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Hurlyburly

Play trailer Poster for Hurlyburly R 1998 2h 2m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
57% Tomatometer 37 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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Hurlyburly

Hurlyburly

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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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Critics Reviews

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Joe Morgenstern Wall Street Journal 04/02/2019
Sean Penn gives another remarkable performance. Go to Full Review Jonathan Lethem Salon.com 01/01/2000
Hurlyburly earns its keep, in the end, with writerly flash and dramatic virtuosity. Go to Full Review Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times 01/01/2000
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. Go to Full Review Marc S. Malkin Out Magazine 05/25/2022
Here's a stage play that should never have been given the big-screen treatment. Go to Full Review Antonia Quirke Independent on Sunday 11/28/2017
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. Go to Full Review Rob Gonsalves Rob's Movie Vault 09/24/2007
C-
Rabe has streamlined the dialogue, sacrificing a lot of funny throwaway lines without lessening the script's burden on our patience. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Scott E @RT19581245 08/27/2025 It didn't make sense in a way that makes sense. See more Mikael H @Mikael590 06/09/2025 Sean Penn is so fun to watch. See more Bahad j @RT27093708 07/29/2024 This idea of ​​the filmmaker made the movie more accessible to more people. See more Bulgantamir B @RT36664197 07/29/2024 It is a valuable film. See more macattack1717 @RT19074457 06/16/2023 So amazing, top knotch 👏 See more Jerod S @jeroduptown 01/22/2022 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. See more Read all reviews
Hurlyburly

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Cast & Crew

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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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Hurlyburly

Hurlyburly (1998) Hurlyburly (1998) Hurlyburly (1998) View more photos

Movie Info

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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