Bulworth

1998 Comedy Drama

Warren Beatty directed, co-produced (with Pieter Jan Brugge), co-scripted (with Jeremy Pikser), and stars in this political satire, a comedy drama about a U.S. senator who decides to start speaking the truth. Despondent California senator Jay Bulworth (Beatty), up for re-election, is disillusioned by the usual campaign banalities; his marriage to Constance (Christine Baranski) seems equally hollow. In the midst of a nervous breakdown, Bulworth goes without sleep or food for three days and takes out a ten-million-dollar insurance policy on himself while arranging his own assassination. Drinking during a return to Los Angeles, Bulworth is scheduled to speak at an African-American church in South Central L.A. Once there, he tosses aside his prepared speech, startling both the audience and his campaign manager, Murphy (Oliver Platt), by improvising truthful remarks instead of the familiar rhetoric. These loose-cannon salvos gain the attention of an attractive young woman, Nina (Halle Berry). Bulworth finds an exhilaration with this new freestyle approach, and after shocking a gathering in Beverly Hills with further fulminations, Bulworth invites Nina and her girlfriends into his limo. During a spaced-out sojourn at one of South Central's more frenzied after-hours clubs, Bulworth gains respect for hip-hop culture.Still reeling from insights gained by this nightlife, he arrives the next day for a fundraising function at the Beverly Wilshire, startling everyone with a diatribe delivered in the intonations of a rap artist. His interest in Nina and his new optimistic outlook on life give Bulworth a sense of elation and a will to live. He phones to call off the hit, but the gears have been set in motion. After an assumed hitman turns up during a church appearance, Bulworth flees, and Nina offers him a safe-house hideout at the home of her family, veterans of the civil rights movement. Here Bulworth goes through the final steps in his transformation -- making a Kennedy-styled connection with the disenfranchised as he tunes in to forgotten memories of the '60s. Outfitted in homeboy clothing, the born-again Bulworth heads for a TV station to unleash even more caustic comments on the American political scene. more..

Director: Warren Beatty

Starring: Warren Beatty, Halle Berry, Don Cheadle, Oliver Platt,Paul Sorvino

Reviews

  • Beatty has fashioned a hilarious morality tale that delivers a surprisingly potent, angry message beneath the laughs.

    Edward Guthmann - The San Francisco Chronicle

    19 January 2013

  • Warren Beatty's Bulworth made me laugh -- and wince.

    Roger Ebert - The Chicago Sun-Times

    19 January 2013

  • Warren Beatty's uproariously rude Bulworth is 90% triumph.

    Mike Clark - USA Today

    19 January 2013

  • His movie isn't a surgical attack at this problem and that; it's a cluster bomb intended to reap destruction, make a mess and jolt all who see it to react.

    Mark Caro - The Chicago Tribune

    19 January 2013

  • It's daring, deliberately offensive and, for a comedy, it has far more ideas in it than actual laughs.

    Michael O'Sullivan - The Washington Post

    19 January 2013

Awards

  • Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

    Academy Awards (1999)

     
  • Best Screenplay

    Chicago Film Critics Association Awards (1999)

     
  • Best Motion Picture - Comedy/Musical

    Golden Globes (1999)

     
  • Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television

    Grammy Awards (1999)

     
  • Outstanding Lead Actress in a Motion Picture

    Image Awards (1999)