Kate & Leopold (2001)

Kate and her actor brother live in N.Y. in the 21st Century. Her ex-boyfriend, Stuart, lives above her apartment. Stuart finds a space near the Brooklyn Bridge where there is a gap in time.... See full summary »

Director:

James Mangold

Writers:

Steven Rogers (story), James Mangold (screenplay),

Stars:

Meg Ryan, Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Meg Ryan	...	Kate McKay
Hugh Jackman	...	Leopold
Liev Schreiber	...	Stuart Besser
Breckin Meyer	...	Charlie McKay
Natasha Lyonne	...	Darci
Bradley Whitford	...	J.J. Camden
Paxton Whitehead	...	Uncle Millard
Spalding Gray	...	Dr. Geisler
Josh Stamberg	...	Colleague Bob
Matthew Sussman	...	Ad Executive Phil
Charlotte Ayanna	...	Patrice
Philip Bosco	...	Otis
Andrew Jack	...	Roebling
Stan Tracy	...	Photographer
Kristen Schaal	...	Miss Tree

Storyline

Kate and her actor brother live in N.Y. in the 21st Century. Her ex-boyfriend, Stuart, lives above her apartment. Stuart finds a space near the Brooklyn Bridge where there is a gap in time. He goes back to the 19th Century and takes pictures of the place. Leopold -- a man living in the 1870s -- is puzzled by Stuart's tiny camera, follows him back through the gap, and they both ended up in the present day. Leopold is clueless about his new surroundings. He gets help and insight from Charlie who thinks that Leopold is an actor who is always in character. Leopold is a highly intelligent man and tries his best to learn and even improve the modern conveniences that he encounters.

---

Plot Keywords:

actor | 19th century | camera | brooklyn bridge | bridge | 

---

Taglines:

This Christmas, chivalry makes a comeback.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language

Details

Official Sites:

NZZ Online - Neue Zürcher Zeitung (German) Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

25 December 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kate & Leopoldo

Filming Locations:

Central Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$48,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$147,644 (South Africa) (23 August 2002)

Gross:

$363,694 (South Africa) (20 September 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Konrad Pictures, Miramax Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min 123 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The violin piece being performed during Kate and Leopold's rooftop dinner is Jascha Heifetz's transcription of Leopold Godowsky's "Alt-Wien", or "Old Vienna". Godowsky subtitled his work, originally written for solo piano, "Whose yesterdays look backward with a smile through tears".

---

Goofs

In Leopold's uncle's house, the portrait of a young Leo (age 5-10) and his parents shows costumes from 3 different periods. If Leo was 30 in 1876, he was born in 1846, and would be 5 in 1851. The mother's costume dates to about 1876; the boy's is from about 1780.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Roebling: Time. Time, it has been proposed, is the fourth dimension. And yet, for mortal man, time has no dimension at all. We are like horses with blinders, seeing only what lies before us. Forever guessing the future and fabricating the past.

---

Crazy Credits

In 1852, Elisha Graves Otis invented the safety brake for a lifting platform. One year later in 1853, he founded the Otis Elevator Company in Yonkers, New York. The Otis Elevator Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation.

---

Connections

Spoofs Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

---

Soundtracks

"Until"
Written and Performed by Sting
Courtesy of A & M Records

User Reviews

A modern fairy tale for romantic souls

Kate & Leopold is more or less a romantic comedy that has been done so many times before. Woman and man see each other and don't like each other. Than they fall in love, but destiny comes in between them. In the end they overcome all problems and will live happily ever after...

It's exactly the same as always, but this time they have added an interesting extra ingredient to it. Kate, her brother, her ex and Leopold all live in New York. The only problem is that Leopold is from the 1870's, while the others live in the 21st century. Kate's brother has found a way to travel through time, meets Leopold and accidentally takes him with him to the 21st century. I guess I don't have to explain everything that happens afterward...

Even though I'm not always a huge fan of romantic comedies, I have to admit that I had a good time watching this one. Thanks to the original approach, this movie is better than average. The actors are convincing, although I was surprised to see how easily a man from the 19th century adapted to the 21st. It never really seemed a shocking experience to him. If I had directed the movie, I would have accentuated it more... But hey, if you can see past that and you are a romantic soul, I'm sure that you'll love this modern fairy tale. You know it's impossible, but you would like to believe it. I give it a 7/10 for that.