Twenty-five years later, and the Coen brothers’ Barton Fink meaning is still being debated. Is the Hotel Earle actually hell? Is this just a case of two filmmakers writing about their experiences in Hollywood? Does the threat of Red Scare loom over its every scene? Viewers may never know for certain, but it is fun to theorize and discuss the film at length; it’s a deep enough film that is open to multiple interpretations that rewards with every rewatch.
The Coen brothers’ tale of a playwright in 1941 going west to write a wrestling picture for Capitol Pictures has long stayed in the minds of the audiences that saw it. Though it’s not typically one of the go-to films people mention when discussing the Coens’ filmography, it does contain great dialogue; exceptional performances from John Turturro, John Goodman, Michael Lerner, and Judy Davis; and a fine blend of disparate moods and genres within its deceptively simple story.
While Barton Fink is probably not the most influential or beloved of the Coens’ oeuvre, it has had multiple lasting moments in pop culture. There’s the hilarious idea of Bart’s school chums sneaking in to a R-rated movie in The Simpsons:
And possibly also this scene from Monsters, Inc. which may or may not be a callback to a similar set up (and both films feature Steve Buscemi and John Goodman):
