Motherless Brooklyn (2019)

Set against the backdrop of 1950s New York, Motherless Brooklyn follows Lionel Essrog, a lonely private detective afflicted with Tourette's Syndrome, as he ventures to solve the murder of his mentor and only friend, Frank Minna. (imdb)
Cast and Information
Directed By: Edward Norton
Written By: Edward Norton, Jonathan Lethem
Starring: Bruce Willis, Willem Dafoe, Alec Baldwin, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Kenneth Williams, Fisher Stevens, Edward Norton, Ethan Suplee, Leslie Mann, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Cherry Jones, Dallas Roberts
Country: USA
Where to Stream
Loading...


Motherless Brooklyn belongs to 9 collections
1. Neo-noir (collaborative: moderated by iconogassed - 28 stars)
2. Based on a Book (collaborative: moderated by iconogassed - 21 stars)
3. Films available in HD (collaborative: moderated by kubricksucks - 13 stars)
4. New York (collaborative: moderated by djross - 10 stars)
5. Based On Novel (collaborative: moderated by tathiel - 7 stars)
6. Director/star combination (collaborative: moderated by djross - 5 stars)
7. Netflix Sverige (collaborative: moderated by Jakobostgren - 1 star)
8. DtC Doubling the Canon 2021 Nominees (collaborative: moderated by lineuphere)
9. seen in 2020 (public: sproost)
Browse the full list of collections
Stars | User | Rating | |
4 | ![]() |
KasperL | 55 39th |
A voice-over by Norton goes a long way, and his second directorial effort is a nice little noir pastiche with a pretty great supporting cast (Mbatha-Raw, Dafoe, Baldwin). However, the protagonist's condition, which I certainly did not find amusing, adds nothing interesting (in fact, his incessant outbursts almost sort of ruined the movie for me), and, while completely decent, Norton's performance was a good deal less impressive than his usual brilliance.
|
|||
3 | ![]() |
bowfinger | 40 32nd |
Wow! It's been a while since a neo-noir of this caliber truly captured the very essence of the mystery/crime genre in a--*SNEEZING SNOOZE-FEST* ...Sorry about that, so yeah, Norton incredibly manages to pull off wearing so many hats in this darkly magnifici--*JUICY JERKER JUNKY RETARD* Sorry, uhm... yeah, the stellar supporting cast is just--*DUMPSTER DUMPSTER, FUNKY ROOSTER* .....ah, screw this.
|
|||
3 | ![]() |
Luna6ix | 83 83rd |
Detective mysteries of this sort are an obsession of mine, so I'd probably like this no matter how good or bad it is. The truth is, though, that while Lionel might be a unique lead in a story of this type, "Motherless Brooklyn" is hard-boiled to the core, it checks all the boxes without feeling overly cliched. If you're a fan of noir, or detectives, you should give it a shot. I got my fingers crossed for a sequel, but judging by Lethem, and the negative profit, I doubt it'll ever happen.
|
|||
2 | ![]() |
glumpy_99 | 87 76th |
Admittedly an uneven (and overlong) effort, but what works here works so well that it still becomes a sort of fascinating masterpiece; Norton pulling triple duty and directing a cast of Wes Anderson off-cuts is a great hook, and the film has atmosphere ala CHINATOWN to burn, and some terrific performances (seeing Willis in a sterling return to form was worth the price of admission). Goes off on too many tangents (jazz club) which work well in isolation, but kill story momentum from time to time.
|
|||
2 | ![]() |
eCitizen | 75 77th |
Ed Norton is multitalented as the writer, director, and lead actor. This noir gumshoe story was interesting, twisted, engaging and very entertaining. I quite liked Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Ed Norton in this. It sports a tremendous cast of characters. All of the acting performances were very good. Excellent music and video production. It has lots of intrigue and mystery. Well worth watching.
|
|||
1 | ![]() |
Ofterdingen | 47 30th |
Nothing really works. In fact, every aspect of this movie is a little too dull or a little annoying.
|
|||
1 | braddad68 | 95 84th |
|
Not only a great period piece crime thriller, but added the element of the main character having Tourette's. Master class in acting and filmmaking!
|
|||
1 | ![]() |
capodelnulla | 50 22nd |
it shows how far the jazz soundtrack could carry a noir. feels like bunch of over enthusiastic film students wanted to make a noir but realized in editing that it wouldn't work, so decided to treat it as a light comedy. also I guess norton is a better director & screenwriter when there's actual director and screenwriter whom he bugs while shooting the film.
|
|||
1 | ![]() |
amazedemon | 64 50th |
Based off a1999 novel, the issues of discrimination and increasing urbanisation seem equally relevant in 1957, 1999 and today; which is an unfortunate blow to social progress. The film is a mixed bag with decent to good acting (though at times a little prone to over-acting). The plot is interesting, though there are issues with the pacing whereby the film should have lost at least 20 minutes. At times a little predictable, at others the plot is undermined by forgettable characters. It's alright.
|
Average Percentile 43.96% from 372 Ratings | ![]() |