Between the lines

This article deals with the movie from 1987. For the early evening crime series of the same name, see Heiter bis födlich: Between the Lines ; for the film comedy by Olivier Assayas, see Between the Lines (2018) .

Movie
German title	Between the lines
Original title	84 Charing Cross Road
Country of production	USA , UK
original language	English
Publishing year	1987
length	95 minutes
Age rating	FSK 6
Rod
Director	David Hugh Jones
script	Hugh Whitemore
production	Geoffrey Helman
music	George Fenton , Georg Friedrich Handel
camera	Brian West
cut	Chris Wimble
occupation
Anne Bancroft : Helene Hanff Anthony Hopkins : Frank P. Doel Judi Dench : Nora Doel Jean De Baer : Maxine Stuart Maurice Denham : George Martin Eleanor David : Cecily Farr Mercedes Ruehl : Kay Daniel Gerroll : Brian Wendy Morgan : Megan Wells Ian McNeice : Bill Humphries J. Smith-Cameron : Ginny Connie Booth : Woman from Delaware Tom Isbell : Ed Anne Dyson : Mrs. Boulton

Between the Lines (Original title: 84 Charing Cross Road ) is an American - British drama from 1987 . Directed by David Hugh Jones , the screenplay was written by Hugh Whitemore based on a play by James Roose-Evans , which in turn is based on the published correspondence between Helene Hanff and Frank P. Doel.

action

At the beginning of the film, the elderly Helen Hanff travels to England on a plane and enters an empty shop. The actual plot is told as a retrospective and begins shortly after the Second World War . The New York author Helene Hanff, who lives in modest circumstances, loves English literature, but does not receive certain works in her hometown, or not at all affordable. Through a magazine she became aware of the antiquarian bookstore Marks & Co in London and wrote to them. To her surprise, she received some of the requested copies at very reasonable prices by return of post.

An exchange of letters develops that extends over years and also includes several of the employees of the antiquarian bookshop. Living conditions in Great Britain in the immediate post-war period were characterized by food rationing and austerity constraints. While Hanff holds leather-bound or gold-trimmed editions from the British second-hand bookshop in his hands in astonishment, the Londoners are happy about food parcels that they send them through a Danish company on holidays.

The correspondence spans more than two decades and is becoming increasingly general and private. One discusses literary questions, the sermons of John Donne or the diaries of Samuel Pepys , but also recipes for Yorkshire pudding , baseball or the coronation of Elizabeth II. The tension in the correspondence arises from Hanff's humorous and provocative style in contrast to the outside world towards "British-formal" Doels, who, however, are quite humorous in their calm manner.

Helen Hanff's economic situation improved over the years as she also wrote TV scripts. However, several plans to travel to London and visit Doel and the second-hand bookshop fail. Doel, married and father of two daughters, sees his children grow up and colleagues leave or die - hemp takes part in everything from New York. She herself remains loyal to her independent life and is even briefly arrested once during the student protests in 1968 because she cannot simply be fobbed off by a police officer and sent back behind the lines.

Shortly afterwards she received a letter from London telling her about the death of Frank Doel. Her letter of condolence to the family is followed by a letter from Doel's widow Nora, who confesses to her that she was jealous of the close correspondence between the two at times. At the same time, she wishes that the two had met.

At the end of the film, Hanff stands in the empty London second-hand bookshop and speaks to the absent Doel with a smile: "Well Frankie, here I am, finally I made it".

Reviews

Roger Ebert wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times on March 27, 1987 that the film was intended for people who would love London and books. The story told is not very dramatic; the action usually takes place in a post office. Ebert knows the underlying play as well as the book on which the play is based, but he still does not consider the basic idea to be sound ( "I read the book and I saw the play and now I am reviewing the movie, and I still don ' t think the basic idea is sound " ).

The lexicon of international films wrote that the "quiet" film dealt with "the rather non-filmic subjects of books, reading and writing" ; he would “probably only fully open up to book lovers” . At the same time he addresses the "physical and mental deficiency and the change in two societies in the course of a post-war generation" .

Cinema magazine wrote that the “quiet” film was both a “sensitive love story” and a “historical document of the times” . He addresses "the important things in life: friendship, generosity, passion and longing" .

Awards

Anthony Hopkins won an award at the Moscow International Film Festival in 1987 , and David Hugh Jones was nominated for another award at the same festival. Anne Bancroft received the BAFTA Award in 1988 , Judi Dench and Hugh Whitemore were nominated for the same award. The script won the USC Scripter Award in 1989.

backgrounds

The film was shot in London , New York City and Lee International Studios in Shepperton . It grossed approximately $ 1.08 million in US cinemas .

Web links

• Between the lines in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Between the lines at Rotten Tomatoes (English)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Film review by Roger Ebert , accessed November 6, 2008
2. ^ Between the lines in the Lexicon of International Films , accessed on November 6, 2008
3. ^ Cinema , accessed November 6, 2008
4. ^ Filming locations for 84 Charing Cross Road , accessed November 6, 2008
5. ↑ Box office / business for 84 Charing Cross Road , accessed November 6, 2008