Movies - TV
This Misunderstood Box Office Bomb Nearly Killed Burce Willis’ Career
By JEREMY SMITH
Die Hard
Had Bruce Willis played the press game with any degree of finesse, reporters might've lauded his willingness to star in more movies with high paychecks.
The press also might've complimented director Michael Lehmann helming his passion project "Hudson Hawk." Instead, they unsheathed their knives and went in for the kill.
Heathers
Tonally, Willis and producer Joel Silver wanted something hip, yet silly, and they had their eyes set on the director-writer team of Michael Lehmann and Daniel Waters.
Lehmann and Waters had wowed critics and cult filmgoers with the 1989 black comedy "Heathers." Willis and Silver were big 'Heathers' fans, and wanted the team to do “Hudson Hawk.”
Critics’ Reactions
"Hudson Hawk" is about a paroled cat burglar Eddie "Hudson" Hawkins (Willis), who is blackmailed to swipe a priceless art piece from a prestigious auction house.
The premise isn’t outlandish, but in the run-up to the first heist sequence, the odd crooning and dialogue broke most critics' brains and the film never recovered.
In Or Out
You either buy in or shut the film off. It’s an odd duck with shockingly expensive set pieces and we don't see this kind of non-CG-enhanced studio spectacle anymore.
From a heist timed to a Bing Crosby standard to Eddie jumping off a building and landing in the living room of his parole officer, the film never eases up on the absurdity.
War Zone
One of the most notorious production challenges was filming on the Brooklyn Bridge. The shoot lasted five days so fluorescent lights could be strung along its length.
Lehmann said while shooting on the bridge, he was told “that a sniper was shooting at us from the Brooklyn side, but as far as I know, none of the shots came particularly close.”