Bulworth (1998)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Warren Beatty

Writers (WGA):

Warren Beatty (story)
Warren Beatty (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

15 May 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Brace yourself. This politician is about to tell the truth!

Plot:

A suicidally disillusioned liberal politician puts a contract out on himself and takes the opportunity to be bluntly honest with his voters by affecting the rhythms and speech of hip-hop music and culture.

Plot Keywords:

Hip Hop | Senator | Politician | Insurance | Socialism

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 14 nominations

Cast

Kimberly Deauna Adams	...	Denisha
Vinny Argiro	...	Debate Director
Sean Astin	...	Gary
Kirk Baltz	...	Debate Producer
Ernie Lee Banks	...	Leroy (as Ernie Banks)
Amiri Baraka	...	Rastaman
Christine Baranski	...	Constance Bulworth
Adilah Barnes	...	Mrs. Brown
Warren Beatty	...	Sen. Jay Billington Bulworth
Graham Beckel	...	Man with Dark Glasses
Halle Berry	...	Nina
Brandon N. Bowlin	...	Bouncer #2
Mongo Brownlee	...	Henchman #3
Thomas Jefferson Byrd	...	Uncle Rafeeq
J. Kenneth Campbell	...	Anthony

Also Known As:

Tribulations (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:18 | Philippines:R-18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A | Chile:18 | France:U | Germany:12 (bw) | Norway:11 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:R(A) | Spain:13 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 | USA:R (certificate #36031) | Brazil:16

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Aaron Sorkin and James Toback did a great deal of uncredited work on the script.

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: Bulworth tells the assassin that he will be traveling to Los Angeles via American Airlines, yet the arrival airplane footage shown is clearly a Southwest Airline plane.

Quotes:

[Feldman and Murphy are concerned about Bulworth's rapping]
Bill Feldman: You know something? We had a next-door neighbor who would lose her mind from time to time. What was weird when she got like that was this: she could only speak in song lyrics.
Bullworth: Murphy, Feldman, you're lookin' pretty beat / I thought you might feel better with some ribs to eat / Eat 'em, gentlemen, you'll think they're really fine / And if you want a couple more you can get 'em anytime!
Dennis Murphy: I am incredibly frightened.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "HBO First Look: 'The Contender': The Making of a Political Thriller (#7.17)" (2000)

Soundtrack:

Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken

The most daring political satire ever made.

I cannot recommend 'Bulworth' highly enough. Sure, I've seen lots of worthy political satires. 'The Candidate', 'Wag the Dog', 'Bob Roberts', and others. But this is the finest example ever made. Warren Beatty should be very proud of this masterpiece. Not only for the guts it took to so brazenly confront the modern political process (and how it affects race relations, the film industry, education, medicine, and so on) but also for the fact that he wrote it, produced it, directed it, and starred in it. Any one of those jobs can be a supreme undertaking, and here he has accomplished all four with integrity, wit, humor, intelligence, and undeniable brass. It is quite simply impossible to watch this movie without being repeatedly shocked at the depth of its honesty. The supporting cast is also excellent, and Don Cheadle stands out as LD.