The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990)

Directed by Brian De Palma. Starring Tom Hanks, Bruce Willis, Melanie Griffith, Morgan Freeman, Saul Rubinek, Kim Cattrall, F. Murray Abraham, John Hancock, Kevin Dunn, Clifton James, Donald Moffat, Alan King. [R]

Dismally misguided, bludgeoning “satire” adapted from Tom Wolfe’s bestseller dilutes the poison from the pen, and then wraps things up with a hoary sermon. Hanks is out of his element as a wealthy Wall Street WASP involved in a hit-and-run while riding with his vapid mistress (Griffith, whose come-and-go Southern accent sounds so appalling coming from her mouth that it looks like it’s been dubbed); Willis is laconic enough to seem disinterested as the faded yellow journalist who gets the scoop and turns it into a media circus while public figures on all sides (the district attorney, the victim’s reverend, etc.) look to profit as well from the high-profile case. Doomed from the outset because of its witless approach and woeful miscasting; obvious targets are treated as obvious caricatures. As usual, De Palma tries to spruce things up with camera tricks (vertiginous angles, long and roving Steadicam shots, pointless split-screens, etc.), but the distracting aesthetics are the least of this film’s problems. Inspired film critic Julie Salamon’s book, “The Devil’s Candy: The Bonfire of the Vanities Goes to Hollywood,” after she was given nearly limitless access during the movie’s production. Abraham went uncredited.

23/100