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VHS : White PalaceIn association with Amazon.comstarring: Susan Sarandon, James Spader, Jason Alexander, Kathy Bates, Eileen Brennan directed by: Luis Mandoki  Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Binding: VHS Tape EAN: 0001871304679 Format: Color, NTSC Label: Goodtimes Home Video Manufacturer: Goodtimes Home Video Publisher: Goodtimes Home Video Release Date: August 02, 1999 Running Time: 103 minutes Studio: Goodtimes Home Video Theatrical Release Date: October 19, 1990 Sales Rank: 18519 Related Items: Editorial Review: Amazon.com essential video: Glenn Savan's depressing and self-loathing novel about a 27-year-old upper-class Jewish widower mired in self-pity after his beloved wife dies, and who finds love and sexual rebirth with a trailer-trash older woman, was brought to the big screen by the competent director Luis Mandoki (When a Man Loves a Woman, Message in a Bottle). But the savage irony in Savan's book has been face-lifted by screenwriters Ted Tally (The Silence of the Lambs) and Alvin Sargent (Ordinary People) into something else entirely: what passes for low-rent "slumming" in Hollywood means hiring sexy Susan Sarandon to play Nora Baker, the poor, uneducated 43-year-old waitress in a White Palace burger joint who strikes up an unlikely relationship with sad Max Baron (James Spader). Widower Max attends a bachelor party for best pal Neil (Jason Alexander) and discovers that the local White Palace has stiffed the boys a whopping six burgers. Max barges into the joint, bent on getting his money back, and meets a testy Nora, who is bemused at the young man's insolence. While driving home, Max stops abruptly at a bar for a drink. Inside, Nora is nursing a vodka and takes a shine to the tuxedo-clad, handsome, and morose younger man. He gives her a lift, she seduces him, and the rest of the movie examines how two such opposites in manners and morals can find happiness. The only common bond they have is great sex and a private tragedy. White Palace nudges at the dark journey and the smashing of illusion that was at the heart of the novel, but there is still a fairy-tale element to the film that negates the earthy essence that distinguished the book. In Mandoki's vision, White Palace is about overcoming class, family, and outside opinion to find true love. In Savan's book, Max wastes into decline while Nora ultimately thrives in the quest for truth, redemption, and self-forgiveness. She becomes his salvation only after he stops hating himself. But mainstream Hollywood shuns making "protagonists" so mad, bad, or sad, and as such, too much glitter is tossed on Spader, while Sarandon, as usual, is the only one who seems to embody and understand her character's angst. She deserved her Oscar for Nora, not the nun in Dead Man Walking. --Paula Nechak Average Rating:
 Rating:  - MISPLACED INDIGNATION, NOT AN OSCAR TICKETI'm usually amused by movies with Spader in them, not that his character changes much from movie to movie, but then why change a good thing? Likewise for Susan Sarandon who's good as well, though I definitely don't agree with the Amazon reviewer who calls this Oscar material. Or I don't know - maybe this is what the Oscars are all about ... which isn't saying much for the Oscars. This woman had no social graces at all! First she backs old James into a corner over bringing her to Thanksgiving ... Read More Rating:  - Some Like It HotMax Baron (James Spader) is a nice twenty-seven-year-old Jewish boy drowning in grief and self-pity over the untimely death of his wife. When he gets shorted at a White Palace on cheap hamburgers he picks up for a bachelor party of his best friend (Jason Alexander), in a fit of self-righteousness, he returns to the hamburger joint to demand justice and meets forty-three year-old Nora Baker (Susan Sarandon). The rest is, as they say, herstory since this captivating film is all about Nora. She identifies ... Read More Rating:  - Susan Sarandon is great; movie isn'tSusan Sarandon gives such a strong performance that the "TV Movie" quality of her vehicle is secondary. She doesn't transform the material; she just acts brilliantly, and manages to convey her personal enthusiasm for the sensuous and complex character. Interesting that she doesn't assert the "Older Woman mystique" here. That pupil dilating element flows naturally. Of course, in the proverbial real world, her beauty and wit would have gotten her at least to the Management level in her work setting ... Read More Rating: - "What you see isn't always what you get!"I remember watching this movie long ago and I'd forgotten how sexy Susan Sarandon can be. Because of her age, (and market pressure of course) Sarandon may never be marketed or packaged and sold as sex symbol; but she should be. In White Palace, Sarandon proves my personal inclination that older women have a deliciously ample level of depth capturing and conveying the essence of a womans true sexual prowess. Or maybe this is simply evidence of my admiration for older women. In any event, this is a classy ... Read More Rating: - one of my favouritesThis is one of those movies that you can watch over and over again. A feel good movie that is one of the best around. I love it. Browse for similar items by category:
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