Remodeled ‘Palace’

Fans of “White Palace,” the novel, may be surprised by “White Palace,” the movie .

Directed by Luis Mandoki for Universal Pictures, it stars James Spader as an upscale advertising exec who falls for slatternly waitress--and older woman--Susan Sarandon.

What was a fairly gritty, realistic story about two people from different worlds and classes falling in love appears to have been largely homogenized into a Hollywood fairy tale that omits or softens many of the book’s potentially offensive details.

Amy Robinson, who co-produced the film with Griffin Dunne and Mark Robinson, disagrees with that assessment.

“We set out to tell a story--not to make a slavish translation of a book,” she says. “I believe the movie captures the feeling, sentiment, milieu and the story of the book.” Among the notable changes: The book’s “pear-shaped” waitress (with small breasts and a “monumental rear end”) has become the slim but curvaceous Sarandon. Spader’s character is now less snobbish, Sarandon’s considerably less coarse--gone are her racist and anti-Semitic attitudes, for instance. Her heavy alcohol use--a subject of his concern in the book--now seems almost romantic. And so on.

Robinson acknowledges that the film went through extensive re-editing--including a decision to re-shoot the ending.

“Many people were involved” regarding the changes, she adds, including motion picture group chairman Tom Pollock and other Universal executives.

Some alterations were made so recently that publicity materials distributed for the film--now being reprinted--list cast members who didn’t make the final cut, and even an actress who was recast.

“White Palace” author Glenn Savan tells us he had nothing to do with the screenplay, which was written by Ted Tally and Alvin Sargent.

“I had no real input,” Savan says. “I feel what’s on the screen reflects someone else’s artistic endeavor. I don’t feel comfortable in commenting on it.”