Not too long ago I reviewed another Coen brothers film, O Brother Where Art Thou. I didn't really care for it. The fact that my opinion is not a reflection of the Coens themselves is proved by the film Barton Fink.

Barton Fink is a fable of a man's journey into the hell pit of Hollywood. It's the 1940's and Barton Fink (John Turturro) is a playwrite living in New York. He has just opened a very well received play and its success has Hollywood courting him. Capitol Pictures wants to hire him and add his talents to their staff. Fink is reluctant, claiming to only have an interest in telling meaningful stories.

Eventually, Fink agrees and finds himself sitting on front of Jack Lipnick (Michael Lerner), the head of Capitol Pictures. Lipnick sits behind his desk like a crazed monarch and spews forth both praise and insults with reckless abandon. He tries to impress Fink with a lot of talk about how important the writers are, but there is contempt underneath his words. Lipnick gives Fink an assignment to write a movie about wrestling.

Fink finds himself living in a hotel that would cause any self-respecting homeless person to turn his nose up in favor of a cardboard box. There are long hallways, with breezes that cause odd pressure displacements whenever a door is opened or closed. The humidity is high, making the walls drip and the wallpaper peel off in giant sheets. One can almost imagine strange smells.

Fink's neighbor is Charlie Meadows, an insurance salesman who, as he claims, has a lot of stories to tell. The trouble is that Fink, despite all of his claims of wanting to champion the common man, really isn't interested in listening to Charlie. Instead, Fink talks. He talks a lot. But he does very little writing.

Desperation begins to set in as the studio heads insist on seeing Fink's progress on the script. Fink, meanwhile, has only managed to write one line. He tries to draw inspiration from W. P. Mayhew (John Mahoney), a well known author, but he discovers that Mayhew is little more than a drunk and, in fact, his secretary has been ghost writing his stories for years.

Fink eventually finds his inspiration, but only after a very gruesome and bizarre turn of events. He finds himself trapped in the middle of a murder investigation and the hunt for a serial killer that ends with him standing in the middle of a hellish inferno.

Barton Fink is a comedy of the darkest nature and is made delightful to watch by the characterization. Even the small, bit parts are infused with quirkiness. Take for instance Chet (Steve Buscemi), the clerk of the hotel. He is only on screen for a few seconds, and yet is as memorable a character as any other in the film. Turturro plays the role of Fink exactly right, as a man who is so consumed with the conviction that what he does matters, that he simply can't see what's really going on around him.

The film is given a very distinct visual style. Scenes within the studio grounds, particularly within the offices of Lipnick, are nearly over-saturated with bright colors. Meanwhile, the look of the hotel is oppressive and depressing and almost inspires a desire to shower just for having watched it. The Coens have created dialog that is sharp and snappy and infused with dry, dark wit.

Barton Fink is dark and original and wholely entertaining.