plumley - Inspector McNeil
- Norman Chancer - Agent
- Bill Reimbold - Lawyer
- Samuel L. Jackson - Gang Member
- Dorsey Wright - Gang Member
- Christopher Malcolm - Police Captain
- Billy Mitchell - Delmas's Assistant
- Robert Boyd - Theodore Roosevelt
- Harry Ditson - County Clerk
- Norris Mailer - Woman with Stanford White
- Douglas Lambert - Police Sergeant
- Nesbitt Blaisdell - Policeman
- Jeff Harding - Policeman
- Andreas Katsulas - Policeman
- Joe Praml - Policeman
- Rodney James - Sleek Male Dancer
- George J. Manos - Novelty Shop Storeman
- Ron Weyand - Dr. Muller
- Robert Hitt - Plainclothes Detective
- Josh Clark - Fireman
- John Ratzenberger - Fireman
- Chaim Blatter - Rabbi
- John Alderson - Waldo's Aide
- Derek Martin - Waldo's Aide
- Guy Gregory - Black Butler
- Pat Gorman - Thug
- Mike Potter - Thug
- Barry Dennen - Stage Manager
- Tony Sibbald - Stock Reporter
- Daniel Foley - Stock Reporter
- Gretchen Franklin - Elderly Woman
- Pavel Landovsky - Solomon Peretz
- Stuart Mulligan - Marksman
- Elaine Ives-Cameron - Ina, Lawyer's Female Companion
- Ethan Phillips - Guard at Family House
- Michael Jeter - Special reporter
- Burnell Tucker - Reporter
- Director(s):
- Milos Forman
- Writer(s):
- Bo Goldman, E.L. Doctorow, Michael Weller
- Producer(s):
- Bernard Williams, Michael Hausman, Dino de Laurentiis
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG(Violence, Nudity, Adult Language, Questionable for Children, Adult Situations)
- Closed Captioning:
- Check All Versions
- Subtitles:
- Check All Versions
- 1981 - Ragtime - Los Angeles Film Critics Association - Best Music Score






