Bugsy Malone is a 1976 gangster musical comedy film written and directed by Alan Parker (in his feature film directorial debut). A co-production of the United States and United Kingdom, it features an ensemble cast, comprising only child and teenage actors playing adult roles, with Jodie Foster, Scott Baio, and John Cassisi in major roles. The film tells the story of the rise of "Bugsy Malone" and the battle for power between "Fat Sam" and "Dandy Dan".
Set in New York City, it is a gangster movie spoof, with machine guns that fire gobs of whipped cream instead of bullets. The film is based loosely on events in New York and Chicago during Prohibition era, specifically the exploits of real-life gangsters such as Al Capone and Bugs Moran. Parker lightened the subject matter considerably for the children's market and the film received a G rating in the U.S. Bugsy Malone premiered at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or. It was theatrically released in the United Kingdom on July 23, 1976, by Fox-Rank Distributors, and in the United States by Paramount Pictures on September 15. Although a commercial success in the UK, it was not a financial success overseas. The film received critical acclaim, with praise drawn for Parker's screenplay and direction, its musical numbers, unique narrative and the performances of the cast.
The film received eight nominations at the 30th British Academy Film Awards, including Best Film, and won three: Best Supporting Actress and Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles for Foster and Best Screenplay for Parker. The film also received three nominations at the 34th Golden Globe Awards including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.
In 2008, Empire ranked it 353rd on their list of 500 greatest movies of all time.
Plot During the prohibition era, a mobster named Roxy Robinson is "splurged" by members of a rival gang, using rapid-fire cream-shooting "splurge guns". Once splurged, a gangster is "all washed up... finished". Mob boss Fat Sam Staccetto introduces himself in the opening narration, as well as introducing Bugsy Malone, a penniless boxing promoter who is "a little too popular with the broads... but a nice guy" ("Bugsy Malone").
At Fat Sam's speakeasy, the Grand Slam, there is much dancing and singing ("Fat Sam's Grand Slam"). Fat Sam rants about the loss of Roxy, who was one of his best men, laying the blame on up-and-coming rival mob boss Dandy Dan and worried that Dan is trying to take control of his criminal empire. Blousey Brown, an aspiring singer and actress, has come for an audition at the speakeasy, but Sam is too distracted to see her. Bugsy meets Blousey when he trips over her luggage; he is instantly smitten and attempts to flirt with her. Just then, Fat Sam's is raided by Dandy Dan's men, who shoot up the place. Over the next few weeks, Dan's men continue to attack Fat Sam's empire, eventually taking over all of Sam's money-making rackets (including the sarsaparilla racket and lettuce racket) and splurging members of Fat Sam's gang until only the speakeasy remains. Sam finds his gang fooling around ("Bad Guys") and then sends all his available men except his personal enforcer Knuckles, to see if they can track down the guns but they are ambushed at a laundry and splurged by Dandy Dan's gang.
Bugsy returns to Fat Sam's to arrange a new audition for Blousey. Fat Sam's girlfriend, the chanteuse Tallulah, makes a pass at him and, although Bugsy rejects her flirtation, Tallulah plants a big kiss on Bugsy's forehead just as Blousey enters. Blousey is jealous but performs anyway, using her personal feelings to boost her performance ("I'm Feelin' Fine"). Fat Sam hires Blousey after her audition and she leaves quickly, refusing to speak to Bugsy.
Sam hires Bugsy as a driver to accompany him to a truce meeting with Dandy Dan. He also takes along "Looney" Bergonzi, a top Chicago mob enforcer. The meeting is a trap, but Bugsy helps Fat Sam escape and is paid $200 by a grateful Sam. Bugsy and Blousey reconcile and have a romantic outing on a lake, where Bugsy promises to take her to Hollywood. When he returns Sam's car to the garage he is attacked and his money is stolen. Bugsy is saved by Leroy Smith, who assaults the attackers and drives them away. Bugsy realizes that Leroy has the potential to be a great boxer and introduces him to boxing coach Cagey Joe ("So You Wanna Be a Boxer?"). Fat Sam seeks Bugsy's aid again after Knuckles is accidentally killed by a malfunctioning splurge gun knockoff. Bugsy resists, but Fat Sam offers him $400, enough money to keep his promise to Blousey, although she is disappointed when she learns that Bugsy hasn't bought the tickets to California yet ("Ordinary Fool"). Bugsy and Leroy follow Dandy Dan's men to a warehouse where the guns are being stashed. They realize the two of them can't take the place alone, so Bugsy recruits a large group of down-and-out workers at a soup kitchen ("Down and Out"). They successfully raid the warehouse and take the crates of guns.
Taking refuge at the Grand Slam, Bugsy and his army disguise themselves as waiters and patrons. Upon the arrival of Dan and his men, a massive splurge gun fight erupts, with unarmed patrons throwing cream pies. Everyone in the speakeasy, except Bugsy and Blousey, gets covered in splurge, but somehow no one gets "finished" this time. Razzmatazz, the speakeasy's piano player, is hit from behind and falls onto the keys, striking a single bass chord which silences the room. Razzmatazz begins playing again ("Bad Guys Reprise"), which rouses the spluge-covered crowd. Everyone then begins to laugh and realize they can all be friends, joining together in song ("You Give a Little Love") as Bugsy and Blousey leave for Hollywood in Fat Sam's car.
