1991 Cannes Film Festival
The 44th Cannes Film Festival was held from 9 to 20 May 1991. The Palme d'Or went to Barton Fink by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen.
Official poster of the 44th Cannes Film Festival, an original illustration by Philippe and Pascal Lemoine.
Roman Polanski, Jury President of the Main competition
Joel and Ethan Coen, Palme d'Or winners
Barton Fink is a 1991 American period black comedy psychological thriller film written, produced, edited and directed by the Coen brothers. Set in 1941, it stars John Turturro in the title role as a young New York City playwright who is hired to write scripts for a film studio in Hollywood, and John Goodman as Charlie Meadows, the insurance salesman who lives next door at the run-down Hotel Earle.
Theatrical release poster
The Coen brothers wrote the role of Charlie Meadows for actor John Goodman, in part because of the "warm and friendly image that he projects for the viewer".
The Coen brothers said of writing Barton Fink: "We didn't do any research, actually, at all."
Restaurant scenes set in New York at the start of Barton Fink were filmed inside the RMS Queen Mary ocean liner.