Billy Bathgate
Then Disney head Jeffrey Katzenberg opted to produce this gangster epic instead of Warren Beatty's Bugsy (1991) as he figured Beatty's film was too expensive at $40 million. This movie ultimately came in at $50 million, and grossed a mere $15 million during its American release.,When Drew Preston is walking with Billy Bathgate and takes his hand, the close-up shows her hand is on the front. In the next shot, her hand behind his and facing to the rear.,Drew Preston: I'm not his girl, he's my gangster.,Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Curly Sue/House Party 2/The Butcher's Wife/The Rolling Stones at the Max/La Belle Noiseuse (1991),Bye Bye Blackbird
Music by Ray Henderson
Lyrics by Mort Dixon
Sung by singer in nightclub,The big screen adaptation of E. L. Doctorow's novel shows impressive credentials and handsome production values; so why is the finished film so inert? Is it because the story itself, about a fresh-faced Bronx kid who, during the Depression, learns the hard facts of criminal life from mobster Dutch Schultz (and falls for the boss' girlfriend) is so familiar? Could it be the abrupt, anti-climactic ending to the film's clever hopscotch structure? Or is it because the movie is too much about Billy (played by clean-cut newcomer Loren Dean, a throwback to pre-Touchstone Disney) and not his psychotic mentor? No evidence is visible of the much publicized production problems other than a few scenes where dialogue was obviously overdubbed, but the film still looks as if it were made under duress. A strong supporting cast, and Dustin Hoffman's exciting performance as the vulgar Dutch, are saving graces.,