Moon Over Parador
Encyclopedia
Moon over Parador is a 1988
romantic comedy
film
, starring Richard Dreyfuss
, Raúl Juliá
and Sonia Braga
. It is a remake of the 1939 film The Magnificent Fraud, based on the unpublished short story entitled Caviar for His Excellency by Charles G. Booth
.
suddenly dies of a heart attack. Not wanting to lose his position in power, the president's right-hand man, Roberto Strausmann (Juliá) forces Jack to take the 'role of a lifetime' - that of the dead president, as the two men look so much alike. Jack accepts, eventually winning over the people and even the dead president's mistress, Madonna (Braga
). However, when paradise proves to be too boring, Jack needs to find a way to get out while keeping Roberto out of the loop.
The movie attempts to generate suspense by establishing that Jack Noah is in physical jeopardy so long as he remains in Parador. However, the film is told in flashback
, with an opening scene establishing that Jack has returned to New York City.
1988 in film
-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:* Act of Piracy* Action Jackson, starring Carl Weathers, Craig T. Nelson, Vanity, Sharon Stone* The Adventures of Baron Munchausen* Akira* Alice...
romantic comedy
Romantic Comedy
Romantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, starring Richard Dreyfuss
Richard Dreyfuss
Richard Stephen Dreyfuss is an American actor best known for starring in a number of film, television, and theater roles since the late 1960s, including the films American Graffiti, Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Goodbye Girl, Whose Life Is It Anyway?, Stakeout, Always, What About...
, Raúl Juliá
Raúl Juliá
Raúl Rafael Juliá y Arcelay was a Puerto Rican actor.Born in San Juan, he gained interest in acting while still in school. Upon completing his studies, Juliá decided to pursue a career in acting. After performing in the local scene for some time, he was convinced by entertainment personality Orson...
and Sonia Braga
Sônia Braga
Sônia Maria Campos Braga is a Brazilian actress. She has been nominated for both a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.-Early life:...
. It is a remake of the 1939 film The Magnificent Fraud, based on the unpublished short story entitled Caviar for His Excellency by Charles G. Booth
Charles G. Booth
Charles G. Booth was a British-born writer who settled in America and wrote several classic Hollywood stories, including The General Died at Dawn and Sundown...
.
Plot
The film follows the exploits of film actor Jack Noah (Dreyfuss), who is filming in the small, fictional South American country of Parador when the Paradorian President for LifePresident for Life
President for Life is a title assumed by some dictators to remove their term limit, in the hope that their authority, legitimacy, and term will never be disputed....
suddenly dies of a heart attack. Not wanting to lose his position in power, the president's right-hand man, Roberto Strausmann (Juliá) forces Jack to take the 'role of a lifetime' - that of the dead president, as the two men look so much alike. Jack accepts, eventually winning over the people and even the dead president's mistress, Madonna (Braga
Sônia Braga
Sônia Maria Campos Braga is a Brazilian actress. She has been nominated for both a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.-Early life:...
). However, when paradise proves to be too boring, Jack needs to find a way to get out while keeping Roberto out of the loop.
The movie attempts to generate suspense by establishing that Jack Noah is in physical jeopardy so long as he remains in Parador. However, the film is told in flashback
Flashback (narrative)
Flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point the story has reached. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened before the story’s primary sequence of events or to fill in crucial backstory...
, with an opening scene establishing that Jack has returned to New York City.
Production notes
The following concern production aspects of the film:- During a scene where Jack has to address the crowd as the Paradorian President, he ad-libs his lines and uses the text for the song "The Impossible DreamThe Impossible Dream (The Quest)"The Impossible Dream " is a popular song composed by Mitch Leigh, with lyrics written by Joe Darion. It was written for the 1965 musical Man of La Mancha...
" from Man of La ManchaMan of La ManchaMan of La Mancha is a musical with a book by Dale Wasserman, lyrics by Joe Darion and music by Mitch Leigh. It is adapted from Wasserman's non-musical 1959 teleplay I, Don Quixote, which was in turn inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's seventeenth century masterpiece Don Quixote...
. - Sammy Davis Jr.'s rendition of Parador's national anthem is sung against the music for "Bésame MuchoBésame Mucho"Bésame Mucho" is a Spanish language song written in 1940 by Mexican songwriter Consuelo Velázquez.-Inspiration:According to Velázquez herself, she wrote this song even though she had never been kissed yet at the time, and kissing as she heard was considered a sin.She was inspired by the piano...
". - The previous Paradorian National Anthem ("O Parador") is sung to the tune of "O Christmas Tree".
- Ralph (Jonathan WintersJonathan Winters-Early life:Winters was born in Bellbrook, Ohio, the son of Alice Kilgore , a radio personality, and Jonathan Harshman Winters II, an investment broker. He is a descendant of Valentine Winters, founder of the Winters National Bank in Dayton, Ohio...
