Review #1 Barton Fink

These first couple of reviews are from a few months ago and I’m not abundantly happy with how they turned out but I won’t change anything in them. The two dates written at the beginning are the date that I wrote the review and the date that I started the challenge. 

26/07/13

26/07/13

Barton Fink is, if nothing else, certainly an interesting film which was a pleasure to watch, despite the fact it often seemed to drag a bit in places it always held my attention. It follows Barton Fink played by John Turturro, a young playwright who moves from New York to Los Angeles to write for “the pictures”.

From the first shot to the last this is undeniably a Coen brothers movie, Joel and Ethan have their grubby paws all over this however the style is not quite as clean and refined as some of their later films such as Fargo or The Big Lebowski. Fink encounters an array of quirky and fast talking characters in the movie business but, forms a bond with his next door neighbour at The Earle Hotel, Charlie Meadows (John Goodman).

The long drawn out shots of the incredibly depressing hotel corridor lined on both sides with shoes waiting to be polished establishes the sense of loneliness in the film as Fink struggles to write a wrestling B-movie. The dialogue is fantastic as one would expect from the Coen’s but occasionally feels a little too insincere and we get an idea of what the character is supposed to represent rather than who they actually are.

Confusing and bewildering events transpire that raise questions about the “reality” of Fink’s world but it fits with the style of all that precedes it and it’s interesting to consider whether or not John Goodman is the Devil and Hotel Earle is hell.

It was fun for me to see how the Coen brothers style has developed from watching Barton Fink however it doesn’t quite hit all the right notes, or perhaps it does, just not in the right order. It still was intriguing with plenty or witty dialogue and more than a few things to ponder about afterwards.

6.5 out of 10 Which is perhaps a little harsh and will increase after repeat viewing.