THE BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES (1990)

A Heavy-Handed Dramedy from Brian De Palma

Grade: D

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Brian De Palma is known for making stylistic movies which assault their audiences with violence and/or intense stories, such as Carrie (1976), Scarface (1983), and The Untouchables (1987). The Bonfire of the Vanities, a dramatic comedy based on a book by Tom Wolfe, contains very little actual violence, but it is no less intense with its commentary on social issues and journalism. Unfortunately, it drives home every single point it’s trying to make, resulting in an unpleasant film almost completely devoid of subtlety and real humor.

The Bonfire of the Vanities centers on a case surrounding a hit-and-run. Sherman McCoy (Tom Hanks) is a married New York bond trader trying to close a $600 million deal while having an affair with Maria Ruskin (Melanie Griffith). After he picks her up at the airport, they accidentally enter the Bronx and are accosted by two African American youths. In the resulting panic, Maria accidentally hits one of them with Sherman’s car, ultimately sending him into a coma while she and Sherman escape. Soon the entire African American community of the Bronx is up in arms, and the local priest, the District Attorney, the assistant D.A., and a down-on-his luck reporter are trying to use this incident to advance their goals. Caught in the crossfire is Sherman, whose life starts falling to pieces when his involvement is made known.

The film is over-the-top in almost every way, from its commentary to its characters to its story. While a Caucasian man being caught up in case surrounding the injury of an African American could make for a compelling drama, the ways in which the movie portrays almost everyone around him is comical to the point of offensive. The movie’s depiction of the Bronx is a neighborhood where African Americans crowd the streets and set vehicles on fire (Maria’s comment, “Where are all the white people?” is a major groaner). Most of the women are portrayed in a negative light as well, with Maria being a manipulative seductress and Sherman’s wife (Kim Cattrall) being something of a shrew. And the hit-and-run victim’s mother, despite her apparent victimhood, quickly joins in the priest’s plan to sue the hospital her son is in to make millions, essentially making her a hypocrite; she and the priest are motivated by monetary gain.

Indeed, hypocrisy runs rampant throughout the whole movie. The movie tries to make viewers sympathetic to Sherman, even though everything bad that happened to him stemmed from his decision to cheat on his wife. The district attorney (F. Murray Abraham) claims to sympathize with the African American community, but he is just looking to be re-elected, making racial slurs about them. And Peter Fallow (Bruce Willis), the alcoholic journalist covering the story, appears to have sympathy for Sherman after talking with him, but ultimately, he is just in it for the glory. At the conclusion, when one sees some of the people cheering Fallow at his book premiere, it throws much of what was learned in the movie into question. It leaves a bitter taste in the viewer’s mouth, despite the apparently triumphant ending.

The film contains some important lessons for both the characters and the audience, and it delivers them with a sledgehammer. Peter Fallow provides a voice-over narration that really serves no purpose except to make clear what his priorities are. There is nothing he says that couldn’t be deduced by the audience or implied by a “One Year Earlier” caption. When Sherman is feeling dread over his impending arrest, he hears a man at a social gathering loudly proclaiming statements of judgment and sin in relation to an opera that was just viewed. The camera focuses on Tom Hanks’s horrified face while everything surrounding him is blurred. Later, after his wife leaves him and he becomes the most notorious man in New York, he final snaps and grabs a shotgun, driving guests out of his apartment. At the final courtroom scene, Judge White (Morgan Freeman) delivers a passionate speech to Sherman’s enemies, literally spelling out what they are doing wrong.

The Bonfire of the Vanities has many elements that could work. It has a great cast, an interesting premise, a talented crew, and the movie’s themes of relationships between social classes and races are timelier than ever. But it tries to combine these serious themes with humor, resulting in a dour yet goofy story populated with cynical characters that bludgeons viewers with its messages.

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Director: Brian De Palma

Producer: Brian De Palma

Screenplay: Michael Cristofer (Based on the novel by Tom Wolfe)

Cast: Tom Hanks (Sherman McCoy), Bruce Willis (Peter Fallow), Melanie Griffith (Maria Ruskin), Morgan Freeman (Judge White), Kim Cattrall (Judy McCoy), Saul Rubinek (Jed Kramer), Alan King (Arthur Ruskin), John Hancock (Reverend Bacon), F. Murray Abraham (D.A. Abe Weiss)

Rated: R (for language)