Film still of Bugsy Malone © RR
Bugsy Malone, a gangster musical
Presented at the Cinéma de la Plage, Bugsy Malone was the first feature film made by the Brit, Alan Parker. He first walked the Red Carpet at the Festival de Cannes for this film in 1976. Three good reasons to not miss it.
For its parodic genre
Alan Parker was not able to find the funding he needed to give life to his screenplay in the UK, as it was considered to be too parochial. This is what made him decide to combine two traditional Hollywood genres, parody and gangster films. The end result was Bugsy Malone, a parody of gangster films, in the form of a musical, illustrating gang warfare in New York during the prohibition.
For its unexpected casting call
Gang leader, manager of a speakeasy club or gun owner, all these roles make us think of tough guys and are in fact played by children! The casting call even went as far as inspiring the French title of the film "Du rififi chez les mômes" meaning "Kids playing up". Jodie Foster played one of the leading roles as a cabaret star. This is an opportunity to see the actress at the age of 13, making a promising debut.
For its Twenties atmosphere
The men are wearing hats, the women, sparkly dresses. They are tapdancing, dancing the Charleston, meeting up in speakeasy bars… Alan Parker's Bugsy Malone has all the ingredients to recreate the America of the prohibition years and the atmosphere of the roaring twenties.
