Hail, Caesar! (2016)
RT Audience Score: 44%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 1 Oscar
14 wins & 44 nominations total
Packed with period detail and perfectly cast, Hail, Caesar! finds the Coen brothers delivering an agreeably lightweight love letter to post-war Hollywood
Hail, Caesar! is a hilarious and entertaining look at Old Hollywood, with a star-studded cast that brings the Coen brothers’ vision to life. While the plot may be loose and the point may be unclear, the film’s charm lies in its ability to just mess around with the things the Coens like. From religion to American institutions, Hail, Caesar! spoofs it all with a satirical edge that will have cinephiles and casual viewers alike laughing out loud. Plus, who doesn’t love seeing George Clooney in a toga?
Production Company(ies)
Das Films, David Sonenberg Production Polygram Filmed Entertainment,
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Wide)
Filming Location(s)
Warner Brothers Burbank Studios – 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for some suggestive content and smoking
Year of Release
2016
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital Datasat
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 46m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Feb 5, 2016 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 7, 2016
Genre(s)
Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Alden Ehrenreich, Ralph Fiennes, Scarlett Johansson, Tilda Swinton, Channing Tatum, directed by Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, written by Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, comedy, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Richard Brody, Sara Michelle Fetters, Roxana Hadadi, Max Weiss, Jason Bailey, Alissa Wilkinson, Brian Eggert, Taylor Baker, Leonie Cooper, Joanne Laurier, Richard Crouse, PG-13, Hollywood, movie studio, kidnapping, post-war, period detail, actors, filmmakers, singing cowboy, beautiful swimmer, handsome dancer, swords-and-sandals epic, Capitol Pictures, Baird Whitlock, Eddie Mannix, Thora Thacker, Thessaly Thacker, Datasat, Dolby Digital, Universal Pictures, Flat (1.85:1), Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, produced by Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Worldwide gross: $63,945,241
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $78,812,418
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,137
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 8,594,593
US/Canada gross: $30,498,085
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $37,588,846
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,192
US/Canada opening weekend: $11,355,225
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $13,995,299
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 827
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $22,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $27,114,968
Production budget ranking: 1,213
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $14,601,410
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $37,096,039
ROI to date (est.): 89%
ROI ranking: 983
George Clooney – Baird Whitlock
Alden Ehrenreich – Hobie Doyle
Ralph Fiennes – Laurence Laurentz
Scarlett Johansson – DeeAnna Moran
Tilda Swinton – Thora Thacker, Thessaly Thacker
Joel Coen – Producer, Writer, Director
Ethan Coen – Producer, Writer, Director
Tim Bevan – Producer
Eric Fellner – Producer
Director(s)
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Writer(s)
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Producer(s)
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner
Film Festivals
Berlin
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 1 Oscar
14 wins & 44 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (361) | Top Critics (85) | Fresh (309) | Rotten (52)
Scintillating, uproarious, substantial, and playfully personal.
March 23, 2020
Richard Brody
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
In other words, it’s perfect, and like the best of the duo’s achievements it’s an ending I’m going to be pondering for quite a long time to come.
August 15, 2016 | Rating: 3.5/4
Sara Michelle Fetters
MovieFreak.com
TOP CRITIC
Hail, Caesar! imagines the inner dealings of Hollywood during the early 20th century … But the film’s point for these shenanigans is possibly nonexistent.
August 2, 2016 | Rating: 3/5
Roxana Hadadi
Chesapeake Family Magazine
TOP CRITIC
The greatest thing about Hail, Caesar! is that its loose structure allows the Coens to just mess around with the things they like.
June 13, 2016 | Rating: 3.5/4
Max Weiss
Baltimore Magazine
TOP CRITIC
It is, all in all, mid-level Coens. But as so many others have noted, mid-level Coens still tops most other filmmakers at their peak.
April 27, 2016
Jason Bailey
Flavorwire
TOP CRITIC
Mostly it’s about the meaning of life by way of religion, with which the Coens have always fiddled, sometimes dancing around the edges and sometimes diving straight into the middle.
March 30, 2016
Alissa Wilkinson
Christianity Today
TOP CRITIC
The outward comic setup serves as a springboard for something far more existential. Finding the core of the film’s meaning requires the viewer to look beyond the occasional silliness onscreen.
April 22, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
Hail, Caesar! is one of the decades most gleeful and fulsome glances back to Old Hollywood with some of our most popular contemporary players.
August 22, 2021 | Rating: 98/100
Taylor Baker
Drink in the Movies
The Coen brothers prove they’re Hollywood’s biggest anoraks with a sublime and hilarious swipe at its past…
June 8, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Leonie Cooper
NME
The Coens’ Hail Caesar! is in its element when it is spoofing the film industry, religion and American institutions generally.
February 26, 2021
Joanne Laurier
World Socialist Web Site
The satirical portrait of Hollywood’s Golden Age with the underlying message about the importance of movies should appeal to cinephiles but may have less impact on casual viewers.
February 3, 2021 | Rating: 3/5
Richard Crouse
Richard Crouse
Hail, Caesar! may not go down as one of the best Coen Brothers movie, but even less than their best is still better than damn near every other offering out there.
July 3, 2020 | Rating: B-
Brent McKnight
The Last Thing I See…
Plot
This movie follows a day in the life of Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin), a Hollywood fixer for Capitol Pictures in the 1950s, who cleans up and solves problems for big names and stars in the industry. But when studio star Baird Whitlock (George Clooney) disappears, Mannix has to deal with more than just the fix.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
No goofy or funny comments were found in the Fresh Kernels summary for Hail, Caesar!
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