''Hurlyburly'' is a 1998

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film directed by

Anthony Drazan Tony Drazan is an American film director and screenwriter. He grew up in Rockville Centre, New York. He is perhaps best known for writing and directing the 1992 film ''Zebrahead (film), Zebrahead'', his film writing and directing debut. Zebrahe ...

and based on the 1984

play of the same name Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * Pla ...

David Rabe David William Rabe (born March 10, 1940) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He won the Tony Award for Best Play in 1972 (''Sticks and Bones'') and also received Tony award nominations for Best Play in 1974 (''In the Boom Boom Room''), 19 ...

, who adapted the screenplay. The film is about the intersecting lives of several

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

players and wannabes. Rabe condensed the action of his three-hour plus play into two hours and updated the setting from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s.

Plot

Eddie, a cocaine-addicted womanizing

casting director In the performing arts industry such as theatre, film, or television, casting, or a casting call, is a pre-production process for selecting a certain type of actor, dancer, singer, or extra (acting), extra for a particular role or part in a scr ...

, lives in the Hollywood Hills, where his friend Mickey has come to stay with him temporarily after a fallout with his wife. Along with their buddies, Artie and out-of-work actor Phil, Eddie and Mickey live a life of decadence and immorality. Eddie is in love with Darlene, but she is also seeing the married Mickey. Eddie comes to question his lifestyle and purpose, while Mickey is content with his situation. Through a haze of drugs and booze, the four friends inch closer to rock bottom.

Cast

Sean Penn Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He has won two Academy Awards, for his roles in the mystery drama ''Mystic River'' (2003) and the biopic ''Milk'' (2008). Penn began his acting career in televisi ...

as Eddie *

Kevin Spacey Kevin Spacey Fowler (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, obtaining supporting roles before gaining a leading man status in film and television. Spacey has received various accolades ...

as Mickey *

Robin Wright Robin Gayle Wright (born April 8, 1966) is an American actress. She has won a Golden Globe Award and a Satellite Award, and has received eleven Emmy Award nominations for her work in television. Wright first gained attention for her role in t ...

as Darlene *

Chazz Palminteri Calogero Lorenzo "Chazz" Palminteri (born May 15, 1952)
Chazzpalminteri.net. Retrieved on November 19, 2013. is an American ...

as Phil *

Garry Shandling Garry Emmanuel Shandling (November 29, 1949 – March 24, 2016) was an American actor, comedian, writer, director, and producer. Shandling began his career writing for sitcoms, such as '' Sanford and Son'' and ''Welcome Back, Kotter''. He made ...

as Artie *

Anna Paquin Anna Hélène Paquin ( ; born 24 July 1982) is a New Zealand actress. Born in Winnipeg and raised in Wellington, Paquin made her acting debut portraying Flora McGrath in the romantic drama film ''The Piano'' (1993), for which she won the Aca ...

as Donna *

Meg Ryan Meg Ryan (born Margaret Mary Emily Anne Hyra; November 19, 1961) is an American actress. She began her acting career in 1981 when she made her acting debut in the drama film ''Rich and Famous''. She later joined the cast of the CBS soap opera ...

as Bonnie * Gianna Ranaudo as Susie

Production

Anthony Drazan and David Rabe said some unnamed famous actors they approached to star in the film turned them down due to the depiction of drug use. The low-budget production was able to secure financing through the sale of foreign distribution rights, in addition to the actors working for minimal salaries. Filming took place in the Hollywood Hills from December 1997 to January 1998.

Reception

Box office

Opening in 16 theaters, the film grossed $164,826 in its opening weekend; the widest release the film ever got was in 84 theaters. As the film only had a budget of $4 million, this was considered a "strong" opening for a limited release. The film grossed a total of $1,798,862.

Critical reception

''Hurlyburly'' has a 58% rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

based on 38 reviews with the consensus: "Though ''Hurlyburly'' offers a showcase of powerhouse performances from its leads, it's held back by a meandering narrative and verbose explorations of cynicism."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

gave the film 3/4 stars and said Penn gives "a remarkable performance."

Stephen Holden Stephen Holden (born July 18, 1941) is an American writer, poet, and music and film critic. Biography Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963. He worked as a photo editor, staff writer, and eventually be ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' said, "In evoking the casual cruelty of contemporary life in a certain time and place, this screen adaptation of David Rabe's play is a misanthropic triumph." In a negative review, Edward Guthmann of the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...

'' called the film "a misbegotten mess." Guthmann argued, "Instead of keeping the rude spirit that drove the play, Drazan takes the material too seriously and tries to refashion it as an allegory for our demoralized times -- even though, 14 years later, its observations, cultural idioms and druggie characters are all dated." The film also attracted criticism for its depiction of women. The character of Donna (played by Anna Paquin, then fifteen-years-old) is given as a "gift" to Eddie and Mickey from Artie. Another character, Bonnie, is treated as an object to be gifted to Phil.

Awards and nominations

At the 1998 Venice Film Festival, Penn's performance won him the

Volpi Cup The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

and Drazan was nominated for the

Golden Lion The Golden Lion ( it, Leone d'oro) is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is now regarded as one of the film industry's most prestigious and distinguishe ...

. Penn was also nominated for Best Male Lead at the

Independent Spirit Awards The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with Poly(methyl m ...

Promotion

and

gave the film a plug during the final episode of ''

The Larry Sanders Show ''The Larry Sanders Show'' is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. The series was created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein and aired from August 15, 1992, to May 31, 1998, on the HBO ...

'', in which Sean Penn tells Larry "off camera" that Garry Shandling was an insecure and awful actor who was always trying to get into his wife's trailer.

References

External links

* * * * {{Anthony Drazan 1998 films 1998 drama films American comedy-drama films American independent films 1998 independent films American films based on plays Films directed by Anthony Drazan Films set in Los Angeles Films about actors Films about drugs Films about cocaine Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles 1990s English-language films 1990s American films 1990s buddy comedy-drama films American buddy comedy-drama films