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Bagdad Cafe

Bagdad Cafe (1987)

  • 88% of critics liked it
    (17 reviews)

  • 87% of users liked it
    (7,156 ratings)

This West German film is set in the California Desert. A husband-and-wife pair of Bavarian tourists become stranded when their car breaks down; after a quarrel, the wife, Marianne Sagebrecht, gathers her luggage and stalks off. She stops at the Bagdad Cafe, a fleapit truckstop run by outspoken… More

Play Trailer

PG,
Directed By
Written By
Eleonore Adlon, Percy Adlon
Genres
Drama, Art House & International, Comedy
In Theaters
Apr 29, 1988 Wide
On DVD
Jul 24, 2001
Virgin Vision

Critic Reviews

  • Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

    Unfortunately, the film's curious conceits remain implausible even on a fantasy level, and most of the satirical possibilities are either sidestepped or fumbled.

  • James Plath, Movie Metropolis

    Just as the main character slowly grows on people in the film, it can draw in reluctant viewers.

  • Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

    Percy Adlon's first English-speaking film is a charming fable about the friendhsip between two vastly different women.

  • Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

    This 20-year-old film reminds us of a time before independent movies became the formulaic fare they often are these days.

  • Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

    An exotic celebration of the beauty of human personality and friendship.

See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Carlos M


    An enjoyable fable, expertly edited and making smart use of a surreal cinematography to enhance the sense of oddness created by the rather unusual story. But it also does not know how to end, and it simply drifts without any direction in the last fifteen minutes.

  • Randy T


    Starts out like low budget community theater but that's probably part of its charm. <i>Bagdad Cafe</i> has substance and heart that reveals itself in a slow-burn of oddball characters and intelligent scripting.

  • Daniel P


    Bizarre, eccentric, and for the most part quite wonderful film. Jasmin, a tourist from Bavaria, Germany, walks away from her husband in the middle of the Mojave Desert and eventually stumbles upon a rundown roadside cafe/motel/gas station, managed by the stressed out and overworked… More

  • Anastasia B


    beautiful. mesmerising, joyful film-making, of the kind that you wish there was more. reality and dream mix - Percy Adlon knows the right doses. a happiness pill for easy riders and cool viewers. in my opinion, excellent. 5/5

  • Donna D


    I think I found a favorite in this simple but yet charming movie. Wonderful scripted with great acting by both Sagebrecht and Pounder. Not to mention great performance by Jack Palance, himself in a story of two women with two different backgrounds, but same situation of leaving their… More

Read all 7 featured audience ratings

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Cast

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Trailers & Clips