Barton Fink (1991)

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 | Playwright | Hotel | Writer's Block

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

Also Known As:

Barton Fink (Austria) (Germany) [de]
Barton Fink (France) [fr]
Barton Fink (Spain) [es]
Barton Fink (Greece) [el]
Barton Fink (Finland) [fi]
Barton Fink (Czechoslovakia) [cs]
Barton Fink - È successo a Hollywood (Italy) [it]
Barton Fink - Delírios de Hollywood (Brazil) [pt]
Hollywoodi lidércnyomás (Hungary) [hu]

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), and Fargo (1996).

Goofs:

Continuity: Barton's hotel room is on the sixth floor, but when he takes the elevator down to the lobby to see the two detectives, the elevator passes more than six floors.

Quotes:

[repeated line]
Wrestler: I will destroy him!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Cinematographer Style (2006)

Soundtrack:

FOR SENTIMENTAL REASONS

Memorable, disturbing, and very Coen-esque!

I'm still not entirely sure what to think of this film. One thing is sure, it won't be easy to forget. This movie is clearly the product of a writer who has struggled with their muse, and equally one who has a healthy mistrust of Hollywood - the sausage grinder. Although Hollywood has been critiqued in film before in similar ways, memorable scenes, clever dialogue, quality acting, and a surreal plot and setting, add together to make this an unusual and different film. Maybe another viewing might add a different dimension. This is by no means 'light entertainment' and it leaves plenty of questions unanswered. But on the whole, an intelligent movie, if something of an enigma. My vote 7/10