Brighton Beach Memoirs (1986)

Eugene, a young teenage Jewish boy, recalls his memoirs of his time as an adolescent youth. He lives with his parents, his aunt, two cousins, and his brother, Stanley, whom he looks up to ... See full summary »

Director:

Gene Saks

Writers:

Neil Simon (play), Neil Simon (screenplay)

Stars:

Blythe Danner, Jonathan Silverman, Stacey Glick

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jonathan Silverman	...	Eugene Morris Jerome
Blythe Danner	...	Kate
Stacey Glick	...	Laurie
Lisa Waltz	...	Nora
Judith Ivey	...	Blanche
Bob Dishy	...	Jack
Brian Drillinger	...	Stanley
James Handy	...	Frank Murphy
Bette Henritze	...	Mrs. Murphy
Steven Hill	...	Mr. Stroheim
David Margulies	...	Mr. Farber
Fyvush Finkel	...	Mr. Greenblatt
Kathleen Doyle	...	Mrs. Laski
Alan Weeks	...	Andrew
Marilyn Cooper	...	Woman in Street

Storyline

Eugene, a young teenage Jewish boy, recalls his memoirs of his time as an adolescent youth. He lives with his parents, his aunt, two cousins, and his brother, Stanley, whom he looks up to and admires. He goes through the hardships of puberty, sexual fantasy, and living the life of a poor boy in a crowded house.

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Plot Keywords:

jewish | adolescent | new york city | brooklyn new york city | voice over narration | 

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Taglines:

The heart-winning story based on his award-winning play.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Neil Simon's Brighton Beach Memoirs

Filming Locations:

14th Regiment Armory, 1402 8th Ave., Brooklyn, New York

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,580,750, 28 December 1986, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$11,957,943

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rastar Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film was made and released about three years after its source play of the same name by Neil Simon was first performed in 1983. The original Broadway production of "Brighton Beach Memoirs" opened at the Alvin Theater on 27th March 1983 and transferred to the 46th Street Theatre on 26th February 1985. The play ran for a total of 1299 performances closing on 11th May 1986. The play was nominated for three 1983 Tony Awards, Best Featured Actress in a Play (Elizabeth Franz) and two for Best Featured Actor - Zeljko Ivanek and Matthew Broderick, with Broderick being the only successful actor to win. The New York Drama Critics Circle awarded "Brighton Beach Memoirs" the Best Play of its season. The play's setting is described in its intro as being "Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, New York. September, late 1930s".

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Quotes

Stanley: Jesus, how horny can you get?
Eugene: I don't know. What's the highest score?

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Connections

Followed by Laughter on the 23rd Floor (2001)

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Soundtracks

A Doinele A Volechl Geit
Written and arranged by Ray Musiker
Performed by The Neshoma Orchestra

User Reviews

A sweetly nostalgic look at Neil Simon's childhood...

BRIGHTON BEACH MEMOIRS was the first of a trilogy of plays that Neil Simon wrote about his own life, renaming himself Eugene Morris Jerome. This play was a Broadway smash and made a star and Tony Award winner out of Matthew Broderick. When it was time to bring the play to the screen, Broderick was unavailable because he was back on Broadway in the second play of the trilogy, BILOXI BLUES, so Jonathan Silverman was pegged to star in the film version as Eugene, the slightly neurotic teen going through puberty and other realities of being a Jewish teen during WWII with the help of his loving family. Silverman makes a suitable replacement for Broderick and seems quite at ease speaking directly to the camera. I'm one of the few who really liked Blythe Danner as his strong willed mother...maybe the accent was a bit much, but Danner infuses the character with warmth and strength and Bob Dishy has one of his best roles as Eugene's father, a quiet tower of strength whose world weariness never allows him to neglect his family. Judith Ivey plays Danner's sister, a lonely woman whose lack of self-esteem seems to have stemmed from feeling she has lived in her sister's shadow her whole life and Brian Drillinger also scores as Stanley, Eugene's older brother, who loses his paycheck gambling and then loses his job and doesn't know how to tell Mom and Dad. Gene Saks directs with a loving, if loose hand and the film could have been more tightly paced, but the performances of Silverman, Danner, and Dishy made it worth my time.