I end up finding different meanings every time I watch “Barton Fink”, but there’s no doubt it’s above all about the inside of the head of a phony, pretentious, yet pathetically naive playwright as he stumbles into a writer’s block on his first job in Hollywood. The Hotel Earle seems to act as the unsettling theatre of the mind, where the character’s paranoia and delusions come to life. Nothing seems to make sense as you watch, but then you find yourself having spent a few hours thinking back at all symbolisms and possible interpretations.
What to jot down about "Barton Fink"? It's yet another Coen Brothers film that I really like yawn. It's filled with awesome dialogue and I couldn't get enough of Barton and Charlie having their hotel room chats. John Goodman is amazing as Charlie. I've always liked him as an actor, but seeing this and his performance in "10 Cloverfield Lane" has got me seriously thinking about revisiting some of the other films I've seen him in. He has been in so many it's an exhausting thought, though.
Another portrayal of Hollywood as weird or unique, depending on your opinion, is not original or anything. I watched "Hail, Caesar!" recently and I was bored with Hollywood as an inside joke. Here, it doesn't bug me as much.
What to make of the wallpaper peeling off Barton's hotel room wall? It only seems to happen when Charlie is in the room or has just left it. Ultimately, it's just misdirection. The mosquito problem, the box...just more of the same.
The ending is a little frustrating in that it's a little too dreamy, but I took a little comfort because it seems to offer a bit of hope to old Barton.
If you have been following my move reviews you have probably noticed that I am partial towards movies that don't end when the movie ends. The Coen Brothers seems to be great at making these kinds of movies - No Country For Old Men is a recent example of such a movie. It seems that the best attempts at such films are made by directors that have little regard for the audience that may be watching their work. You either get it or you don't.
Barton Fink is a perfect example of a piece of art that has to be chewed on for a bit during the movie and even more afterwards. There was an underlying oddness that started out almost from the outset of the movie and you saw that something wasn't quite right. From there the movie moved into a beautiful slope into a dark place that was somewhat difficult to label.
One interesting theme that was somewhat buried in the movie is the idea that an artist should not sell out. It seems that many movies that I have seen recently have worked in this theme - I wonder if it really bothers these artists to see others go for the quick buck. It is ironic that the last movie that I watched was A Bronx Tale - a film that Chazz Palminteri refused to sell unless he could star in it.
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Another great piece of cinematic art delivered by the Coens Brothers. This is the kind of movie that can have multiple possibilities of interpretation because of the amount of symbolisms that it contains.
It's great when I films keeps you thinking about what really happened and I took my own conclusion of the story but I believe that many others could have taken a different idea so I would be interested to hear what your interpretations might be... Did all of those things really happened to Barton? What did that last scene wanted to mean? Charlie really were a murderer?
John Turturro and John Goodman performances were great!
Pretty much the Coen brothers version of The Shining, and maybe with a dash of Eraserhead in there.
Thematically they’re very different though, this film focusses more on the creative process, the culture of Hollywood and lowbrow entertainment.
It’s a movie that very effectively brings together the two sides of their filmography; it starts as a quirky comedy with eccentric characters, but then it shifts into a psychological, mysterious thriller in the second half.
The characters are very well written and unique, and everyone is cast perfectly. John Goodman steals the movie, which is quite an accomplishment because he’s not even in it that much, but he’s such a great presence.
The cinematography and editing are also very precise, especially next to other films that came out around the same time. Roger Deakins proves again that he’s a genius. No real complaints, but it’s also not a movie I’d put among the best films of their filmography.
8/10
It could be a nightmare when you're stucked and rapeed and you don't know how to get out. But it's far more worse if you have no chance escaping because your fate is in someone else's hands.
Hungarian title is translated as Nightmare in Hollywood and I don't think any other title could be given back better what we see on screen.
It's bizarre and eerie and it's ambiguity gives you a lot to dissect. I'm still not quite sure what it all means, but I liked it and look forward to watching it again to pick apart the meaning.
Review by moonkodiBlockedParent2016-10-06T00:37:04Z
It's OK. Looks good etc. Starts off fine. After a while Fink just seems another writer who can't write stereotype. Pacing around. Ranting about himself as a writer. Struggling to write a B movie. A B movie? If his ego was that big and his thoughts that strong he'd never have took the opportunity to write trash.
What is it with writers in movies acting like it's the hardest thing in the world? We all know how that goes so suprise us least a bit. And that writer searching theme for an entire movie? A little long winded considering character development is minimal. He starts and ends the same Fink. Don't tell me that 'was the point.'
Typical standard Cohen mix of mystery, hotels, farce and a darker meaning with not knowing fully what happens at the end. I don't mind it but I expected it.
Fink's relationships with the other characters lack any warmth. It's black and white.
People love reading into the symbolism for extra depth in movies like these. You could do that to any movie if you wanted. Look and you shall find. Not exactly a funny movie either.
It's a decent movie but I find Cohen movies to too formula based and lacking in natural scenes or characters.