Peter Hujar's Day

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1:55

Peter Hujar's Day

2025

1h 16m

Biography

Drama

History

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Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

103 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

A film adaptation of the book, Peter Hujar's Day, by Linda Rosenkrantz. It invites audiences into a single day in 1974 with groundbreaking queer photographer Peter Hujar. Set entirely in one room, the film re-creates the conversation between Hujar and Rosenkrantz, recorded on audio tape nearly fifty years ago and later published as a book. Through their freewheeling, intimate exchange, Hujar shares vivid stories of his interactions with literary and cultural icons like William Burroughs, Candy Darling, Susan Sontag and Allen Ginsberg, while also reflecting on the rhythms of everyday life in 1970s New York.

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Critics Consensus

Confined to a limited setting, Peter Hujar's Day proves surprisingly expansive as director Ira Sachs insightfully captures the repartee between Rebecca Hall and Ben Whishaw at the top of their game.

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Miriam Balanescu

Empire Magazine

Jan 14

4/5

Paying fitting tribute to a photography legend, this slice-of-life film is a delectable treat, with among the best marriages of the ordinary and the transcendent since Perfect Days. 

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Luke Hicks

Little White Lies

Jan 9

5/5

It’s Sachs’ best film yet.

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Tara Brady

Irish Times

Jan 2

4/5

Whishaw’s performance is a theatrical masterclass in controlled ramble; Hall’s is the art of listening, with responses that range from concern to a slightly cocked head.

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Dionar Hidalgo

Algo Más Que Cine

Jun 7

7/10

Ira Sachs transforms a recovered conversation into a fascinating exploration of art, memory, and human connection. Ben Whishaw and Rebecca Hall make every pause, glance, and word feel essential.

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Jason Shawhan

Nashville Scene

Apr 30

Peter Hujar’s Day is a biography unlike any you’ve previously seen on screen — maddening for some and transcendent for others, shaped by national treasure/director Ira Sachs

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Pedro Gallego

Espinof

Mar 7

2/5

For anyone outside the film, watching it is roughly an hour and a half of navel-gazing. [Full review in Spanish]

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Patrick C

Dec 7

I bought the ticket two days in advance and promptly FORGOT ALL ABOUT it until 530 on Sunday afternoon - a half hour after it started. That was a waste of money / a donation to the Roxie Theater for nothing. I still want to see the damn movie.

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David F

@dfulmer 5d

This is one of those flat, affectless, Warholian projects. A revivification of a transcript of a photographer describing his day in the 1970s. It’s high concept but low on suspense and plot. It’s an experiment.

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Rob G

@RT25140108 Feb 28

Boring, don’t watch

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Alec B

@Alec97 Feb 17

It's certainly an interesting idea but I don't think the movie really justifies this particular concept. Might have worked better as an audio drama or a documentary.

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Christian A. R

@Moviefanunderground Feb 4

This movie was so boring so bad , DON’T WATCH IT

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O g

@RT76089177 Jan 31

By no means terrible but it certainly isn't for me. I suspect much of the appeal to people comes from the faded, grainy look of the thing. There's a charm to it but a superficial one at that. If it was a dig at the solipsism of the milieu of 1970s New York artists & bohemians, whose conversations consist of name-dropping and reliving quotidian mundanities rather than sharing any artistic or philosophical insight, I could perhaps have taken to it. On the contrary one gets the sense it was revelling in it. There was certainly a hint that the way two strangers fall into leisurely and expansive conversation was a loaded nod of the head at the contrast with today's technologically-mediated relationships. Even that doesn't quite work because there's still a streak of deep loneliness running through this film.

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Ira Sachs

Director

Rebecca Hall

Linda Rosenkrantz

Ben Whishaw

Peter Hujar

Ira Sachs

Screenwriter

Jonah Disend

Producer

Jordan Drake

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Synopsis

A film adaptation of the book, Peter Hujar's Day, by Linda Rosenkrantz. It invites audiences into a single day in 1974 with groundbreaking queer photographer Peter Hujar. Set entirely in one room, the film re-creates the conversation between Hujar and Rosenkrantz, recorded on audio tape nearly fifty years ago and later published as a book. Through their freewheeling, intimate exchange, Hujar shares vivid stories of his interactions with literary and cultural icons like William Burroughs, Candy Darling, Susan Sontag and Allen Ginsberg, while also reflecting on the rhythms of everyday life in 1970s New York.

Director: Ira Sachs
Producer: Jonah Disend, Jordan Drake
Screenwriter: Ira Sachs
Distributor: Janus Films
Production Co: One Two Films, Complementary Colors, Blink Productions
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 7, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 6, 2026
Box Office (Gross USA): $256.4K
Runtime: 1h 16m

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