Downtrodden writer Henry and distressed goddess Wanda aren't exactly husband and wife: they're wedded to their bar stools. But, they like each other's company—and Barfly captures their giddy, gin-soaked attempts to make a go of life on the skids.
Acting
Rourke's physical transformation is genuinely unhinged.
Writing
Bukowski's script crackles with bitter, beautiful truth.
Production
The bar feels like a character—sticky, sad, alive.
Director
Barbet Schroeder
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Bukowski hated movies but wrote this in six weeks for $20,000, then blew most of it gambling.
This bombed in 1987 but became a cult staple for every pretentious college kid who discovered Bukowski at 2am.
US
