Bullets Over Broadway

Play trailer

Bullets Over Broadway

R,

1994,

1h 39m,

Comedy/

Crime/

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Stream Now

Watchlist

95%

59 Reviews

Tomatometer

83%

10,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

95%

Tomatometer

59 Reviews

83%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Struggling 1920s playwright David Shayne (John Cusack), having failed to secure financing for his latest work, reluctantly makes a deal with mob boss Nick Valenti (Joe Viterelli) : a Broadway debut with the chance to direct, as long as Nick's flibbertigibbet girlfriend, Olive (Jennifer Tilly), plays one of the lead roles. As Olive and star Helen Sinclair (Dianne Wiest) attempt to upstage each other, Olive's gangland bodyguard Cheech (Chazz Palminteri) starts suggesting changes to David's script.

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

Stream

Prime Video

Watch Bullets Over Broadway with a subscription on Prime Video, rent on Fandango, or buy on Fandango.

Critics Consensus

A gleefully entertaining backstage comedy, Bullets Over Broadway features some of Woody Allen's sharpest, most inspired late-period writing and direction.

Read Critics Reviews

David Ansen

Newsweek

Feb 21, 2018

The joy of this bouncy, brainy Allen outing is how effortlessly he meshes his serious, clearly personal conundrums with the giddy formulas of backstage farce.

Go to Full Review

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Chicago Reader

Aug 12, 2008

The performances, however, are very enjoyable, with first honors going to Chazz Palminteri and Dianne Wiest.

Go to Full Review

Todd McCarthy

Variety

Jul 31, 2008

A backstage comedy bolstered by healthy shots of prohibition gangster melodrama and romantic entanglements.

Go to Full Review

Mal Vincent

The Virginian-Pilot

Mar 1, 2022

2.5/4

This, at best, is second-rate, unimportant Woody Allen. It tries much too hard and delivers only the obvious.

Go to Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Jan 15, 2022

3.5/4

One of Woody's best.

Go to Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson

Combustible Celluloid

Sep 18, 2014

One of Woody Allen's flat-out funniest movies.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Jan 27, 2019

The best comedy gangster movie ever made! Or is it the best gangster comedy movie ever made?

Poe L

Sep 8, 2018

Woody Allen blends together true comedic prowess, captivating moral intrigue, and his own genuine love for the theatrical creative process to give us "Bullets Over Broadway," an unwaveringly sophisticated vehicle that honestly honed in on all three parts of this mixture in equal measure. Think of it as "Birdman" meets "Match Point" with a dash of "Miller's Crossing." On paper, that's a mess of a motion picture. But for Woody, it's what we ended up getting -- a fun, funny, and thematically evocative period romp through the wings of old East Coast theatre culture.

See more

Rey P

Aug 24, 2018

One of the worst movies my wife and I have ever seen. Didn't find it humouress at all. So bad we left early. One of the worst movies my wife and I have ever seen. Couldn't sit through it all it was so bad. Not funny at all.

See more

Albus S

Feb 9, 2018

Even counting Woody Allen's movies with the word "Broadway" in it, this is not my favorite one! It's a nice comedy, made me chuckle... but never really laugh. By the way: "With an intellect that big, you tend to create your own moral universe." Yes, we sure notice that Woody.

See more

Finn G

Dec 7, 2017

Woody Allen has truly proven a neurotic cast can create a great film without his onscreen persona.

Hagrid P

Sep 4, 2017

I'm not a great fan of Woody Allen films. I find his films to be too dry and too wordy. But while this one was still typical of an Allen film it was still very funny and interesting, although it was a bit manic at times. still, a good film.

See more

Read all reviews

Woody Allen

Director

John Cusack

David Shayne

Jack Warden

Julian Marx

Chazz Palminteri

Cheech

Joe Viterelli

Nick Valenti

Jennifer Tilly

Olive Neal

My Left Foot

98%

92%

My Left Foot

Watchlist

Gosford Park

87%

78%

Gosford Park

Watchlist

Bob Roberts

93%

78%

Bob Roberts

Watchlist

Harold and Maude

86%

93%

Harold and Maude

Watchlist

The Big Sleep

96%

91%

The Big Sleep

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Have You Seen These 10 Acclaimed Movies Featuring Law & Order Stars?

View more photos

Synopsis

Struggling 1920s playwright David Shayne (John Cusack), having failed to secure financing for his latest work, reluctantly makes a deal with mob boss Nick Valenti (Joe Viterelli) : a Broadway debut with the chance to direct, as long as Nick's flibbertigibbet girlfriend, Olive (Jennifer Tilly), plays one of the lead roles. As Olive and star Helen Sinclair (Dianne Wiest) attempt to upstage each other, Olive's gangland bodyguard Cheech (Chazz Palminteri) starts suggesting changes to David's script.

Director: Woody Allen
Producer: Robert Greenhut
Screenwriter: Woody Allen, Douglas McGrath
Distributor: Laurenfilm S.A., Miramax Films
Production Co: Miramax Films, Magnolia Pictures, Sweetland Films
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 21, 1994, Wide
Release Date (DVD): Jun 5, 2007
Box Office (Gross USA): $11.4M
Runtime: 1h 39m
Sound Mix: Surround, Mono

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings