Chinese Coffee (2000)

Harry and Jake, two unsuccessful writers, spend a cathartic evening arguing about money, aesthetics, their friendship, and Harry's new manuscript.

Director:

Al Pacino

Writers:

Ira Lewis (play), Ira Lewis (screenplay)

Stars:

Al Pacino, Jerry Orbach, Susan Floyd

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Al Pacino	...	Harry Levine
Jerry Orbach	...	Jake Manheim
Susan Floyd	...	Joanna
Ellen McElduff	...	Mavis
Michel Moinot	...	Maurice
Judette Jones	...	Supermarket cashier
Paul J.Q. Lee	...	Counterman
Joel Eidelsberg	...	Harry's brother
Maria Gentile	...	Sarah / Bellydancer
Christopher Evan Welch	...	Hamlet actor
Neal Jones	...	Eteocles / Actor in play
Laura Esterman	...	Actor in play / Messenger
Hazelle Goodman	...	Cafe Dante waitress (as Hazel Goodman)
James Bulleit	...	Sgt. Boyle - Undercover cop #1
Mark Scarola	...	Undercover cop #2

Storyline

When aging, unsuccessful Greenwich Village writer Harry Levine is fired from his job as restaurant doorman, he calls on friend and mentor Jake, ostensibly to collect a long-standing debt. Harry takes the opportunity to solicits his opinion on his latest manuscript, a work of semi-fiction based on their longtime friendship. Although he initially denies having read it, Jake later attacks it on aesthetic grounds, and deep-seated feelings of betrayal and jealousy surface, resulting in a traumatic confrontation.

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Plot Keywords:

friendship | writer | jealousy | doorman | greek tragedy | 

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Taglines:

There's a fine line between friendship and betrayal.

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 September 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kínai kávé

Company Credits

Production Co:

Chal Productions, Shooting Gallery

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Al Pacino starred in the 1992 Broadway stage production of "Chinese Coffee".

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Goofs

Near the end of the film Harry is poured a full glass of seltzer with a lime in it by Barney. Although he does not touch it, the glass is empty when he gets up to leave.

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Quotes

Harry Levine: There comes a point in life when one will no longer bow and scrape, doesn't there?

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Connections

Referenced in Biography: Al Pacino: Inside Out (2001)

User Reviews

A staged play start to finish

A Broadway play turned into a film starring Al Pacino and Jerry Orbach. Think of this script as sort of a "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf" between two heterosexual men. In the span of two hours (with flashbacks) layer after layer of their relatively short friendship is peeled away to raw feelings and pseudo-honest expressions until a few truths may have been reached. My only problem with it is in the style of the dialog – much of the time feeling the scripts are invisible but right in front of them. The timing is too "ready" and snappy, the comebacks polished, the exchanges sculpted with care. Had it (they) been relaxed, awkward, slow to respond, overly fast to respond, etc., I could've believed it. As it is, I never lost awareness this was a staged play.