White Nights (1985 film)
White Nights | |
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Directed by | Taylor Hackford |
Screenplay by | James Goldman Eric Hughes Nancy Dowd (uncredited) |
Story by | James Goldman |
Produced by | William S. Gilmore Taylor Hackford |
Starring | |
Cinematography | David Watkin |
Edited by | Fredric Steinkamp William Steinkamp |
Music by | Michel Colombier |
Color process | Metrocolor |
Production company | Delphi IV Productions |
Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 136 minutes |
Country | United States |
Languages | English Russian |
Budget | $10–20 million[1] |
Box office | $42.2 million[2] |
White Nights is a 1985 American
The film is notable both for the dancing of Hines and Baryshnikov and for the
Plot
Nikolai 'Kolya' Rodchenko (Baryshnikov) is a Soviet
After an initial period of racial and artistic friction, the two dancers (and defectors in opposite directions) become strong friends. When Raymond discovers that his wife Darya (Isabella Rossellini) is pregnant, he decides he does not want their child to grow up in the Soviet Union, and together, with Kolya, they plan an escape with the help of Galina, who still has feelings for Rodchenko. During the escape attempt, Raymond chooses to stay behind in order to delay Chaiko, gaining time for Kolya and Darya to get to the consulate at Leningrad. Although Raymond is captured and incarcerated, he is traded by the Soviets for a political prisoner from Latin America, and reunites with Darya and Kolya.
Cast
- Mikhail Baryshnikov as Nikolai 'Kolya' Rodchenko
- Gregory Hines as Raymond Greenwood
- Jerzy Skolimowski as Colonel Chaiko
- Helen Mirren as Galina Ivanova
- Geraldine Page as Anne Wyatt
- Isabella Rossellini as Darya Greenwood
- John Glover as Wynn Scott
- Stefan Gryff as Captain Kirigin
- William Hootkins as Chuck Malarek
- Shane Rimmer as Ambassador Larry Smith
- Marc Sinden as Charles
- Maryam d'Abo as French Girlfriend
- Daniel Benzali as Dr. Asher
Production
The opening ballet sequence,
In 1985, many western
The film was also shot in Finland (including the island of Reposaari) and Lisbon, Portugal, as well as other parts of the United Kingdom including Elstree Studios and RAF Machrihanish in Scotland.[1]
Filmmakers normally use models to film the crash-landing of an aircraft as expensive as a Boeing 747. For the filming of the crash sequence of a British Orient 747 at the beginning of White Nights, two different full-sized aircraft were used.
- For shots representing the British Orient 747 while still aloft, a rebadged Aer Lingus Boeing 747 performed a touch-and-go landing at RAF Machrihanish.
- For shots representing the British Orient 747 after touchdown, the production team purchased an older Boeing 707 from South America. The 707 was converted with the famous 747 hump, a painted cockpit and a small vision slit on the original cockpit, so the stunt pilots could perform the live action crash-landing. Due to the size differences, forced perspective was used to give the impression of a larger aircraft and short actors used in a brief sequence where a vehicle is almost hit.[citation needed] The 707 aircraft in question had originally been built for South African Airways (SAA) in July 1960 and registered as ZS-CKC (serial number 17928), and was retired from SAA in 1977. It was next operated by Panama World Airways as N90651, and commercially retired by same in 1981. Finally in September 1984 the aircraft was purchased by Columbia Pictures for the making of White Nights.[6]
The film contains an early-career performance by
White Nights was dedicated "in loving memory" to Mary E. Hackford (mother of Taylor) and Jerry Benjamin (father of executive supervisor Stuart Benjamin),[1] both of whom died prior to its release.
