Jimmy Cagney returns! . The only E. L. Doctorow book I ever read was "Ragtime," and I read it because I enjoyed Milos Foreman's film version. I wasn't impressed with the novel. The author's writing style was excruciating--on purpose or unintentional, I don't know--in a way that reminds one of Theodore Dreiser. Moreover, I continually found myself sighing heavily over the book's anachronisms. Sorry, but the early twentieth century WAS NOT the 1960s! Quit trying to rewrite history! Doctorow did do a few things right, however. His characters, at least a few of them, were interesting. Too, I liked how he integrated their tales with real life historical figures and events. So when I recently learned that Foreman's version of the book came out on DVD, I decided to rewatch the film. The director, who made "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" in 1975, went on to lens several other memorable films, including "Amadeus," "The People vs. Larry Flynt," and "Man on the Moon." If you're familiar with any of these movies, it's obvious Milos Foreman likes using his camera to document kooky characters. "Ragtime" provides him with plenty of opportunities to examine oddball personalities engaging in often oddball behavior. Those crazy Gilded Age Americans!    Several major and minor stories wend their way through "Ragtime." We follow a well to do New York family--consisting of "Father" (James Olson), "Mother" (Mary Steenburgen), and Mother's "Younger Brother" (Brad Dourif)--that seems to represent the WASP majority. The family becomes embroiled in a pregnancy scandal involving a black woman named Sarah (Debbie Allen) and her lover Coalhouse Walker Jr. (Howard E. Rollins Jr.). While Walker attempts to ingratiate himself with our WASP family in an effort to win over Sarah, he becomes involved in a minor scandal when a group of firemen led by Willie Conklin (Kenneth McMillan) vandalizes his automobile. Other threads focus on a poor Jewish artist named Tateh (Mandy Patinkin), whose invention of a nifty little gimcrack called "picture books" leads to a career as one of Hollywood's first film directors. A notorious murder case also takes center stage from time to time. When renowned architect Stanford White (Norman Mailer) starts fooling around with airheaded Evelyn Nesbit (Elizabeth McGovern), her jealous lover Harry K. Thaw (Robert Joy) pops a couple of caps in White's noggin--in full view of hundreds of witnesses. As you can see, "Ragtime" covers an enormous amount of material.    Remarkably, the movie works quite well. The first part spends all of its time establishing the story lines and fleshing out the characters. The second part focuses largely on Coalhouse Walker's failures to achieve justice for the wrongs done to him. He eventually turns into a terrorist who, with the help of a few friends, bombs several firehouses around town. Then he seizes a library in New York City, wires it with explosives, and threatens to blow the place sky high if he doesn't receive a new car to replace the damaged vehicle. Let's see--what else happens? Well, Younger Brother strikes up an affair with Evelyn Nesbit only to discover she's a total ditz that flits from man to man in search of easy money. Disenchanted with his failed relationship, Younger Brother falls in with decidedly unwholesome elements that--surprise--play a big part in the film's most important segment. Mother and Father drift apart over a number of issues, not the least of which involves Sarah's baby but also Father's stuffiness when it comes to progressive issues like feminism and race. Booker T. Washington (Moses Gunn) and Harry Houdini (Jeffrey DeMunn) also pop in from time to time, although the former plays a bigger part in the proceedings.    Man, is this a tough film to summarize! Foreman and company pack a ton of stuff in two and a half hours and still fail to incorporate everything Doctorow put in his book. Oh well. Only a television miniseries could hope to achieve a faithful adaptation, and even then it wouldn't work considering the very adult material Doctorow placed in certain segments of his story. I think the best way to view the film is as a well-done period piece populated with a stellar cast. The costumes and the set pieces look great, from the glittery buildings populated by the elites to the dirty tenement houses where Tateh plies his trade. Performances are sublime. Watching Jimmy Cagney play a tough as nails police commissioner is wonderful, especially when you consider he hadn't appeared in a movie since 1961. Donald O'Connor, Pat O'Brien, Jeff Daniels, and even Jack Nicholson turn up as well in smaller roles. The late Kenneth McMillan, a personal favorite of mine, deserves special mention for playing a racist scumbag that you'll love to hate. Throw in an amazing score from none other than Randy Newman, and the result is an extremely entertaining film that holds your attention for 155 minutes.    Extras on the disc include a commentary track with Milos Foreman and producer Michael Houseman, a lengthy deleted scene involving McGovern's character meeting anarchist Emma Goldman, and a featurette on the making of the film. My only real problem with "Ragtime" the motion picture concerns the anachronistic attitudes on race. I highly doubt the police would take the word of a black man over a white firefighter back in the 1910s, nor would there be as much sympathy as there is for Sarah's plight. That's the 1960s talking. Anyway, the film is a winner for the reasons I stated above. I also should mention that any movie that shows all around jerk and agitator Norman Mailer taking a bullet in the head gets my vote any day!
Output: POS