Bernie (2011 film)
| Bernie | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Richard Linklater |
| Written by | Richard Linklater Skip Hollandsworth |
| Produced by | Liz Glotzer Celine Rattray Martin Shafer Ginger Sledge Shane Stanger Alex Gudim |
| Starring | Jack Black Shirley MacLaine Matthew McConaughey |
| Cinematography | Dick Pope |
| Edited by | Sandra Adair |
| Music by | Graham Reynolds |
Production company | |
Release date |
|
| Country | Template:Film US |
| Language | English |
Bernie is an American comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, and written by Linklater and Skip Hollandsworth. It made its world premiere as the opening night film of the 2011 Los Angeles Film Festival. The film stars Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine and Matthew McConaughey.
Bernie is based on a 1998 Texas Monthly magazine article by Hollandsworth, "Midnight in the Garden of East Texas," that chronicles the 1996 murder of 81-year-old millionaire Marjorie Nugent in Carthage, Texas by her 39-year-old homosexual companion,[1] Bernhardt "Bernie" Tiede. Nugent was shot in the back four times with a rifle by Tiede, who confessed to the 1996 murder. According to the Amarillo Globe-News, police searched Tiede's home and found many videotapes showing Tiede "engaging in homosexual acts."[2] Tiede admitted the murder to police in August, 1997 and was sentenced to life in prison.[3]
Plot
Local mortician Bernie Tiede (Black) befriends a rich widow (MacLaine) in a small Texas town. He murders Marjorie Nugent for her money, but no one misses her for months until the local district attorney (McConaughey) begins to investigate. In the meantime, many citizens of the small, East Texas town of Carthage rally to Bernie's defense, and demand that the authorities go easy on him for the murder of the unpopular Nugent.
Production
Filming took place in September and October 2010 in Bastrop, Smithville, Georgetown, Lockhart and Austin.
Reception
Gregory Ellwood of HitFix:
"While the subject matter is no doubt fascinating it's not as funny as Linklater wants it to be providing more chuckles than true laughs...It's no disrespect to the picture, but Bernie could be a film that generates strong word of mouth playing in retirement communities for weeks on end. Beyond that, it's sad to say, but Bernie may be a film you eventually discover on Netflix or Cable... Black is simply great... making you believe someone like Bernie could really exist and while accenting his funny characteristics also portraying him as three-dimensional character." [4]
Eric Kohn of IndieWire:
"Richard Linklater’s Bernie is an oddly endearing love letter to Southern eccentricities that calls to mind no less than his iconic Slacker However, the comparison ends there: With its purposefully naive sense of self-mockery, Bernie is a shape-shifting genre vehicle set apart from anything else in Linklater’s career. There’s a loose sensibility to this mockumentary—mysterious comedy? comedic mystery? It’s tough to categorize as anything beyond an enjoyable experience...'You cannot have grief tragically become comedy,' Bernie says while directing a community play, and yet Linklater does just that."[5]
Pete Hammond of Deadline Hollywood:
"Bernie is an acquistion title and likely will be snapped up immediately by some enterprising distributor... It is Black's best work in some time. It could develop a following on the indie circuit though, and it certainly had the crowd (which included well-wishers like Linklater friend Steven Soderbergh and wife Jules Asner) buzzing at the crowded after-party on the L.A. Live parking garage rooftop."
Natasha Bishop of the International Movie Database:
"I saw the world premiere of Bernie last night at the Los Angeles Film Festival... I am happy to report, I was not disappointed last night! Jack Black gives one of the best performances of his career in Bernie. Shirley MacLaine was the icing on the cake and Matthew McConaughey was the cherry on top. I loved this movie! Bernie is based on the true story of Bernie Tiede, an assistant funeral director and general do-gooder, who confessed to killing Marjorie Nugent, a very rich and mean old lady. Bernie was a bit eccentric but beloved by his entire community of Carthage, Texas. Jack Black nails this performance. He really shows us what he is capable of as an actor. It was such a pleasure to watch him transform into Bernie Tiede. Great moments of physical comedy and also some twisted, dark moments of catching a glimpse into Bernie's spiraling psyche. Shirley MacLaine was Marjorie Nugent who was known as a mean, bitter lady with no friends and a family who tried to sue her for her money. You can't go wrong with Shirley MacLaine – she's just brilliant. The chemistry between MacLaine and Black was fantastic. I truly enjoyed watching them on the screen together. Even at the world premiere last night they had great chemistry in person. It seems like they truly loved working together on this film. Matthew McConaughey was great as the D.A. Danny Buck Davidson, the character didn't seem to be a huge stretch for him, but who cares – he was great! I'm not sure when it is due to be released, but I will be recommending it to my friends when it hits theaters."
Controversy
The making of the film, based on an article in Texas Monthly magazine by Skip Hollandsworth, who also co-wrote the comedy film with Linklater, has divided many of the citizens of Carthage, Texas, the small town in East Texas where the Nugent murder occurred. In the film, Linklater includes interviews with several Carthage residents about their feelings of support for Bernie Tiede. Some citizens hope the film will stimulate an increase in tourism, while others have voiced anger that a comedy film was derived from the events surrounding the murder of an 81 year-old woman.
In an interview with Linklater published on June 17, 2011, the director told IndieWire that:
"The gossip element almost kept the film from being made, because it reads boring. I said, “But they’ll be funny characters.” You’re limited to your imagination. I could just imagine the accents.”[6]
A comment by "Gloria G" on August 12, 2010, posted on the website of the Panola County Watchmen (the local newspaper), expresses the feelings of some of the Carthage residents:
"Once again, the people in Carthage, Texas will be shown to be the fools they are & will be too stupid to realize they are being made fun of. Stupid people...Dark comedy. I'm sure there are sick individuals who would find comedy in the fact that low life scum, Bernie Tiede, lived off an 81 year old widow & stole her money to give to other people in the community & then shot her in the back 4 times & hid her body in her own freezer for 9 months. Extremely comedic, isn’t it? ... People of Carthage, Texas…be prepared to be made the laughing stock of Hollywood. By all means…stand in line & audition for a part in this “comedy.” Make your town proud! Geez…stupid people!"--Gloria G[7]
Other residents of Carthage support the film:
"Everytown has their own village idiots! Carthage has some too! However instead of looking at it as embarrassing which in a way it is........... but look at it as a way for people outside of Carthage to know what horrible thing happened here. Just because Bernie was a class A moron doesnt make the rest of us morons!!! I think its a good thing even that the story gets told!"--confused24[7]
References
- ^ http://amarillo.com/stories/102698/new_death.shtml Amarillo Globe-News 10/26/98
- ^ Amarillo Globe-News 10-26-98
- ^ McNary, Dave (May 23, 2011). "'Bernie' to open LA film fest". Variety.
{{cite journal}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ HitFix
- ^ "LAFF REVIEW | Richard Linklater's 'Bernie' Gives Jack Black His Most Original Role in Years". indieWIRE. Retrieved 2011-07-18.
- ^ IndieWire, June 17, 2011
- ^ a b Panola County Watchman