84 Charing Cross Road (1987)

True story of a transatlantic business correspondence about used books that developed into a close friendship.

Director:

David Hugh Jones (as David Jones)

Writers:

Helene Hanff (book), James Roose-Evans (play)

Stars:

Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins, Judi Dench

Won 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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
Tom Isbell	...	Ed
Anne Dyson	...	Mrs. Boulton
Connie Booth	...	The Lady from Delaware
Ronn Carroll	...	Businessman on Plane

Storyline

When a humorous script-reader in her New York City apartment sees an ad in the Saturday Review of Literature for a bookstore in London that does mail order, she begins a very special correspondence and friendship with Frank P. Doel (Sir Anthony Hopkins), the bookseller who works at Marks & Co., 84 Charing Cross Road.

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Plot Keywords:

epistolary | bookstore | correspondence | book | friendship | 

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Taglines:

A true story

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The "84, Charing Cross Road" story has been made into five media forms: a book, a television movie, this theatrical movie, a stage play, and a radio production.

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Goofs

Paper suddenly appears in the typewriter when Helene is writing to Frank about the diary.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Businessman on plane: Your first trip to London?
Helene Hanff: Yes.
Businessman on plane: You want a word of advice? Don't trust the cab drivers; they'll take you five miles to go three blocks... and, uh, don't waste your time looking at a street map. Nobody can find their way around London - not even Londoners.
Helene Hanff: Maybe I should go to Baltimore instead.
Businessman on plane: No; you'll enjoy it. London's a great place. What kind of trip is it - business or pleasure?
Helene Hanff: Unfinished business.

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Crazy Credits

The production teams in New York and London were almost completely separate, and the closing credits reflect this: in front of a split screen showing Helene in New York and Frank in London, the crews for the two cities scroll side by side. In most cases the same jobs are shown in both columns, and the job titles are then shown in the center.

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Connections

References Anna Lucasta (1958)

User Reviews

A poignant and well-crafted story of long-distance friendship.

This movie is an example of how the cinematic medium can powerfully explore a mundane activity as letter writing. The movement of the characters through their activities and concerns over different times of life and across 2 physically separated cultures is smooth, subtle and engaging. The movie does not contain the bombast that many others seem to be more pre-occupied with. Rather the viewer is taken into the quiet enjoyment of human conversation and communication. And just like a good conversation, one is left with both satisfaction and longing.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 February 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

84 Charing Cross Road

Filming Locations:

Buckingham Palace, Westminster, London, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$24,350, 16 February 1987

Gross USA:

$1,083,486

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,083,486

Company Credits

Production Co:

Brooksfilms, Columbia Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1