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6.2/10
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A comedy writer struggles to overcome his addiction to heroin while putting his professional and personal life in danger.A comedy writer struggles to overcome his addiction to heroin while putting his professional and personal life in danger.A comedy writer struggles to overcome his addiction to heroin while putting his professional and personal life in danger.
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I think Ben Stiller is one of the most talented comic actors currently working, even though he is often in awful movies (e.g. 'Zoolander', 'The Suburbans'). 'Permanent Midnight' is one of the best movies he has been involved with and features what is arguably his single finest performance. Based on the autobiography of TV hack writer Jerry Stahl, this is a smart, fresh and blackly humorous look at addiction and Hollywood. Stiller has a fine supporting cast here, especially his buddies and frequent co-stars Owen Wilson ('Bottle Rocket') and Janeane Garofolo ('Reality Bites'), the amazingly charismatic star-in-the-making Peter Greene ('Laws Of Gravity'), and comedy veteran Fred Willard ('Best In Show'), who all have small but memorable roles. Hell, even Liz Hurley and Cheryl Ladd are good in this, believe it or not. 'Permanent Midnight' was, like so many other good movies that don't pander to a mass audience, a box office flop, but will hopefully find a larger audience in years to come via video and DVD. I think it is one of the most underrated movies of the last ten years, and highly recommend it.
Ben Stiller was extremely convincing. His portrayal of man who is distracted by his addiction at all times is excellent.
Unfortunately, that's the only redeeming thing about this film (aside from the chance to stare at Elizabeth Hurley, of course.)
I read in an above commentary that the viewer is never shown that Jerry is brilliant. I couldn't agree more. I want to think of him as a tortured genius, but it's tough to do when I'm given no reason to believe that he's anything more than a lowlife junkhead.
One thing I was impressed with was the scene in which Jerry and Redfoot (whatever his name is in this thing) are bouncing off of the windows, several stories above the street. Impressive filmwork, good use of Prodigy, etc.
Disappointing, to say the least.
Unfortunately, that's the only redeeming thing about this film (aside from the chance to stare at Elizabeth Hurley, of course.)
I read in an above commentary that the viewer is never shown that Jerry is brilliant. I couldn't agree more. I want to think of him as a tortured genius, but it's tough to do when I'm given no reason to believe that he's anything more than a lowlife junkhead.
One thing I was impressed with was the scene in which Jerry and Redfoot (whatever his name is in this thing) are bouncing off of the windows, several stories above the street. Impressive filmwork, good use of Prodigy, etc.
Disappointing, to say the least.
Probably one of the best movies about drugs that I've ever seen. An excellent performance by Ben Stiller in one of his most serious roles. If you want to see a movie that portrays the life-style associated with drugs accurately, watch this movie.
Poor little rich kid, Jerry Stahl, an actual TV screenwriter in 1980s Hollywood, p***es all his good fortune away through a hefty heroin habit. Jerry then hits bottom, recovers, and writes his autobiography. "Permanent Midnight" chronicles Jerry's fall from Hollywood hotshot to junkie bum. Besides such an unpleasant subject, and an equally unsympathetic main character, "Permanent Midnight" still entertains, in a morbid sort of way. It's told in flashback (at the beginning of the movie Jerry's just finished rehab and is about to return to his old LA haunts), so we kind of know where the movie will take us. There's no mystery, we're going to watch Jerry's self-destructive crash and burn in close-up. We're a little in the dark about what will happen after the movie catches up with itself, but there's really not a lot of tension. It's like watching a car wreck in very slow motion.
Ben Stiller does an excellent job portraying Jerry, with his craving for the drug rising above, and then destroying, all that's good in his life. It's quite a frightening portrayal. Elizabeth Hurley, as his girlfriend, is a bit of a stretch for both her acting talent and in the casting. But the rest of the cast does fine work. I think the major detriment to this movie is that the audience knows beforehand how it will all end. This is a very dramatic subject, but with no drama in the screenplay. And that is a drag.
Ben Stiller does an excellent job portraying Jerry, with his craving for the drug rising above, and then destroying, all that's good in his life. It's quite a frightening portrayal. Elizabeth Hurley, as his girlfriend, is a bit of a stretch for both her acting talent and in the casting. But the rest of the cast does fine work. I think the major detriment to this movie is that the audience knows beforehand how it will all end. This is a very dramatic subject, but with no drama in the screenplay. And that is a drag.
Permanent Midnight is the autobiographical story of the life and times of Jerry Stahl. This was a movie that tested the boundaries of what could be shown on the movie screen. Ben Stiller's performance as Jerry Stahl was dramatic to say the least. Stiller's performance was excellent and really showed me the flipside of what could happen to somebody when they get hooked on drugs. The whole cast from Maria Bello to Elizabeth Hurley were solid support for the main character, Jerry Stahl. The real Jerry Stahl actually had a role, which surprised me, as Dr. Murphy from the drug rehabilitation clinic. Stahl recounts his life from a hotel room while having a sexual encounter he met while he was working at a restaurant drive-thru. The way that the director lays out the film is perfect; it is different than what I have seen before. The way Jerry Stahl recounts his life the way he did pleasantly surprised me. I warn anyone who wants to watch Permanent Midnight to brace themselves for extreme drug use by sticking needles in arms and sensual love scenes. I recommend this film for its stars' performances.
Did you know
- TriviaThe fictional television show "Mr. Chompers" was based on author Jerry Stahl's experience writing for ALF (1986). The other television series was based on Stahl's experiences on Mystères à Twin Peaks (1990) and Clair de lune (1985), and its star was apparently based on Cybill Shepherd.
- GoofsWhen Jerry is at the methadone clinic, the doctor is checking boxes on a form he's filling out. The questions he asks Jerry do not match the boxes he checks.
- Quotes
Jerry Stahl: [Narrating] People always ask, "What's the worst thing heroin drove you to do?". I always answer, "showing up on Maury."
- Alternate versionsThe DVD features 3 deleted scenes:
- A wasted Jerry hitting on Owen Wilson's character's girlfriend and being thrown out.
- A long haired Jerry working for Hustler magazine.
- A stoned Jerry buying a muffin and being beaten with a baseball bat by the store clerk.
- SoundtracksOverwhelming
Performed and Written by Art Alexakis
Produced by Art Alexakis (as A.P. Alexakis) and Paul Fox
Recorded at A&M
Published by Irving Music, Inc./Evergleam Music (BMI)
Courtesy of Capitol Records, Inc.
Under license from EMI Music Special Markets
- How long is Permanent Midnight?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $1,171,001
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $260,562
- Sep 20, 1998
- Gross worldwide
- $1,171,001
- Runtime
- 1h 28m(88 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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