Hurlyburly

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Hurlyburly

R

1998

2h 2m

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

58%

Tomatometer

33 Reviews

65%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

Eddie (Sean Penn) is a confused and reckless man with a group of equally problematic friends. His roommate, caustic and sleazy Mickey (Kevin Spacey), is sleeping with Eddie's love, Darlene (Robin Wright Penn), because he can. His buddy Phil (Chazz Palminteri) is prone to violent rages that worry Eddie. All of them ruminate on their lives while consuming drugs and alcohol. Another friend, Artie (Garry Shandling), eventually arrives with a young date (Anna Paquin) who is ready for a fun night.

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Critics Consensus

Though Hurly Burly offers a showcase of powerhouse performances from its leads, it's held back by a meandering narrative and verbose explorations of cynicism.

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Joe Morgenstern

Wall Street Journal

Apr 2, 2019

Sean Penn gives another remarkable performance.

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Jonathan Lethem

Salon.com

Jan 1, 2000

Hurlyburly earns its keep, in the end, with writerly flash and dramatic virtuosity.

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Jan 1, 2000

3/4

Eddie, the Sean Penn character, is a bruised romantic with a good mind, who is as unhappy as a person can be, and in a riveting scene uses cocaine to take him to a place free of raw emotional pain. It is a remarkable performance.

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Marc S. Malkin

Out Magazine

May 25, 2022

Here's a stage play that should never have been given the big-screen treatment.

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Antonia Quirke

Independent on Sunday

Nov 28, 2017

All the time, you hear the wooden clunk of a theatre which still thinks that Eugene O'Neill is a great writer of natural dialogue.

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Rob Gonsalves

Rob's Movie Vault

Sep 24, 2007

C-

Rabe has streamlined the dialogue, sacrificing a lot of funny throwaway lines without lessening the script's burden on our patience.

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Nick C

@NickC01 Sep 6, 2026

The cast alone brings 5 stars Very well put together. Worth the watch..

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Scott E

@RT19581245 Aug 27, 2025

It didn't make sense in a way that makes sense.

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Mikael H

@Mikael590 Jun 9, 2025

Sean Penn is so fun to watch.

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Bahad j

@RT27093708 Jul 29, 2024

This idea of the filmmaker made the movie more accessible to more people.

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Bulgantamir B

@RT36664197 Jul 29, 2024

It is a valuable film.

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Jerod S

@jeroduptown Jan 22, 2022

Let's go on an existential druggie trip with Sean Penn - said no one ever. Talented cast. Boggy script that's just a bunch of drug talk.

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Anthony Drazan

Director

Sean Penn

Eddie

Kevin Spacey

Mickey

Chazz Palminteri

Phil

Robin Wright

Darlene

Garry Shandling

Artie

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Synopsis

Eddie (Sean Penn) is a confused and reckless man with a group of equally problematic friends. His roommate, caustic and sleazy Mickey (Kevin Spacey), is sleeping with Eddie's love, Darlene (Robin Wright Penn), because he can. His buddy Phil (Chazz Palminteri) is prone to violent rages that worry Eddie. All of them ruminate on their lives while consuming drugs and alcohol. Another friend, Artie (Garry Shandling), eventually arrives with a young date (Anna Paquin) who is ready for a fun night.

Director: Anthony Drazan
Producer: Anthony Drazan, Richard N. Gladstein, David Hamburger
Screenwriter: David Rabe, David Rabe
Distributor: Fine Line Features
Production Co: Film Colony, Storm Entertainment
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 25, 1998, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 30, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.8M
Runtime: 2h 2m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Digital

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