Reception
The film opened the Chicago International Film Festival on November 8, 1985 at McClurg Court.[7] It then opened at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City on November 22 as well as in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Toronto before expanding nationally on December 6.[8][2]
White Nights received mixed reviews from critics, as it currently holds a 46% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 13 reviews.[9] The New York Times film critic Vincent Canby criticized the script as "ludicrous" but praised the acting and dance choreography, including Baryshnikov's "all of the dynamic force and intelligence that distinguish his dance performances" and Hines as "a great tap dancer but not in the same league with Mr. Baryshnikov as a film personality".[10] Los Angeles Times film critic Sheila Benson criticized the story as "wretched high-concept, low-intelligence", the film's "oversimplification" of Russians as "hateful and corrupt" with an exception of "old Russian babushka" without the film explaining the character's transition "to kindness", and dance performances as "jazzed-up and simplistic".[11] However, the film was a commercial success at the box office, grossing over $42 million in the United States.[2]
Accolades
Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
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Academy Awards | Best Original Song | "Say You, Say Me" Music and Lyrics by Lionel Richie |
Won | [12] |
"Separate Lives" Music and Lyrics by Stephen Bishop |
Nominated | |||
BMI Film & TV Awards | Most Performed Song from a Film | Won | ||
Golden Globe Awards | Best Original Score – Motion Picture | Michel Colombier | Nominated | [13] |
Best Original Song – Motion Picture | "Say You, Say Me" Music and Lyrics by Lionel Richie |
Won |
Soundtrack
White Nights: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | |
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Soundtrack album by Various artists | |
Released | October 16th 1985 (US) |
Genre | Rock |
Label | Atlantic |
Singles from White Nights: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | |
|
The soundtrack album for the film contains the most successful single on the album, "Separate Lives" by Phil Collins and Marilyn Martin, which reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and was nominated for an Academy Award in 1986. The prize instead went to Lionel Richie's "Say You, Say Me", another chart topper which appeared in the film but was not included on the original soundtrack due to licensing issues. It was included in the album reissue as a bonus track along with "I Don't Wanna Know" by Phil Collins.
- "Separate Lives" - Phil Collins & Marilyn Martin
- "Prove Me Wrong" - David Pack
- "Far Post" - Robert Plant
- "People on a String" - Roberta Flack
- "This Is Your Day" - Nile Rodgers & Sandy Stewart
- "Snake Charmer" - John Hiatt
- "The Other Side of the World" - Chaka Khan
- "My Love Is Chemical" - Lou Reed
- "TapDance" - David Foster
- "People Have Got to Move" - Jenny Burton
- "Say You, Say Me" - Lionel Richie (bonus track - reissue)
- "I Don't Wanna Know" - Phil Collins (bonus track - reissue)
Charts
Chart (1986) | Peak position |
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Australia (Kent Music Report)[15] | 17 |
US (Billboard)[16] | 17 |
References
- ^ a b c d e White Nights at the American Film Institute Catalog
- ^ a b c White Nights at Box Office Mojo
- ^ Canby, Vincent (November 22, 1985). "BARYSHNIKOV IN 'WHITE NIGHTS,' TALE OF TWO DEFECTORS". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
- ^ Benson, Sheila (November 22, 1985). "'Nights': Accent On Defection". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2013-12-18. Retrieved 2013-04-20.
- AARP The Magazine. Archivedfrom the original on June 22, 2011. Retrieved October 17, 2010.
- ^ "1960 rg 9/84 Columbia Pictures destroyed in movie "White Nights" when made up to be a B747 1985, canx 8/16/88". Rzjets.net. Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
- ^ Holloway, Ron (November 13, 1985). "Chi Fest Off To Strong Start As 'White Nights' Opener Goes Clean". Variety. p. 5.
- ^ Cohn, Lawrence (November 6, 1985). "Holiday Postponements Stack the Deck for Hackford's 'Nights'". Variety. p. 4.
- ^ White Nights (1985), archived from the original on 2021-06-21, retrieved 2021-07-24
- ^ Canby, Vincent (November 22, 1985). "Baryshnikov in White Nights, Tale of Two Defectors". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 12, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
- The Los Angeles Times. Archivedfrom the original on 2013-12-18. Retrieved 2013-04-20.
- ^ "The 58th Academy Awards (1986) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Archived from the original on November 11, 2014. Retrieved October 16, 2011.
- ^ "White Nights". Golden Globe Awards. Archived from the original on April 18, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
- AllMusic
- ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Top Pop Albums". Billboard. 8 February 1986. p. 74.
External links
- White Nights at the American Film Institute Catalog
- White Nights at Box Office Mojo
- White Nights at IMDb
- White Nights at Rotten Tomatoes
- White Nights at the TCM Movie Database