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Henry Fool
An egocentric bum transforms the lives of a shy New Jersey garbageman and his sister.
1998 · Directed by Hal Hartley · 137 min · Comedy · Drama · Screenplay in the scene database · 4 frames
Tagline
An honest man is always in trouble...
Plot
Socially inept garbageman Simon Grim lives a monotonous life with his sister Fay, unemployed, and his mother Mary, who suffers from severe depression. Henry Fool, who's on probation from prison for statutory rape, sets himself up in their basement and proceeds to impinge himself on their daily lives. Seeing Simon's interest in literature, Henry encourages him to write his thoughts in a notebook. Simon fills several notebooks with what turns out to be a poem and Henry encourages him to try to get it published, even though it is dismissed by many as pornographic and scatological. Simon meets with one publisher, Angus, supposedly a friend of Henry's. Angus rejects the manuscript and claims no knowledge of Henry; his secretary reveals that Henry worked in Angus' office as a janitor.
Henry himself has a number of notebooks that he refers to as his Confession, a work that details his mysterious past and which he hopes to publish, although he won't let anyone read them. Meanwhile, Henry inflicts his hedonistic manner on all those around him, ultimately impregnating Fay, after which Henry and Fay marry. At Henry's suggestion, Fay uploads verses from Simon's poem to the Internet, where it elicits worldwide controversy, attracting adoration from those who appreciate Simon as a transgressive genius and condemnation from conservative politicians who see his work as degenerate. Excited by the opportunity to profit from the poem, Angus approaches Simon again and, after negotiations, ultimately offers him $200,000 up front and a 60/40 royalty split to publish it.
Henry is distressed over becoming a father, worried that the time spent working a job to support his family will conflict with his passions as a writer. In a gesture of gratitude for his help, Simon tells Henry he is going to insist Angus publish Henry's work as part of his contract. Henry finally allows Simon to read the notebooks; Simon dislikes the work, but brings it to Angus as promised. Angus hates the Confession and refuses to publish it, forcing Simon to reconsider his promise to Henry. As Fay gives birth to a son, Simon notifies Henry of Angus' refusal and reveals that he signed the contract anyway. The two men argue and Simon states he is going away. Henry is obviously distraught.
Plot summary from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.
Crew
- Written by: Hal Hartley
- Cinematography: Michael Spiller
- Edited by: Steve Hamilton
- Production design: Steve Rosenzweig
- Produced by: Hal Hartley
Cast
- Thomas Jay Ryan as Henry Fool
- James Urbaniak as Simon Grim
- Parker Posey as Fay Grim
- Maria Porter as Mary
- James Saito as Mr. Deng
- Kevin Corrigan as Warren
- Liam Aiken as Ned
- Miho Nikaido as Gnoc Deng
- Gene Ruffini as Officer Buñuel
- Nicholas Hope as Father Hawkes
Production
- Country: United States of America
- Language: English
- Studios: True Fiction Pictures, The Shooting Gallery
- Budget: $900,000
- Box office: $1,334,786
- Themes: garbageman , new jersey, alcohol, politics, money, murder, fame, drugs, assertive
More by Hal Hartley
On this film
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