![]() Consider adding Barton Fink to these lists for a horror film that attacks the genre in a completely unique way than so many of the classics. Every October, film lovers make lists of horror movies to watch in the lead-up to Halloween. Instead of reacting to external forces, you are thinking about internal ones, which may not make you realize just how scared you actually are. Extreme anxiety and stress just propel you further into your own mind. Its dread does not manifest itself in the same way as waiting in line for a roller coaster does, where you are excited by how scared you will be. ![]() While Barton Fink is an enormously enjoyable film, the horror of Barton Fink comes from a completely different place than most horror films. This year's Shiva Baby from writer-director Emma Seligman traffics in a similar blending of the paralyzing terror of an uncomfortable situation mixed with using humor to try and get yourself out of it. What the Minnesota-born brothers understand is anxiety and comedy need to coexist with one another, otherwise there would be no air for an anxious person to breathe. The Coen Brothers rarely make a film that squarely fits into one neat category, hence why the term "Coenesque" was coined. Using that baseline as a central source for its psychological terror makes complete sense, and placing all these unknown, unexplainable elements on top of it makes for an armrest clenching experience.īeing a film from Joel and Ethan Coen, Barton Fink contains its fair share of absurd humor and quirky characters, from the boisterous studio head (an Academy Award-nominated Michael Lerner) to the alcoholic novelist ( John Mahoney). Many people thrive off conquering that challenge, and some crumble under the pressure, unhealthily retreating into the recesses of their own minds. This very article was written under a deadline, and its author was more than anxious about meeting that deadline. Whether you are in seventh grade writing a book report or a grown adult with a work project, we all relate to the stresses of meeting a deadline. Of course, the most elemental reason for Barton's anxiety is writer's block coupled with a deadline. These developments only add to the weight Barton places on his shoulders. Could it be the murdered woman's head? Could it be an unrelated person's head? Or is it something innocuous? We never know. Similarly, Charlie bestows Barton with a package to hang onto for a little while. ![]() We never learn who killed her or why, although there are implications the killer is Charlie. One morning, Barton awakes after a night with his idol's wife ( Judy Davis) with her murdered in bed beside him. Horror movies are no stranger to the unknown, be it not knowing why your child is acting in psychopathic ways or simply what lurks behind a corner, yet most of the time, these questions do get answered. Most disconcerting of all is we never really know why all of this happens, and the Coen Brothers use that unknown throughout the film to aid in the anxiety. All of those scenes and moments of Barton in his room sweating, messing with his wallpaper, and attempting to keep everything together lead to everything crashing down as the fire consumes all. You have the terror of someone handcuffed to a hotel bed as a man charges down the hallway with a shotgun after two detectives, screaming, "I'll show you the life of the mind!" Though it is the only scene in the film this outrageous in its outward horror, the only reason the scene is effective as it is comes from it being that inevitable ripping off of the bandage seeded throughout the film's running time. ![]() The final, fiery set piece of Barton Fink most explicitly makes the case for it as a horror film. ![]() Each subsequent day he spends in the Hotel Earle feels more and more like he has stepped into an evil place, culminating with it set aflame by either Charlie or maybe an otherworldly force. Barton and Charlie appear to be the only people staying in the hotel, with just the old elevator operator and the bellhop Chet ( Steve Buscemi) there as employees. You feel as though you can smell the old, hot glue dripping down the walls. The wallpaper constantly peels as if it is way trying to escape being a part of this place itself. His room acts as a sweatbox where he wakes up every morning with mosquito bites. Wanting to stay away from the glitz and glamor of Hollywood, the Hotel Earle is dusty, sweaty, and falling apart. RELATED: Why the Coen Brothers Are Our Most American Filmmakersīarton's anxieties manifest themselves most distinctly in his place of residence, the Hotel Earle. ![]()
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