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The Bonfire of the Vanities
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The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990) More at IMDbPro »

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The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990) -- US Home Video Trailer from Warner Bros.

Overview

User Rating:
5.1/10   9,132 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 5% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Brian De Palma
Writers (WGA):
Tom Wolfe (novel)
Michael Cristofer (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Bonfire of the Vanities on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
21 December 1990 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy | Drama more
Tagline:
Take one Wall Street tycoon, his Fifth Avenue mistress, a reporter hungry for fame, and make the wrong turn in The Bronx...then sit back and watch the sparks fly. more
Plot:
Financial "Master of the Universe" Sherman McCoy sees his life unravel when his mistress Maria Ruskin hits a black boy with his car... more | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
5 nominations more
NewsDesk:
Comedian Alan King Dies at 76
 (From WENN. 10 May 2004)

User Comments:
What was wrong with this movie to get such bad reviews? I actually liked it. more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Tom Hanks ... Sherman McCoy

Bruce Willis ... Peter Fallow

Melanie Griffith ... Maria Ruskin

Kim Cattrall ... Judy McCoy

Saul Rubinek ... Jed Kramer

Morgan Freeman ... Judge Leonard White
John Hancock ... Reverend Bacon
Kevin Dunn ... Tom Killian
Clifton James ... Albert Fox
Louis Giambalvo ... Ray Andruitti
Barton Heyman ... Detective Martin
Norman Parker ... Detective Goldberg
Donald Moffat ... Mr. McCoy

Alan King ... Arthur Ruskin
Beth Broderick ... Caroline Heftshank
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated R for language.
Runtime:
125 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
F. Murray Abraham's contract for this movie stipulated that his name appear above the title in the advertising, or not at all. Since the producers already had Tom Hanks, Melanie Griffith, 'Bruce Willis (I)' and Morgan Freeman above the title, Abraham chose not to be credited. more
Goofs:
Continuity: Before cuckold Arthur Ruskin dies in the restaurant, his cocktail glass alternates from between his hands to outside his hands. more
Quotes:
Judge Leonard White: Racist? You dare call me racist? Well I say unto you, what does it matter the color of a man's skin if witnesses purjure themselves, if a prosecutor enlists the perjurers, when a district attorney throws a man to the mob for political gain, and men of the cloth... more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs and Blockbusters (2006) more
Soundtrack:
Don Giovanni more

FAQ

What does the title mean?
more
30 out of 35 people found the following comment useful:-
What was wrong with this movie to get such bad reviews? I actually liked it., 24 November 2003
7/10
Author: triple8 from Conn

Bonfire of the vanities. A movie that has the reputation of being awful. I didn't think so. I saw it a long time ago but liked it. I have heard so much about how bad this movie was and never understood why. It isn't the best movie definitely not but there are so many BAD movies-this movie had a message (a pretty sad one) and the story was Involving. My attention was captured. I wanted to see what would happen next.

This movie is so true to life. There ARE people out there whose actions would be worse then some in this movie. People whose lives are motivated by greed. (The worst bad movie out there that I've seen that tells the story of truly horrendous people motivated by greed and power is "in the company of men". Much more unpleasant then this movie.) This movie, I GUESS is controversial, not considered as good as the book and maybe it was ahead of its time. I think it's worth seeing though and would give it a 7.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Worst adaptation of a book I have ever seen. deadlyledley
racist movie ap1704
Did the judge really let off a rapist? Elaine0412
This movie is SO underrated fbeato
What is your favorite scene? seilcho7
BIGGEST problem - Sherman's fall from grace jgluski
more

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