) tells a long story concerning an EnglishEnglish peopleThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
pirate who founded the country of Parador to explain why Alphonse Simms has an Anglo-SaxonAnglo-SaxonAnglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
surname. The real reason is that the film was shot in BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, and director Paul MazurskyPaul MazurskyPaul Mazursky is an American film director, screenwriter and actor.-Personal life:He was born Irwin Mazursky in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Jean , a piano player for dance classes, and David Mazursky, a laborer. Mazursky was born to a Jewish family; his grandfather was an immigrant from...
needed a shot of a crowd of Brazilian extras chanting the dictator's name. When the crowd is calling out "Simms! Simms!", they are actually chanting "Sim! Sim!" "Sim" is "yes" in PortuguesePortuguese languagePortuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, the language of Brazil. - Director Paul MazurskyPaul MazurskyPaul Mazursky is an American film director, screenwriter and actor.-Personal life:He was born Irwin Mazursky in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Jean , a piano player for dance classes, and David Mazursky, a laborer. Mazursky was born to a Jewish family; his grandfather was an immigrant from...
appears uncredited in dragDrag (clothing)Drag is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origin of the term "drag" is unknown, but it may have originated in Polari, a gay street argot in England in the early...
, playing Simms' mother. - Mazursky's wife Betsy appears at a buffet table and asks, "Por favor, is it safe to eat this lettuce here?" His daughter, Jill, plays the assistant director of the second film crew to shoot in Parador.
- In the beginning, while both the President and Jack are in the scene, the President is played by Dreyfuss' older brother Lorin.
Cast
- Richard DreyfussRichard DreyfussRichard Stephen Dreyfuss is an American actor best known for starring in a number of film, television, and theater roles since the late 1960s, including the films American Graffiti, Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Goodbye Girl, Whose Life Is It Anyway?, Stakeout, Always, What About...
- Jack Noah/President Alphonse Simms - Lorin DreyfussLorin DreyfussLorin Dreyfuss is an American actor, film producer, and screenplay writer, born in New York City on December 4, 1944. He is the older brother of Richard Dreyfuss, whom he frequently does voice overs, as their voices are extremely similar. He went to the same High School as Angelina Jolie, Nicolas...
- Real Alphonse Simms - Raúl JuliáRaúl JuliáRaúl Rafael Juliá y Arcelay was a Puerto Rican actor.Born in San Juan, he gained interest in acting while still in school. Upon completing his studies, Juliá decided to pursue a career in acting. After performing in the local scene for some time, he was convinced by entertainment personality Orson...
- Roberto Strausmann - Sonia BragaSônia BragaSônia Maria Campos Braga is a Brazilian actress. She has been nominated for both a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.-Early life:...
- Madonna Mendez - Dana DelanyDana DelanyDana Welles Delany is an American film, stage, and television actress, producer, host and health activist.After various roles in the early career, Delany garnered her first leading role in 1987 in the short-lived NBC sitcom Sweet Surrender and achieved wider fame in 1988–1991 as Colleen McMurphy...
- Jenny - Jonathan WintersJonathan Winters-Early life:Winters was born in Bellbrook, Ohio, the son of Alice Kilgore , a radio personality, and Jonathan Harshman Winters II, an investment broker. He is a descendant of Valentine Winters, founder of the Winters National Bank in Dayton, Ohio...
- Ralph - Fernando ReyFernando ReyFernando Casado Arambillet , best known as Fernando Rey, was a Spanish film, theatre, and TV actor, who worked in both Europe and the United States...
- Alejandro - Michael Greene - Clint
- Polly Holliday - Midge
- Milton GonçalvesMilton GonçalvesMilton Gonçalves is a Brazilian actor. He worked in many telenovelas, including A Cabana do Pai Tomás, Irmãos Coragem, O Bem Amado, O Espigão, Pecado Capital, Sinal de Alerta, O Pulo do Gato, Baila Comigo, Partido Alto, Mandala, Araponga and Felicidade...
- Carlo - CharoCharoMaría del Rosario Pilar Martínez Molina Gutiérrez de los Perales Santa Ana Romanguera y de la Hinojosa Rasten , better known as Charo, is a Spanish-American actress, comedienne, and flamenco guitarist, best known for her flamboyant stage presence, her provocative outfits, and her trademark phrase...
- Madame Loop - Marianne SägebrechtMarianne SägebrechtMarianne Sägebrecht is a German film actress.Her background included stints as a medical lab assistant and magazine assistant editor before she found her calling in show business...
- Magda - Sammy Davis, Jr.Sammy Davis, Jr.Samuel George "Sammy" Davis Jr. was an American entertainer and was also known for his impersonations of actors and other celebrities....
- Himself - Ike PappasIke PappasIcarus Nestor Pappas , better known as Ike Pappas, was a CBS News correspondent for 25 years.-Life and career:...
- Himself - Edward Asner - Himself
- Reinhard KolldehoffReinhard KolldehoffReinhard Kolldehoff was a German film actor. He appeared in 140 films between 1941 and 1988.He was born and died in Berlin, Germany.-Selected filmography:* Bürgermeister Anna * Hanussen...
- Gunther
Locations
- New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, New York, USA - Ouro PretoOuro Preto-History:Founded at the end of the 17th century, Ouro Preto was originally called Vila Rica, or "rich village," the focal point of the gold rush and Brazil's golden age in the 18th century under Portuguese rule....
, Minas Gerais, Brazil - Rio de JaneiroRio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
City, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Salvador, BahiaSalvador, BahiaSalvador is the largest city on the northeast coast of Brazil and the capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. Salvador is also known as Brazil's capital of happiness due to its easygoing population and countless popular outdoor parties, including its street carnival. The first...
, Brazil
Awards and nominations
Golden Globe AwardGolden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
- Nominated, "Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture" - Raúl Juliá
- Nominated, "Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture" - Sônia Braga