Prizzi’s Honor (1985)
77%RT Audience Score: 62%
Awards & Nominations: Won 1 Oscar
27 wins & 24 nominations total
Disturbing and sardonic, Prizzi’s Honor excels at black comedy because director John Huston and his game ensemble take the farce deadly seriously
Prizzi’s Honor is a dark comedy that packs a punch with its intricate plot and delightful performances. It’s a bizarre movie that manages to be both cynical and funny, and only Jack Nicholson and Kathleen Turner could have pulled off the love scenes with straight faces. While some critics found the climax problematic, I think it’s just about a great movie and certainly one of director John Huston’s best. It’s a tongue-in-cheek flipside of crime melodramas that still feels inventive and engaging, even after all these years. Plus, Anjelica Huston’s Oscar-winning turn is not to be missed!
Production Company(ies)
Virgen Films,
Distributor
20th Century Fox, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
New York City, New York, USA
MPAA / Certificate
R
Year of Release
1985
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:2h 9m
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Language(s):English, Italian
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jun 14, 1985 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 16, 2003
Genre(s)
Comedy/Romance
Keyword(s)
starring Jack Nicholson, Kathleen Turner, Anjelica Huston, Robert Loggia, William Hickey, John Randolph, directed by John Huston, written by Richard Condon, Janet Roach, comedy, romance, R rating, box office gross, $26.6M, reviewed by Variety Staff, Dave Kehr, Roger Ebert, Chase Burns, Matt Brunson, Eleanor O’Sullivan, Molly Haskell, Mattie Lucas, Jeffrey M Anderson, Wesley Lovell, Emanuel Levy, Sean Axmaker, hitman, love story, mob family, murder contracts, hit woman, California, Brooklyn, black comedy, farce, deadly seriously, labyrinthine tale, powerfully funny punch, insidiously sly love story, unforgiving underworld, freelance criminals, Oscar-winning turn, icy but damaged mob daughter, formulaic, predictable, chemistry, relationship, plot twists, based on a book, 20th Century Fox, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., surround sound
Worldwide gross: $26,657,534
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $75,294,068
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,153
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 8,210,913
US/Canada gross: $26,657,534
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $75,294,068
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 883
US/Canada opening weekend: $4,234,537
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $11,960,428
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 896
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Kathleen Turner – Irene Walker
Anjelica Huston – Maerose Prizzi
Robert Loggia – Eduardo Prizzi
William Hickey – Don Corrado Prizi
John Randolph – Angelo “Pop” Partanna
Director(s)
John Huston
Writer(s)
Richard Condon, Janet Roach
Producer(s)
John Foreman
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Won 1 Oscar
27 wins & 24 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees, Oscar Winners
All Critics (40) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (34) | Rotten (6)
John Huston’s Prizzi’s Honor packs love, sex, and murder — and dark comedy — into a labyrinthine tale.
February 5, 2008
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
As usual, Turner works hard and manages to lend some conviction to a shoddily written part, but she can’t connect with Nicholson, whose obscure hamminess leaves him isolated on some other planet.
February 5, 2008
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
This is the most bizarre comedy in many a month, a movie so dark, so cynical and so funny that perhaps only Jack Nicholson and Kathleen Turner could have kept straight faces during the love scenes.
October 23, 2004 | Rating: 3.5/4
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
TOP CRITIC
Huston also directed this movie, and the Academy just loves this family legacy stuff. Beyond that, I find the movie to be pretty dull.
December 8, 2021
Chase Burns
The Stranger (Seattle, WA)
Since first catching the film during its original run, repeated viewings have always yielded the same reaction: sheer joy at the intricate plotting and delightful performances, yet pronounced disappointment in a problematic climax that leaves a bad taste.
October 11, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
Prizzi’s Honor, a tongue-in-cheek flipside of crime melodramas, delivers a powerfully funny punch.
August 16, 2021
Eleanor O’Sullivan
Asbury Park Press (NJ)
John Huston’s best film in years.
February 28, 2020
Molly Haskell
Vogue
A dark comedy, to be sure, but it all ends on a surprisingly dour note that it never quite earns.
June 4, 2019 | Rating: 2.5/4
Mattie Lucas
From the Front Row
I think it’s just about a great movie, and certainly one of director John Huston’s best.
August 24, 2017 | Rating: 4/4
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
Almost every possible mob film has been made, but this one still feels inventive and engaging.
August 15, 2011 | Rating: 3.5/4
Wesley Lovell
Cinema Sight
John Huston’s dark, cynical comedy about the Mafia, one of his last pictures, suffers from the lack of chemistry between Jack Nicholson and Kathleen Turner, but Anjelica Huston is excellent in a well-deserving Oscar-winning turn.
August 16, 2008 | Rating: B
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
A blackly comic and insidiously sly love story in the unforgiving underworld of mob families and freelance criminals…
July 20, 2008
Sean Axmaker
Seanax.com…
Plot
Charley Partanna is a hit-man who works for the Prizzis, one of the richest crime syndicate families in the country. Unbeknownst to Charley,the Prizzis just hired Irene Walker, a free-lance killer, to eliminate someone who double-crossed them. When Irene and Charley fall in love their jobs become complicated. Their jobs become impossible when each is given a contract that neither can go through with.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
No goofy or funny or odd comments were found in the Fresh Kernels database for Prizzi’s Honor.
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