Take a drink of Barfly, for a heady cocktail of the low life. Take a walk through the gutter and soak up the smells. Welcome to the world of Henry Chinaski, the alter ego of social realist writer Charles Bukowski. If you're a Bukowski fan, this is the ultimate picture for you!
Barfly is a love story in the light drama genre. It follows the trials and tribulations of a true drunken barfly, as he floats from place to place in the streets of East Hollywood. Chinaski is played by Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler, Angel Heart). Back in the '80s, Mickey Rourke was like a poor man's Bogart and he shines as the alcoholic writer. He's a flop and a loser starving artist type but despite all this, he has two women in his life. One is a high class publisher, the other is a depressed lush. They represent the two sides of Chinaski and his two lives. He would define himself by his habits: drinking and writing, but the world would remember him for his voice.
The story behind the story is told in the pages of Hollywood, Bukowski's recounting of the making of Barfly. Legend has it director Barbet Shroeder (Single White Female, Murder by Numbers) threatened to cut off his own finger to make this picture. It was hard to get funding for what was considered to be an art house picture. One of the producers was Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now). Barfly tells a small story. The plot is thin but it is more of a character study.
Barfly has style. It's based on the eponymous book by Bukowski. If you can't get enough of Chinaski, he's back in Factotum, as well as many of the novels of Charles Bukowski--the real life Barfly.
Barfly is a love story in the light drama genre. It follows the trials and tribulations of a true drunken barfly, as he floats from place to place in the streets of East Hollywood. Chinaski is played by Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler, Angel Heart). Back in the '80s, Mickey Rourke was like a poor man's Bogart and he shines as the alcoholic writer. He's a flop and a loser starving artist type but despite all this, he has two women in his life. One is a high class publisher, the other is a depressed lush. They represent the two sides of Chinaski and his two lives. He would define himself by his habits: drinking and writing, but the world would remember him for his voice.
The story behind the story is told in the pages of Hollywood, Bukowski's recounting of the making of Barfly. Legend has it director Barbet Shroeder (Single White Female, Murder by Numbers) threatened to cut off his own finger to make this picture. It was hard to get funding for what was considered to be an art house picture. One of the producers was Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now). Barfly tells a small story. The plot is thin but it is more of a character study.
Barfly has style. It's based on the eponymous book by Bukowski. If you can't get enough of Chinaski, he's back in Factotum, as well as many of the novels of Charles Bukowski--the real life Barfly.