Gilbert “Gil” Cates (born June 6, 1934) is an American film director and television producer. He is probably best known for producing the annual Academy Award shows. In September 2007, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that he would be producing the 80th Academy Awards, his 14th time. The awards took place on Sunday February 24, 2008. Cates directed a number of feature films including I Never Sang for My Father (1970) and Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams (1973), Oh, God! Book II (1980) and The Last Married Couple in America (1980). Cates was born Gilbert Katz in New York City, the son of Nina (née Peltzman) and Nathan Katz, who was a dress manufacturer. There he attended DeWitt Clinton High School. He is the uncle of noted actress Phoebe Cates and a brother of the producer and director Joseph Cates, with whom he collaborated from time to time. Description above from the Wikipedia article Gilbert Cates, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- June 6, 1934
- October 31, 2011 (aged 77)
- New York City, New York, USA
- Director and producer
- 20 on MovieCove · 39 credits in all
What are Gilbert Cates' films like?
Across their 20 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 1 · Earnest 19
A split, not a type: Light 7 · Serious 3 · Dark 10
Grounded 20 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0
Gentle 7 · Charged 7 · Intense 6
Steady 13 · Shifting 7 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 15 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 1
Slow burn 11 · Even-paced 9 · Relentless 0
Casual 12 · Engaged 7 · Full focus 1
A split, not a type: Easy watch 7 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 10
Resolved 17 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 2
Moods and endings
- Happy7
- Bittersweet9
- Tragic1
- Ambiguous3
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Gilbert Cates' films?
As of October 24, 2026, 6 of their 20 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Gilbert Cates' titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
39 credits, 20 with a MovieCove page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
A Death in the Family(2002)
Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films
Collected Stories (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)
$pent (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)
Innocent Victims (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)
Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films
In My Daughter's Name(1992)
Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films
Absolute Strangers(1991)
Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films
Call Me Anna (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films
My First Love(1988)
Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films
Fatal Judgement(1988)
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Backfire(1987)
Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films
Child's Cry (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)
The Twilight Zone (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)
Consenting Adult(1985)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films
Burning Rage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1984)
Goldilocks and the Three Bears (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1984)
Hobson's Choice (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)
Rapunzel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)
Country Gold (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Faerie Tale Theatre (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
The Kid from Nowhere(1982)
Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Oh, God! Book II(1980)
Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
The Berenstain Bears' Christmas Tree (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
The Promise(1979)
Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films
Stubby Pringle's Christmas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)
Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Dragonfly (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)
After the Fall (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)
The Affair(1973)
Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films
To All My Friends on Shore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
Rings Around the World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)
The Oscars (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)
Career shape
A full career of 39 titles from 1953 to 2002.
Biggest box office
Oh, God! Book II (1980)
Highest rated
I Never Sang for My Father (1970)
Most popular right now
50 Years of Country Music (1978)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Gilbert Cates' films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 39th percentile, the median of the 19 of 20 with a score; across their 20 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 41st percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up2
- 50th to 74th5
- 25th to 49th6
- Below 25th6
Shape of the crowd
9 of their 19 titles are Mixed.
- Divisive1
- Cult Classic5
- Crowd Pleaser4
- Mixed9
Reviewers score the atmosphere 60/100 and the pacing 44/100 in their films, across 12 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Gilbert Cates work with?
People who share at least 2 of Gilbert Cates' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Charles Fox shares the most, 6.
Directors
- Marc DanielsShared titles: Skinflint: A Country Christmas Carol (1979), Have I Got a Christmas for You (1977)See all 2 shared titles with Marc Daniels
Writers
- Robert AndersonShared titles: Absolute Strangers (1991), I Never Sang for My Father (1970)See all 2 shared titles with Robert Anderson
Actors
- Ari MeyersShared titles: Confessions: Two Faces of Evil (1994), In My Daughter's Name (1992)See all 2 shared titles with Ari Meyers
- Ron FrazierShared titles: In My Daughter's Name (1992), Absolute Strangers (1991)See all 2 shared titles with Ron Frazier
- Patty DukeShared titles: Absolute Strangers (1991), Fatal Judgement (1988)See all 2 shared titles with Patty Duke
- Richard KileyShared titles: Absolute Strangers (1991), My First Love (1988)See all 2 shared titles with Richard Kiley
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Charles FoxShared titles: A Death in the Family (2002), Confessions: Two Faces of Evil (1994), In My Daughter's Name (1992), Absolute Strangers (1991), Oh, God! Book II (1980), The Last Married Couple in America (1980)See all 6 shared titles with Charles Fox
- Peter E. BergerShared titles: Do You Know the Muffin Man? (1989), Oh, God! Book II (1980), The Last Married Couple in America (1980), The Promise (1979)See all 4 shared titles with Peter E. Berger
- Melvin ShapiroShared titles: Fatal Judgement (1988), Backfire (1987), Consenting Adult (1985), The Kid from Nowhere (1982)See all 4 shared titles with Melvin Shapiro
- Mark IrwinShared titles: Absolute Strangers (1991), Do You Know the Muffin Man? (1989), My First Love (1988)See all 3 shared titles with Mark Irwin
Producers
- Dennis E. DotyShared titles: A Death in the Family (2002), Confessions: Two Faces of Evil (1994), In My Daughter's Name (1992), Absolute Strangers (1991), Consenting Adult (1985)See all 5 shared titles with Dennis E. Doty
- Joseph CatesShared titles: The Last Married Couple in America (1980), Skinflint: A Country Christmas Carol (1979), 50 Years of Country Music (1978), Have I Got a Christmas for You (1977)See all 4 shared titles with Joseph Cates
- Peggy GriffinShared titles: Confessions: Two Faces of Evil (1994), In My Daughter's Name (1992), Absolute Strangers (1991)See all 3 shared titles with Peggy Griffin
- Jon AvnetShared titles: Do You Know the Muffin Man? (1989), My First Love (1988)See all 2 shared titles with Jon Avnet
