IMDb >
Hoffa (1992)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at Blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsHoffa (1992) More at IMDbPro »
| Videos (see all 2) |
|
Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer (WGA):
David Mamet (written by)
Release Date:
25 December 1992 (USA)
more
Tagline:
He didn't want law. He wanted justice. more
Plot:
A film based on the story of legendary union figure Jimmy Hoffa. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Union
|
Tense
|
Labor Dispute
|
Labor Union
|
Political
more
Awards:
Nominated for 2 Oscars.
Another 2 wins
&
4 nominations
more
NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
Quiz: What roles were nominated for both a Razzie and an Oscar?
(From Gold Derby. 8 November 2009, 1:48 PM, PST)
Exclusive: Entering The Blood Factory with Danny DeVito
(From Fangoria. 30 July 2009, 5:55 AM, PDT)
(From Gold Derby. 8 November 2009, 1:48 PM, PST)
Exclusive: Entering The Blood Factory with Danny DeVito
(From Fangoria. 30 July 2009, 5:55 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Man of honor.
more (51 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Jack Nicholson | ... | James R. 'Jimmy' Hoffa |
 | Danny DeVito | ... | Bobby Ciaro |
 | Armand Assante | ... | Carol D'Allesandro |
 | J.T. Walsh | ... | Frank Fitzsimmons |
 | John C. Reilly | ... | Pete Connelly |
 | Frank Whaley | ... | Young Kid |
| Kevin Anderson | ... | Robert Kennedy |
| John P. Ryan | ... | Red Bennett |
| Robert Prosky | ... | Billy Flynn |
| Natalia Nogulich | ... | Jo Hoffa |
| Nicholas Pryor | ... | Hoffa's Attorney |
| Paul Guilfoyle | ... | Ted Harmon |
 | Karen Young | ... | Young Woman at RTA |
| Cliff Gorman | ... | Solly Stein |
| Joanne Neer | ... | Soignee Woman |
Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated R for violence and strong language.
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
140 min
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) |
Dolby SR (35 mm prints)
Certification:
Iceland:16 |
Singapore:M18 |
South Korea:15 |
USA:R (certificate #32066) |
Brazil:14 |
Argentina:16 |
Australia:M |
Chile:18 |
Finland:K-14 |
Norway:15 |
Spain:18 |
Sweden:15 |
UK:15
Filming Locations:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Original screenplay was written by Robin Moore.
more
Goofs:
Continuity: In addition to Billy Flynn having a revolver that is constantly cocked-uncocked, as the revolver is brought to a vertical position as Billy is uncocking it for the final time it somehow changes from a modern (for the time) double action revolver to a single action Colt. All of this happening within the 90 degree sweep from horizontal to vertical.
more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Bobby Ciaro: Want me to go call him up?
Jimmy Hoffa: Uh-unh.
Bobby Ciaro: Want a cup of coffee?
Jimmy Hoffa: No.
Bobby Ciaro: Want to go?
[Hoffa gives him a scornful glance]
Bobby Ciaro: You OK?
Jimmy Hoffa: Yeah.
more
Bobby Ciaro: Want me to go call him up?
Jimmy Hoffa: Uh-unh.
Bobby Ciaro: Want a cup of coffee?
Jimmy Hoffa: No.
Bobby Ciaro: Want to go?
[Hoffa gives him a scornful glance]
Bobby Ciaro: You OK?
Jimmy Hoffa: Yeah.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Kicking and Screaming (1995)
more
Soundtrack:
When You're Smiling
more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (51 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Hoffa (1992) moreRecommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| Goodfellas | Salvatore Giuliano | Malcolm X | Longford | Blow |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Biography section | IMDb France section |
| Add this title to MyMovies |
I would guess that many people find Jack Nicholson as satisfying as I do because, like Cary Grant, he always seems to play an only slightly refracted version of the same character. Those leaping eyebrows, like twin Mount Raniers on his forehead. That toothy grin, sardonic and sadistic. Here, though, he gives all that up and becomes a different and highly energetic Jimmy Hoffa. His lips are tucked in, his head held back emphasizing the folds in his neck, and he wears an almost constant scowl. His voice too lacks the expected sleazy glissandos of the Nicholson School of Elocution. His speech is clipped, fast, and full of working-class grammar. ("All these rumors are unsubstantuated!") He does a great job as Jimmy Hoffa. And Danny DeVito is great as always, playing Hoffa's old-time buddy, Bobby Ciaro, a clown with a potential for deadly seriousness. Nicholson and DeVito grew up in the same town -- Neptune, New Jersey -- at about the same time and have known each other for years. DeVito claimed to have dated Nicholson's sister. It's pleasing to see the two of them working together.
In some ways, though, the whole may be less than the sum of its parts. The story is a bit like that of "The Godfather" but without the Mafia mystique. Hoffa starts out good but then -- well, what? Does he go bad? If so, the movie does as good a job of hiding exactly what he did as Hoffa himself did. There is a scene in which he seems to agree to lend money from the Teamster's Pension Fund to "a known Italian." But the scene takes place during a faux deer hunt and is played for laughs. While D'Allesandro (Armand Assante) and Hoffa argue over the terms of the loan, a deer walks up unexpectedly and is ignored by everyone until, finally, DeVito uncorks his automatic and blasts it. When the shots sound everyone hits the dirt. The scene is amusing but it's distracting too. What WAS that agreement, exactly? Is it illegal for the President of a labor union to lend money to someone else at a profit? Hoffa claims not. And who argues with him but Robert Kennedy, played very unsympathetically as an elitist snot who never worked in his life and is just trying to make a name for himself by bringing Hoffa to court. Hoffa, eventually is convicted and goes to jail. But it is never made clear exactly what he was convicted of. Lending money to an Italian? Nicholson plays Hoffa pretty straight. He's not a particularly nice guy but he's clever in the way that an alley cat is clever. (Mamet's dialog stays on track.) Yet the director, DeVito, gives him the almost same kind of sentimental treatment that Don Corleone got. I am happy, though, that the movie spared us scenes in which Hoffa's wife sobs and complains that he's so often away from home that she hardly knows him anymore. (Thanks again, Mamet.) There is a fictional but still unnerving assassination scene at the end. Hoffa and DeVito's bodies are dumped atop one another in the back seat of their car. The car is driven up the ramp of a waiting truck and the truck zooms off down the highway towards its unknown destination. Elegiac music swells on the sound track. The image of the back of the truck recedes and dwindles until it disappears down the highway, a setting sun hovering just overhead.
Did Hoffa really deserve this Viking's funeral? I don't know. The movie left me with a lot of unanswered questions, none of them about the performances. A viewer can't help wondering where Hoffa is now. Part of a building somewhere, or an automobile? Or a truck?