Barton Fink

I am beginning to realise that all Coen bros films are a little off the wall!!!

Set in 1941, it stars John Turturro in the title role as a young New York City playwright who is hired to write scripts for a movie studio in Hollywood, and John Goodman as Charlie, the insurance salesman who lives next door at the run-down Hotel Earle.

The Coens wrote the screenplay in three weeks while experiencing difficulty during the writing of another film, Miller's Crossing. Soon after Miller's Crossing was finished, the Coens began filming Barton Fink, which had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May 1991. In a rare sweep, it won the Palme D'or prize, as well as awards for Best Director and Best Actor (Turturro). Although it was celebrated almost universally by critics and nominated for three Academy Awards, the movie grossed only $6,000,000 at the box office – two-thirds of its estimated budget.

The process of writing and the culture of entertainment production are two prominent themes of Barton Fink. The world of Hollywood is contrasted with that of Broadway, and the film analyzes superficial distinctions between High Culture and low culture. Other themes in the film include fascism and WW2; slavery and conditions of labor in creative industries; and how intellectuals relate to "the common man". Because of its diverse elements, Barton Fink has defied efforts at genre classification. It has been variously referred to as  film noir, a horror, and a buddy film.

After a slow start I really got into this film and the Hotel Earle is a prime candidate for set building projects with it's peeling wallpaper and countless shoes outside of countless doors.  It reminded me of a cross between The Shining and Fawlty Towers!!

Definitely one to look at furthere I think.