The Fabulous Baker Boys - videos, teasers and stills from filming

All videos, teasers and footage from the filming of the film "The Fabulous Baker Boys"

The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989)

Timing: 1:54 (114 min)

6.594/10
314

All about film

Video 1

Photo 2

Actors and characters

The Fabulous Baker Boys - Trailer (1080p)

English

2:48

What's left behind the scenes

The roles of the main characters, the pianist brothers, were played by real-life brothers, actors Jeff and Beau Bridges.
For filming in this picture, the brothers specifically learned all the songs performed in the film – to play them themselves on camera. Beau and Jeff spent hours watching recordings of the film’s composer, Dave Grusin, playing and trying to copy his movements.
Madonna and Debra Winger both declined the lead female role in this film. The role went to Michelle Pfeiffer. And not only did Michelle perform it brilliantly – she also sang all the songs in the film without using a vocal double.
When Michelle Pfeiffer was cast as Suzie, she hadn't sung in a year. She had to quickly catch up – she practiced in the studio for 10 hours a day, and listened to recordings of her practice at home in the evenings.
When work on the film was just beginning, George Roy Hill (1921-2002) was the director of the project, and he worked closely with Steven Kloves in New York for six weeks. Kloves ultimately became the director when Hill left the project due to creative differences regarding the film's ending (and no one else expressed interest in taking the director's chair).
Most of the film was shot at night. That's why director Steven Kloves hired production designer Jeffrey Townsend. He greatly admired Townsend's work on Martin Scorsese's crime comedy 'After Hours' (1985), which was filmed almost entirely at night. In addition to Townsend, Kloves brought on cinematographer Michael Ballhaus (1935-2017), who had also worked with Scorsese.
When George Roy Hill was still considered to be directing the film, Steven Kloves suggested casting Whitney Houston (1963-2012) in the role of Suzie. It was a period of rising popularity for her, and Kloves and Hill even attended one of her concerts in New York. After the concert, Hill agreed to the idea of casting Houston and even changing the minor ending (he proposed that the Baker brothers, along with Suzie, go to Las Vegas and achieve success there). Kloves put an end to his dreams, stating that he would not allow the film's ending to be changed, with or without Houston.

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