The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) on Netflix
Brothers Jack and Frank Baker have played lounge songs on twin grand pianos in Seattle for fifteen years, and their bookings are drying up. Frank wants a singer; Susie Diamond arrives late.
- Netflix4.2/5
- IMDb6.9/1028,063 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes97%
Trailer
Plot summary
Jack Baker plays piano in a lounge act with his older brother Frank. For fifteen years the two have shared twin grand pianos in Seattle, with Frank booking the work and choosing the songs and Jack tiring of them. When steady gigs and income fall off, Frank decides to hire a female singer. Thirty-seven candidates fail to impress, and then Susie Diamond, a former escort, arrives more than an hour late and insists on being heard. Her voice and her stage presence win over both brothers, and they hire her. The act starts getting better bookings and higher pay, and Susie's picture is added to the brothers' stand-up.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Michelle Pfeiffer was originally hesitant to film the scene where Susie Diamond sings "Makin' Whoopee" on top of a grand piano, fearing audiences would find her laughable, and tried to talk her way out of it the day before shooting. Director Steve Kloves persisted, and the sequence ultimately took six hours to film.
- Jeff Bridges and Beau Bridges play brothers Jack and Frank Baker, the only time the real-life brothers appeared in the same film. Jeff shaved a bald patch onto the back of Beau's head because Beau's character is balding in the script.
- Singer Madonna turned down the role of lounge singer Susie Diamond because she found the film "too mushy". Jodie Foster, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Debra Winger were also considered for the part.
- Although the film is set in Seattle, it was mostly shot in Los Angeles, including at the Ambassador Hotel, whose Cocoanut Grove nightclub was used for nighttime scenes. The hotel permanently closed in 1989, shortly after filming concluded.
- Michelle Pfeiffer won the Golden Globe and all four major critics' awards for her performance as Susie Diamond, but lost the Academy Award to Jessica Tandy for Driving Miss Daisy. She became the only actor to lose the Oscar despite winning all four major critics' awards.
- The scene of Michelle Pfeiffer singing "Makin' Whoopee" atop a grand piano has been parodied in Saturday Night Live, Hot Shots!, Shrek 2, and episodes of Animaniacs. A 1992 episode of The Golden Girls featured Rue McClanahan performing on top of a piano in a rendition based on Pfeiffer's.
