Frankie and Johnny

Director: Garry Marshall

1991 / 118min / 35mm

Terrence McNally adapted his own breakout off-Broadway two-hander into this sassily charming vehicle for Pfeiffer and Al Pacino, triumphantly reunited eight years after sharing the screen in Scarface, here playing an emotionally brittle yet optimistic waitress at Manhattan’s Apollo Cafe and her new co-worker, an ex-con short order cook who takes her aback when he starts pitching woo to her. Transferring his two-act to the screen, McNally opened it up to the scenery of the city, while adding tasty supporting roles for Héctor Elizondo, Nathan Lane, and Kate Nelligan as the eponymous duo’s gum-snapping boy-crazy colleague.

Part of Piping Hot Pfeiffer