The Rose (1979)

The tragic life of a self-destructive female rock star who struggles to deal with the constant pressures of her career and the demands of her ruthless business manager.

Director:

Mark Rydell

Writers:

Bo Goldman (screenplay), Bill Kerby (screenplay)

Stars:

Bette Midler, Alan Bates, Frederic Forrest

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bette Midler	...	Mary Rose Foster
Alan Bates	...	Rudge Campbell
Frederic Forrest	...	Huston Dyer
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Billy Ray
Barry Primus	...	Dennis
David Keith	...	PFC Mal
Sandra McCabe	...	Sarah Willingham
Will Hare	...	Mr. Leonard
Rudy Bond	...	Monty
Don Calfa	...	Don Frank
James Keane	...	Sam
Doris Roberts	...	Mrs. Foster
Sandy Ward	...	Mr. Foster, Rose's Father
Michael Greer	...	Emcee
Kenny Sacha	...	Female Impersonator (as Claude Sacha)

Storyline

Bette Midler plays The Rose, a female rock star strikingly similar to Janis Joplin. The film follows Rose's career during her last tour, as she's determined to return to her Florida hometown. Although a success, she's exhausted and lonely but continued working by her gruff and greedy manager. Though loud and brassy, Rose is an insecure alcoholic and former drug user who seems to crave approval in her life. She begins a romance with a limousine driver, who's actually an AWOL sergeant from the United States Army. Her rock and roll lifestyle of Drugs, Sex, and Rock and Roll and constant touring lead her to an inevitable breakdown.

---

Plot Keywords:

roses | bath house | drugs | awol | driver | 

---

Taglines:

She gave and gave, until she had nothing left to give

---

Genres:

Drama | Music | Romance

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 November 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pearl

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,500,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$29,200,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Loosely based on the life of Janis Joplin.

---

Goofs

The car phone has a rotary dial, but when Rose makes a call, the soundtrack sounds like a touch tone phone.

---

Quotes

Rose: What are we ladies? What are we? We are waitresses at the banquet of life! Get into that kitchen and rattle them pots and pans - and you better look pretty good doin' it too, 'else you gonna lose you good thing. And why do we do that, I'll tell you why we do that? We do that to find love - Oh I love to be in love - don't you love to be in love?

---

Crazy Credits

Lyrics of "The Rose" are displayed at the end of the credit crawl, scrolling to the ending of the song.

---

Connections

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs: America's Greatest Music in the Movies (2004)

---

Soundtracks

The Night We Said Goodbye
Music by Bill Elliott

User Reviews

Awesome!

I'm no fan of Bette Midler, but I was mighty impressed by her first starring role in "The Rose". The Divine Miss M plays Rose, a Janis Joplin-type, living her last days in a sea of sex, booze, and drugs. The movie shows painfully and slowly how her life goes completely out of control, while her friends and management are helpless.

Midler, unlike the unbearably long line of singers/rappers/divas/bubblegum pop stars who have done acting, can do both and dominate. Midler's Oscar-nominated performance is awesome, and her singing voice is superb as she belts out the songs with panache. If you want to see her do something else besides the endless comedies she does, check this one out.