The People Vs. Larry Flynt (1996)
86%RT Audience Score: 80%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 2 Oscars
22 wins & 35 nominations total
The People Vs. Larry Flynt pays entertaining tribute to an irascible iconoclast with a well-constructed biopic that openly acknowledges his troublesome flaws
The People vs. Larry Flynt is a hilarious and entertaining biopic that tells the story of the eccentric and rebellious porn mogul Larry Flynt. Woody Harrelson’s performance as Flynt is energetic and captivating, and Courtney Love does an excellent job as his wife. The movie is full of sex, cursing, and banal characteristics, but it’s also a celebration of our First Amendment freedoms. It’s a lot of fun for long stretches, and it’s still relevant and just damn entertaining 25 years later. I highly recommend it!
Production Company(ies)
Paranoid Pictures,
Distributor
Sony Pictures Entertainment, Columbia Tristar, Columbia Pictures
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Flynt Publications Building – 8484 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong sexual material, nudity, language and drug use
Year of Release
1997
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:SDDS Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:2h 10m
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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): Dec 25, 1996 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 9, 1997
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Woody Harrelson, Courtney Love, Edward Norton, James Cromwell, Crispin Glover, James Carville, directed by Milos Forman, written by Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Joe Morgenstern, Owen Gleiberman, David Ansen, Todd McCarthy, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Desson Thomson, Woody Harrelson as Larry Flynt, Courtney Love as Althea Leasure, Ed Norton as Alan Isaacman, Michael Hausman, Oliver Stone, Janet Yang as producers, R rating, free speech, Hustler magazine, pornography, legal battles, Supreme Court, First Amendment, censorship, biopic, Milos Forman as director, $20.2M gross USA, Surround sound mix, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Columbia Tristar, Columbia Pictures
Worldwide gross: $20,300,385
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $37,841,559
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,462
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 4,126,669
US/Canada gross: $20,300,385
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $37,841,559
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,190
US/Canada opening weekend: $523,295
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $975,464
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,284
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $36,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $67,106,911
Production budget ranking: 624
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $36,137,072
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$65,402,423
ROI to date (est.): -63%
ROI ranking: 1,766
Courtney Love – Althea Leasure
Ed Norton – Alan Isaacman
James Cromwell – Charles Keating
Crispin Glover – Arlo
James Carville – Simon Leis
Director(s)
Milos Forman
Writer(s)
Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski
Producer(s)
Michael Hausman, Oliver Stone, Janet Yang
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 2 Oscars
22 wins & 35 nominations total
Academy Awards
All Critics (56) | Top Critics (21) | Fresh (49) | Rotten (7)
It’s been a long, dumb spell, but The People vs. Larry Flynt makes it OK to take your brain to the movies again.
October 18, 2008
Joe Morgenstern
Wall Street Journal
TOP CRITIC
An exultant comedy of American repression and revolt.
June 30, 2008 | Rating: A
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
A brave, spectacularly entertaining — and unexpectedly stirring — account of Flynt’s life that asks us to regard the publisher of Hustler magazine as an invaluable champion of our First Amendment freedoms.
June 30, 2008
David Ansen
Newsweek
TOP CRITIC
One of the truly bizarre careers in recent American cultural life provides the source of tart and tasty amusement in The People vs. Larry Flynt.
June 30, 2008
Todd McCarthy
Variety
TOP CRITIC
Woody Harrelson plays Flynt with energy, and Courtney Love does at least as well as his wife.
June 30, 2008
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
We’re really celebrating Hollywood’s freedom to create biographies of anyone, no matter how high or low on the social ladder, and still come up with the same banal characteristics, messages and conclusions.
June 30, 2008
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
Woody Harrelson is great as the eccentric, rebellious porn mogul Larry Flynt and 25 years later Milos Formans film is still relevant and just damn entertaining.
April 25, 2022 | Rating: 8/10
Jimmy Cage
Jimmy Cage Movie Reviews (YouTube)
The entertainment value waxes and wanes as this biography largely sticks to Flynt’s actual endeavors.
September 24, 2020 | Rating: 7/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
Excellent biopic of notorious pornographer; sex, cursing.
January 17, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Brian Costello
Common Sense Media
The movie is a lot of fun for long stretches.
May 26, 2006 | Rating: 3/4
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
I sincerely hope The People Versus Larry Flynt goes all the way and wins the Academy Award.
December 6, 2005 | Rating: 4/5
Chris Gore
Film Threat
Funny, fascinating, and maybe just a little unsettling.
September 15, 2005 | Rating: 4/4
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com…
Plot
Larry Flynt is the hedonistically obnoxious, but indomitable, publisher of Hustler magazine. The film recounts his struggle to make an honest living publishing his porn magazine and how it changes into a battle to protect the freedom of speech for all people.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Courtney Love’s portrayal of Larry Flynt’s wife, Althea Leasure, is surprisingly good.
Milos-Forman.jpg