Cast
Scott Baio as Bugsy Malone, an Italian-Irish ex-boxer/boxing scout Florrie Dugger as Blousey Brown, a sassy young dame interested in Hollywood Jodie Foster as Tallulah, Fat Sam's gun moll, the speakeasy's chanteuse and Bugsy's old flame John Cassisi as Fat Sam Staccetto, crime boss. He is dubbed by the press as "The Alleged Mobster King of the Lower East Side". Martin Lev as Dandy Dan, rival gang boss who steals Fat Sam's territory Paul Murphy as Leroy Smith, an African-American tramp who discovers he has a talent for boxing Sheridan Earl Russell as Knuckles, Fat Sam's main hoodlum who constantly cracks his knuckles Albin "Humpty" Jenkins as Fizzy, caretaker at Fat Sam's Grand Slam, tap dancer Paul Chirelstein as Smolsky, dim-witted police captain Andrew Paul as O'Dreary, dumb policeman Jeffrey Stevens as Louis, one of Fat Sam's hoodlums Donald Waugh as Snake Eyes, one of Fat Sam's hoodlums Peter Holder as Ritzy, one of Fat Sam's hoodlums Michael Kirkby as Angelo, one of Fat Sam's hoodlums Dexter Fletcher as Baby Face, down and out Davidson Knight as Cagey Joe, the boxing gym owner Dov Prehn as Boy dancing, in crowd and at the Grand Slam Speakeasy Final fight John Williams as Roxy Robinson, Fat Sam's best bodyguard, splurged by Dandy Dan's gang Bonita Langford as Lena Marelli, showy, pompous theatre performer Mark Curry as Oscar DeVelt, stuck-up theatre producer Jonathan Scott-Taylor as News Reporter Sarah E. Joyce as Smokey Priscilla, showgirl, member of Tallulah's Troupe Helen Corran as Bangles, showgirl, member of Tallulah's Troupe Kathy Spaulding as Loretta, showgirl, member of Tallulah's Troupe Sharon Noonan as Coco, showgirl, member of Tallulah's Troupe Vivienne McKone as Velma, showgirl, member of Tallulah's Troupe Lynn Aulbaugh as Louella, Dandy Dan's wife and polo partner Michael Jackson as Razamataz, Fat Sam's personal pianist and performer at the Grand Slam Speakeasy Louise English as Ballerina Mel
Production Bugsy Malone was Alan Parker's first feature film. Parker was trying to find a film project that was not "parochial" and decided upon an American gangster setting: "I had four young children and we used to go to a cottage in Derbyshire at weekends. On the long, boring car journey up there, I started telling them the story of a gangster called Bugsy Malone. They’d ask me questions and I’d make up answers, based on my memories of watching old movie reruns as a kid." His eldest son suggested children should be cast as the "heroes".
Alan Marshall, who was a producer and partner on several TV commercials with Parker, encouraged him to do the script. David Puttnam, who had served as producer on Parker's first script in Melody (1971), served as executive producer, helping to secure a deal with £1 million of funding that came from Rank Organisation and the National Film Finance Corporation, with the provision that a United States distributor was found. Richard Sylbert, the art director-turned-executive at Paramount Pictures was approached with Parker's visual presentation of the material and agreed to help distribute the film.alanparker.com/film/bugsy-malone/making/
Casting The director chose to cast several unknown actors in the film. To find his Fat Sam, Parker visited a Brooklyn classroom, asking for "the naughtiest boy in class". The students were unanimous in selecting John Cassisi, and Parker gave him the role. Florrie Dugger (Blousey) originally was cast in a smaller role; when the actress cast as Blousey suddenly grew taller than Baio, Dugger was promoted. She had been "discovered" at RAF Chicksands, an air force base in Bedfordshire where her American father was stationed. At the time of filming, all of the cast were under 17 years old.
Parker cast Baio after he slammed down the script and stormed out of his audition. Baio later remembered:
In Los Angeles, Parker met a 12-year-old Jodie Foster, who at the time was about to start the filming of Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver. About casting Foster as Tallulah and working with her, Parker said:
Music Parker chose Paul Williams to score the film in order to get a more "palatable" modern sound, and simply because he liked him.Bugsy Malone DVD Special Edition PaulWilliamsCoUK.Plus.com David Chamberlayne. Retrieved 3 June 2010. Williams had scored Brian De Palma's commercial failure Phantom of the Paradise, but had also written huge pop-radio hits (such as "We've Only Just Begun" (lyrics), and "(Just An) Old Fashioned Love Song"). Williams would soon win an Oscar for his song "Evergreen" from the film A Star Is Born (1976).
Williams felt that "... the challenge for me was to provide songs that reflected the period ... and yet maintained an energy that would hold the young audience's attention." According to Parker, Williams was writing while on tour, recording songs in different cities, and sending the completed tapes to Hollywood. Arriving during the first pre-shoot rehearsals, the songs had to be accepted and used as they were, with voices by Williams, Archie Hahn, and others.
Neither the director nor the songwriter were comfortable with the results. Williams later wrote "I'm really proud of the work and the only thing I've ever doubted is the choice of using adult voices. Perhaps, I should have given the kids a chance to sing the songs." Parker also commented: "Watching the film after all these years, this is one aspect that I find the most bizarre. Adult voices coming out of these kids' mouths? I had told Paul that I didn't want squeaky kids' voices and he interpreted this in his own way. Anyway, as the tapes arrived, scarcely weeks away from filming, we had no choice but to go along with it!"
The film soundtrack album was originally released as an LP in 1976. In March 1996, Polydor UK released the soundtrack on CD.
Performers include Paul Williams, Archie Hahn, Julie McWhirter, and Liberty Williams.
Track listing
"Bugsy Malone" – Paul Williams "Fat Sam's Grand Slam" – Paul Williams "Tomorrow" "Bad Guys" "I'm Feeling Fine" "My Name Is Tallulah" – Louise "Liberty" Williams "So You Wanna Be a Boxer?" "Ordinary Fool" "Down and Out"