Waiting for the Moon (15 Jun. 1987)

Sundance prizewinner. Fictionalized portrait of one of history's great literary couples: Stein & Toklas. Summer 1930s France, Alice tends to ailing Gertrude; they visit Fernande Olivier, ... See full summary »

Director:

Jill Godmilow

Writers:

Jill Godmilow (story), Mark Magill (screenplay),

Stars:

Linda Hunt, Linda Bassett, Jacques Boudet

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Linda Hunt	...	Alice B. Toklas
Linda Bassett	...	Gertrude Stein
Jacques Boudet	...	Guillaume Apollinaire
Andrew McCarthy	...	Henry Hopper
Bernadette Lafont	...	Fernande Olivier
Adolfo Vargas	...	Pablo Picasso (voice)
Pierre-Alain Chapuis	...	Priest
Daniel Langlet	...	Monsieur Thiele
Michèle Gleizer	...	Madame Thiele (as Michèle Gleiser)
Bruce McGill	...	Ernest Hemingway
K.C. Schulberg	...	Stage Manager
Pascal Cambon	...	Sound Effects Man
Liliane Rovère	...	Bordello Madame (as Liliane Rovere)
Brigitte Bellac	...	Prostitute
Jean Achache	...	Doctor

Storyline

Sundance prizewinner. Fictionalized portrait of one of history's great literary couples: Stein & Toklas. Summer 1930s France, Alice tends to ailing Gertrude; they visit Fernande Olivier, Guillaume Apollinaire, others; and Hemingway pops in.

---

Plot Keywords:

summer | lesbian | historical event | independent film

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK France USA West Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 June 1987 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Villers-en-Arthies, France

Box Office

Gross:

$751,555 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

American Playhouse Theatrical Films, Skouras Pictures, New Front Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

By the 21st century U.S. standards of female height (ranging from 5'3" to 5'6"), Stein (5'1") and Toklas (4'11") were quite short for women, but for their time, Stein was of average female height for a woman born prior to 1900, and Toklas was only very slightly shorter than average. In the film, they are portrayed with a very noticeable height difference, with Linda Hunt being 4'9" (per Hunt's imdb profile) and Linda Bassett being at least 5'6".

---

Crazy Credits

This is a fictional film inspired by the lives of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas. The events depicted are not intended to be and should not be accepted as factual.

User Reviews

Wish it were available now

We saw this on public television and thought that it was an excellent portrayal of the relationship between these two fascinating women. They lived openly as a couple in a time when it was a good deal more dangerous and unusual to do so than now.

Linda Hunt as always is a riveting actress, and Alice B. Toklas may have been the more interesting member of the couple. I certainly wouldn't call Linda Bassett "starry-eyed" - she's as masculine, egotistical, and commanding a presence as she was described in real life. This production is fairly true to Gertrude's autobiography, which she published under Alice's name.