My Dinner With Andre (1981)

My Dinner with Andre is a movie directed by Louis Malle and starring Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory. The movie is entirely based on a long dinner conversation between the two characters. Wallace Shawn plays Wally Shawn, a playwright, and Andre Gregory plays Andre, a theater director who plays him.

Throughout the film, Wally and Andre have a long conversation about the meaning of life, human nature, art and culture. The film draws attention with its dialogues and intense scenes that reflect the inner world of the characters.

My Dinner with Andre was critically acclaimed and became a cult classic. The film has a theater-like feel, only because the characters move on with their words and use a limited space.

The film begins by recounting the ordinary events and ordinary life of the playwright Wally Shawn (played by himself). Questioning his own failures and the meaning of his life, Wally stumbles upon his old friend, theater director Andre Gregory (played by himself).

Wally finds out what Andre has been up to lately, and Andre informs him about the interesting and unusual journeys he's taken over the past few years. Andre tells that he visited many places such as visiting Tibetan monasteries and even going to the Amazon forests.

Throughout the film, Wally and Andre have a long conversation about the meaning of life, human nature, art and culture. These conversations cause both characters to share their thoughts and feelings, although they may have opposing views at times.

The movie proceeds entirely through the conversations and interactions of the characters. The two continue their conversations as they wander in and out of the restaurant from time to time. The film has a theater-like feel based on the characters' deep and intense dialogue and limited use of space.

My Dinner with Andre was critically acclaimed and became a cult classic. The movie draws attention with the quality of its dialogues and intense scenes that reflect the inner world of the characters, due to the fact that the characters only proceed with their words.

Here are some interesting facts about the movie:

• The film draws attention as a production starring Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory, who are real-life friends and co-wrote the script.
• The movie has a minimalist structure, where only two characters have a long dialogue over a dinner in a restaurant.
• The character of Andre Gregory is an artist who is a theater director and actor in real life and also performs in the movie.
• The script of the movie is designed as a compilation of the conversations Shawn and Gregory had over many years.
• The film was critically acclaimed and earned Wallace Shawn an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay.
• The film is considered a unique production that stands out in the history of cinema with its dialogues and minimalist structure.

Director : Louis Malle
Writers : Wallace Shawn, Andre Gregory
Director of Photography : Jeri Sopanen
Music : Allen Shawn
Production : 1981 - USA - 110 m.
Genre : Comedy / Drama

CAST :

Andre Gregory

Wallace Shawn

Jean Lenauer

Roy Butler