Hudson Hawk (1991)

User Rating:

5.3/10   

Director:

Michael Lehmann

Writers (WGA):

Bruce Willis (story) &
Robert Kraft (story) ...

Release Date:

24 May 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy

Tagline:

Catch the excitement. Catch the laughter. Catch the Hawk.

Plot:

A cat burglar is forced to steal Da Vinci works of art for a world domination plot.

Plot Keywords:

Blackmail | Burglar | Cat Burglar | Prison | Leonardo Da Vinci

Awards:

3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Bruce Willis	...	Hudson Hawk
Danny Aiello	...	Tommy 'Five-Tone' Messina
Andie MacDowell	...	Anna Baragli
James Coburn	...	George Kaplan
Richard E. Grant	...	Darwin Mayflower
Sandra Bernhard	...	Minerva Mayflower
Donald Burton	...	Alfred
Don Harvey	...	Snickers
David Caruso	...	Kit Kat
Andrew Bryniarski	...	Butterfinger
Lorraine Toussaint	...	Almond Joy
Burtt Harris	...	Gates
Frank Stallone	...	Cesar Mario
Carmine Zozzora	...	Antony Mario (as Carmine Zozorra)
Stefano Molinari	...	Leonardo da Vinci (as Stephano Molinari)

Also Known As:

The Adventures of Hudson Hawk (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

CDS (digital 35 mm prints) | Dolby SR (analog 35 mm prints)

Certification:

Iceland:14 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (no. 31162) | New Zealand:R | Canada:AA

Filming Locations:

American Falls, Niagara Falls, New York, USA

Company:

TriStar Pictures

Trivia:

Michael Ballhaus was the original Cinematographer on the project, but due to delays and overruns in principal photography he left the project and was replaced by Dante Spinotti.

Goofs:

Continuity: As Hudson is speaking with Anna on the couch, her dress jumps back onto her shoulder between shots.

Quotes:

Cardinal: Oh, the Pope warned me never to trust the CIA!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Gilmore Girls: Richard in Stars Hollow (#2.12)" (2002)

Soundtrack:

HAIL TO THE CHIEF

You will either groove on its knowing brand of low comic silliness or you'll hate it

Just sprung from prison Hudson Hawk finds himself being chased by an insane and insanely rich couple, the CIA and the Vatican in a mad chase to get bits of a gold making machine made by Da Vinci. Along the way stupid jokes are told, the plot is ignored or twisted in the name of a joke and the entire cast winks at the audience repeatedly as if to say that even they can't believe the silly things they are doing in the name of fun.

When this movie opened it was crucified by critics across the country as an unfunny vanity project. It sunk the promising career of the director and made people take a second look at Bruce Willis. very few people braved the reviews and saw this in theaters. Me? I'm one of the six people in America that went to see this on opening night. I've loved this movie from the first and my opinion has grown with each viewing. I remember arguing with people for weeks afterward that they should see this movie because it was damn funny. No one listened to me, and it wasn't until cable and home video that people discovered this wrongly dismissed gem. This is more proof that sometimes critics don't get it.

Then again all humor is subjective and what one person finds funny is not what other people find funny. I love this knowingly dumb, puny, go for the obvious, nothing is sacred or too stupid to try collection of jokes and gags. Other people are offended or utterly bored by its often infantile antics. I find it charming and harmless, other people find it cruel (Bunny Ball Ball!). I can't say which camp you'll fall into, but I think that you should ignore the critics and just see this movie. Its mindless fun of the highest order.