Factotum

R

Released Aug 18, 2006

1h 33m

Comedy

Drama

List

74%

121 Reviews

Tomatometer

62%

10,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

A nomadic writer (Matt Dillon) drifts from one dead-end job to another in an attempt to fuel his passions for alcohol and women. Unable to maintain steady employment or sell his stories to the one publisher he respects, Henry Chinaski does what he can to earn enough cash.

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Critics Consensus

Matt Dillon's performance is the highlight of this somewhat slow but fascinating portrayal of Charles Bukowski's alter-ego.

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Richard L

Although convincingly bleak from start to finish, Factotum is effortlessly funny thanks in large part due to Dillon's deadpan delivery. Although the story meanders like you'd expect from a story based on life, the film is surprisingly much like reading a book, and makes for an attractive and thoughtful package.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/15/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Great to see low scores abound. Just like the book Chinaski was writing, everybody's in it. Magnificent.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

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Audience Member

Matt Dillon carries this meandering seedy character study.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

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Audience Member

Factotum - noun - a jack of all trades. Charles Bukowski may well have been a ''jack of all trades'' but he was a master of one (writing). Well, two (Drinking). Factotum (2005) expertly tracks the troubled life of Bukowski's alter-ego Henry Chinaski, as he is employed in various uninspiring jobs (while drinking), has casual sex (while drinking), and generally irritates people (while drinking). In fact, it could be said that the only consistent thing in the world of Bukowski-Chinaski is drinking. But he can also write, when the mood takes him. Based on more than one of Bukowski's novels - including Factotum and The Post Office - the film stars veteran actor Matt Dillon as the drinker-writer who aspires to one day make a living from his craft. Through sheer hard work - and a lot of self-inflicted personal pain - he eventually attains his wish. Henry Chinaski is not a particularly pleasant person; however, it is difficult to dislike him. He is an angry and nihilistic oddball who can also be charming and satirically witty. He is often lazy, an alcoholic and a womanizer; and yet, he never loses sight of the importance of his writing. Matt Dillon offers a convincing performance and a different - more accurate - take on Chinaski-Bukowski than Mickey Rourke in Barfly (1987), which was equally convincing, if somewhat overexaggerated.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

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David C

Matt Dillon in his prime. He truly captures Charles detachment from the 9-5, his romanticized numbness and distain for the normal. This is a lesion in what Hollywood SHOULD be doing.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/06/20

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Audience Member

This film could of been distilled into a 20 minute short. The worst aspect wasn't the writing but the sound and cinematography. This was a poorly mapped out film. The writing was at times inspiring. But in it's entirety the film's purpose is overstated and confusing. I wasn't enjoying the film as much as was questioning current objectives or motives. This is a watch once and never forget film. Don't follow it's poor structure and visual/audio shortcomings.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

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Bent Hamer

Director

Matt Dillon

Henry Chinaski

Lili Taylor

Jan

Marisa Tomei

Laura

Fisher Stevens

Manny

Adrienne Shelly

Jerry

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Rick Groen

Globe and Mail

The transplant didn't take in Barfly, and it works no better here in Factotum. In each case, the baying of the boozehounds just seems repetitious and banal -- the noise endures but the joy is gone.

Rated: 2/4

Dec 1, 2006

Full Review

Peter Howell

Toronto Star

Quite dull, truth be told. As good as Dillon and Taylor are in their roles, making us side with them even as we despise them, there's not a whole lot that happens in a life ruled by the bottle, the butt and the shag.

Rated: 2.5/4

Dec 1, 2006

Full Review

Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

Is it just me or is Matt Dillon just getting better with age?

Rated: 3.5/4

Sep 23, 2006

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Every scene or bit of dialogue seems purposeful but disagreeable - since it's based on the controversial tales of Charles Bukowski.

Rated: 5/10

Nov 21, 2020

Full Review

Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Linda Bukowski has praised this film for not buying into the illusion of Bukowski.

Rated: 3.0/4.0

Sep 7, 2020

Full Review

Tom Meek

Cambridge Day

It's not Barfly, but it'll do. Cheers.

Rated: 3/4

Aug 14, 2020

Full Review

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Synopsis

A nomadic writer (Matt Dillon) drifts from one dead-end job to another in an attempt to fuel his passions for alcohol and women. Unable to maintain steady employment or sell his stories to the one publisher he respects, Henry Chinaski does what he can to earn enough cash.

Director: Bent Hamer
Producer: Christine K. Walker
Screenwriter: Bent Hamer, Jim Stark
Distributor: Picturehouse
Production Co: Bulbul Films, Norsk Film
Rating: R (Language|Sexual Content)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 18, 2006, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 1, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $808.2K
Runtime: 1h 33m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

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