zaremskya-23761
Barton Fink is an odd fellow. An intellectual and socially limited author who is struggling to make it in the world, he moves into a hotel to try to get some serious work done as a script writer. He befriends a number of people, one of them a large and gregarious man (played by John Goodman) who makes a comic juxtaposition to Barton's frail and nebbish disposition. While trying to get work done, Barton has a number of encounters with his new friends. Eventually events lead to strange occurrences and Barton's friends turn out to be not what they seem, in a disturbing way.The film is interesting and pretty self-contained, but it's weirdness seems to outweigh any plot development or interesting depth. The result is something that just makes you feel strange watching it.So, maybe not my favorite C. Bro film but not bad, and worth watching if you are fan of their films.
Urek Arokov
Barton Fink is movie that proves yet again all you need to do is throw nonsense in a blender, do it with style and pretend it means something, and people will eat it up. I'm no stranger to symbolic and surreal movies (Eraserhead is one of my very favorites), but this is something (like Barton himself in the film) that bears no substance and is purely superficial. What makes it so much worse, and most ironic, is that the movie attempts to disprove that in its message but ultimately ends up being just as much a part of it (if not moreso due to its aforementioned intention and execution).It's not surprising given its reputation among so-called """cinephiles""" but it's all the more frustrating because I fell for it. I admit, I was thoroughly engrossed by the film, largely due to its beautiful set design and unconventional narrative structure. Not to mention, it has some good bits of black humor as well, but beyond that there's nothing there. And in the end, it left me feeling dumb for having played along.
dtumeth
In my eyes, the quintessential Coen brothers film and one of my three personal favorite films of all time. This movie makes me think about or notice something new every time I watch it, a rare feat for a film that isn't just pretentious drivel disguised as genius. There is so many ways to interpret the bizarre events here that it leaves you no choice BUT to think. I can still remember the first time I saw it when John Goodman steps out through the burning elevator and produces a shotgun as the halls burst into flames. The image has been etched into my brain ever since, mostly because it comes out of nowhere. Most filmmakers would never dare go for something like that, but I have eternal respect to the Coens for not only doing it, but for pulling it off marvelously. Apart from amazing visuals, I adore Bartons fruitless quest to discover the inner workings of the common man, while ignoring every single opportunity around him to learn more. As Charlie tries to tell him stories about his misadventures and his struggles, Barton cuts him off to talk about himself. Because he doesn't actually care about others as much as he believes he does. Or rather, cant empathize with others as he believes he can. W.P. Mayhew suffers from alcoholism to the point where he will puke his guts out in public and then seconds later pull out a flask and continue drinking. That's some human suffering right there, but Barton instead only see's his idol as a disappointment. W.P's long suffering mistress defends him, and instead of trying to understand why she would, he simply berates her (which is fair I suppose, but that line of Barton's at the park - "What don't I understand?" - that remains unanswered always sticks out to me) Not to mention him berating the Sailors shipping out to fight a war while he sits in his room and thinks about how everything's so unfair for him. I could talk about this movie forever, but I'll just leave it with make your own interpretations of what the hell everything means. And as for those Coen Brothers, I think we'll be hearing from those kids. And I don't mean just a postcard.
D' Francis
In seeking to follow the hottest trends, a major film studio hires a pretentious and prestigious writer named Barton Fink to write a B-list movie. You can only imagine how this turns out.What exactly this movie is trying to accomplish will go over the heads of the average movie viewer, which is why this gem flopped. First and foremost, it's a farcical comedy. While containing convincing elements of drama and horror, it all only serves to create the big irony of just about everything going wrong as poor Barton tries to write his masterpiece.The film is rife with iconography and symbolism. The viewer can choose to interpret what goes on literally or figuratively. This movie is a masterpiece both celebrating the beauty of writing and ridiculing it. It's commentary on the mainstream film industry which lasts until today. It sure conveys a whole lot for a movie that doesn't to be remembered for meaning anything.
AD
