| Man Trouble | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Bob Rafelson |
| Written by | Carole Eastman |
| Produced by | Vittorio Cecchi Gori Carole Eastman Bruce Gilbert |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Stephen H. Burum |
| Edited by | William Steinkamp |
| Music by | Georges Delerue |
Production company | Penta Pictures |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
|
Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $30 million[1] |
| Box office | $4,096,030[2] |
Man Trouble is a 1992 Americanromanticblack comedy film starringJack Nicholson andEllen Barkin.[3] It was directed byBob Rafelson and written byCarole Eastman, who together had been responsible for 1970'sFive Easy Pieces.[3]
The film is the fifth collaboration between Nicholson and Rafelson.Beverly D'Angelo andHarry Dean Stanton co-star.[3]
Harry Bliss runs a guard dog service and is going through counseling with his wife, Adele. A serial killer is on the loose in Los Angeles, so when the apartment of classical singer Joan Spruance is ransacked and she starts receiving threatening phone messages, Joan moves into the Hollywood Hills home of her sister, Andy.
Joan does not feel safe there, either, because she is harassed by Andy's ex-lovers. She hires a guard dog from Harry's company, and Harry is soon providing more than protection for the beautiful singer.
Harry is a natural-born liar who, because of his profession, feels that he lives by a code of honor – even if he cannot quite explain it – as one thing after another spins out of his control. Joan is soft and vulnerable as she is badgered by her conductor husband, harassed by unknown callers, menaced by men from her sister's past, and "helped" by Harry.
Man Trouble was not well received by the majority of critics. It holds a 7% rating onRotten Tomatoes based on 30 reviews. The consensus summarizes: "Man Trouble has brilliant stars and the germ of an interesting idea in its favor, which makes the scattered, unfunny results even more of a disappointment."[4] Audiences surveyed byCinemaScore gave the film a grade of "C" on scale of A+ to F.[5]
The New York Times review said "Not much about "Man Trouble," a sad mess of a romantic comedy directed by Bob Rafelson, written by Carole Eastman and starring Jack Nicholson, suggests that these three collaborated on one of the most haunting and representative films of another day."[3]
Variety's review said that "Jack Nicholson fans should feel cheated byMan Trouble, an insultingly trivial star vehicle. After some initial business attracted by his name on the marquee, film is fated for pay-cable use."[6]
Reviewing the film for theLos Angeles Times, Michael Wilmington wrote, "It's certainly not the catastrophe that early press reports have suggested--the studio, rather absurdly, refused to screen 'Man Trouble' for critics--but itis disappointing. Not because it's bad, but because we expect more from a Nicholson-Rafelson-Eastman collaboration. We expect savage wit, clear takes on society, pungent dialogue, rich characters."[7] He added, "This cutesy tale has no urgency", but did praise Nicholson and Barkin's performances.[7]
According toTime Out magazine: "The trouble is, the film never seems to know where it's headed. Not quite a romance, a thriller or a comedy, it's a movie with an on-going identity crisis. Barkin, playing against type, produces a shrill caricature of femininity, while Rafelson indulges Nicholson's familiar soft-spoken laxity, another of his personable rogues."[8]
Jack Nicholson earned aGolden Raspberry Award nomination for Worst Actor for his performances in both this film andHoffa, but lost the trophy toSylvester Stallone forStop! Or My Mom Will Shoot.[9]
The film opened in 1,004 theatres and grossed $2,034,475 in its opening weekend.[2] It grossed 67% less the following weekend[2] and was pulled from theatres shortly thereafter with a gross of only $4 million.[1][10][2]
With a budget of $30 million, including almost $8 million paid to Nicholson, the film made a loss for Pentamerica, their second consecutivebox-office bomb afterFolks!.[1] Fox expected to recover their $8 million marketing expenses.[1]
PentAmerica Pictures took a major bath on the $ 30 million "Man Trouble ," the non-romantic, non-comedy starring Jack Nicholson and Ellen Barkin