Barton Fink (1991)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Joel Coen

Writers:

Joel Coen (written by) &
Ethan Coen (written by)

Release Date:

21 August 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Between Heaven and Hell There's Always Hollywood!

Plot:

In 1941, New York intellectual playwright Barton Fink comes to Hollywood to write a Wallace Beery wrestling picture...

Plot Keywords:

Writer | Wrestling | Writer's Block | Playwright | Hotel

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

John Turturro	...	Barton Fink
John Goodman	...	Charlie Meadows
Judy Davis	...	Audrey Taylor
Michael Lerner	...	Jack Lipnick
John Mahoney	...	W.P. Mayhew
Tony Shalhoub	...	Ben Geisler
Jon Polito	...	Lou Breeze
Steve Buscemi	...	Chet
David Warrilow	...	Garland Stanford
Richard Portnow	...	Detective Mastrionotti
Christopher Murney	...	Detective Deutsch
I.M. Hobson	...	Derek
Meagen Fay	...	Poppy Carnahan (as Megan Faye)
Lance Davis	...	Richard St. Claire
Harry Bugin	...	Pete

MPAA:

Rated R for language and some scenes of violence.

Runtime:

116 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

France:U | Brazil:16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-14 | Germany:16 (bw) | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #31095) | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Circle Films

Trivia:

The ending with the bird diving into the sea wasn't intentional. According to Ethan Coen and Joel Coen the bird got in the shot and they liked it so much, they decided to put it in. Birds also helped the Coens in Miller's Crossing (1990).

Goofs:

Continuity: Charlie's leaking ear changes sides.

Quotes:

Poppy Carnahan: I don't pretend to be a critic, but lord knows I have a gut, and my gut tells me it's simply marvelous.
Richard St. Claire: And a charming gut it is.
Poppy Carnahan: Oh, you dog.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Masumiyet (1997)

Soundtrack:

DOWN SOUTH CAMP MEETING

Look upon me! I'll show you the life of the mind!

The Coen brothers have come a long way from their start with an 8mm camera. They have written and produced some great homages to the film noir era of Hollywood, and this film is no exception.

First, is the great dialog written by the brothers. Great dialog is a feature of their films, and this one has some of the most memorable I have heard. You can almost turn off the visual and just listen and be enchanted and know you are listening to a Coen brothers film.

But turning off the visual would deprive you of the great cinematography of Roger Deakins. His can frame a scene to the point that you could pause the film and just soak in the texture and color and realism. It is almost as if every frame is a painting.

The Coen brothers also seem to get the best performances out of an actor that I have seen. John Goodman is brilliant in this film and he seems to do his best work for the Coens. John Turturro is captivating as the hack writer who talks about his love for the common man, but just really doesn't know the common man and really doesn't care about them. Michael Lerner was brilliant as the requisite man behind the desk that is the feature of 40's noir.

One doesn't always know what is in the Coen brothers minds. Is this a foretelling of the rise of Nazism, of intellectuals who really didn't understand the appeal of fascism to the common man, or a surreal portrait of someone who sells out. No matter what their intention, they make you think and return to see their films again and again.