The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)
73%RT Audience Score: 79%
Awards & Nominations: 3 wins & 4 nominations
Intriguingly strange and visually distinctive, The Hudsucker Proxy is ultimately almost — but not quite — as smart and absorbing as it needs to be
The Hudsucker Proxy is a film that has critics divided, but let’s be real, who cares about critics? This movie is a wild ride that will have you laughing and scratching your head at the same time. Sure, it may lack some emotional depth, but who needs that when you have Tim Robbins and Jennifer Jason Leigh hamming it up on screen? The Coen Brothers may have borrowed from classic screwball comedies, but they put their own spin on it and created a film that is uniquely theirs. So sit back, grab some popcorn, and enjoy the ride.
Production Company(ies)
Dreamworks Pictures, Pacific Data Images Dream Works Animation,
Distributor
Columbia TriStar Home Video, Laurenfilm S.A.
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Wilmington, North Carolina, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG for mild language and thematic elements
Year of Release
1994
-
Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby Digital
-
Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
-
Runtime:1h 51m
-
Language(s):English
-
Country of origin:United Kingdom
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Mar 11, 1994 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 18, 1999
Genre(s)
Comedy
Keyword(s)
starring Tim Robbins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Paul Newman, Charles Durning, John Mahoney, Jim True-Frost, directed by Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, written by Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Sam Raimi, comedy, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Tom Ryan, Adam Mars-Jones, Owen Gleiberman, Duane Byrge, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Todd McCarthy, Josh Larsen, Richard Propes, Brian Costello, MPAA rating PG, produced by Ethan Coen, sound mix Surround, Stereo, Dolby Digital, business, corruption, satire, 1950s, hula-hoop, stock market, board of directors, invention, reporter, New York City, soulless, visually distinctive, smart, absorbing, craftsmanship, wizardly, artificial synthesis, Hollywood, emotionally true, screwball comedy, suicide, smoking, Danny Elfman, whimsy, Roger Deakins, Leslie McDonald, business sleaze
Worldwide gross: $2,816,518
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $5,698,169
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,137
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 621,392
US/Canada gross: $2,816,518
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $5,698,169
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,772
US/Canada opening weekend: $104,490
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $211,396
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,646
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $40,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $80,925,015
Production budget ranking: 518
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $43,578,121
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$118,804,967
ROI to date (est.): -95%
ROI ranking: 1,999
Jennifer Jason Leigh – Amy Archer
Paul Newman – Sidney J. Mussburger
Charles Durning – Waring Hudsucker
John Mahoney – Chief Editor Manhattan Argus
Jim True-Frost – Buzz the Elevator Operator
Director(s)
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Writer(s)
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Sam Raimi
Producer(s)
Ethan Coen
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
3 wins & 4 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (46) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (27) | Rotten (19)
What’s wrong with The Hudsucker Proxy, though, is that, for all its craftsmanship it is an utterly soulless enterprise. The Coens wisely show no inclination to parody their sources here, but neither do they seem to have anything else in mind for them.
December 22, 2021 | Rating: 2/4
Tom Ryan
The Age (Australia)
TOP CRITIC
It is possible to create something emotionally true out of second-hand ingredients, in fact that’s what Hollywood does, but it isn’t the Coen Brothers’ strong point.
November 16, 2017
Adam Mars-Jones
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
September 7, 2011 | Rating: C
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
A visually arresting but emotionally uninvolving dark comedy.
November 6, 2007
Duane Byrge
Hollywood Reporter
TOP CRITIC
A jeering, dreamlike comedy with nothing much on its mind except how neat the Coen brothers are and how stupid or contemptible everybody else is, including everyone in the audience.
November 6, 2007
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
Nearly everything in the Coen brothers’ latest and biggest film seems like a wizardly but artificial synthesis, leaving a hole in the middle where some emotion and humanity should be.
November 6, 2007
Todd McCarthy
Variety
TOP CRITIC
…has an unexpected sense of benevolence.
April 23, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Josh Larsen
LarsenOnFilm
I have, minimally, enjoyed every film from the Coen Brothers, yet in my eyes The Hudsucker Proxy is the finest of all of them.
September 11, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
Dark Coen Brothers screwball comedy has suicide, smoking.
June 16, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Brian Costello
Common Sense Media
Once the film gets up to speed, it remains going fast enough to barrel through the awkward blend of tones.
May 12, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Tim Brayton
Alternate Ending
Few of the Coen Brothers’ films spike the vein of pure pleasure as easily. It’s an irresistibly loquacious, unpredictably riotous comedy that dares you to keep up with its daffiness and doesn’t give a damn whether you get left behind.
February 1, 2014 | Rating: 4.5/5
Nick Rogers
The Film Yap
A pastiche of a movie that lacks distinct identity and authenticity, made up of borrowed parts from scrwball comedies Frank Capra, Howard Hawks, and Preston Sturges.
August 4, 2010 | Rating: C
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com…
Plot
When Waring Hudsucker, head of hugely successful Hudsucker Industries, commits suicide, his board of directors, led by Sidney Mussberger, comes up with a brilliant plan to make a lot of money: appoint a moron to run the company. When the stock falls low enough, Sidney and friends can buy it up for pennies on the dollar, take over the company, and restore its fortunes. They choose idealistic Norville Barnes, who just started in the mail room. Norville is whacky enough to drive any company to ruin, but soon, tough reporter Amy Archer smells a rat and begins an undercover investigation of Hudsucker Industries.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The film features a cast of talented actors, including Tim Robbins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Paul Newman.
Joel-Coen.jpg
