History Film / BartonFink

** [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barton_Fink#Jack_Lipnick Jack Lipnick]] is a composite of various Golden Age studio executives (Jack Warner, Louis B.Mayer, etc).

** W.P. Mayhew, based on Creator/WilliamFaulkner. Also Barton himself, who is sort of a WritersSuck version of Clifford Odets.
** [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barton_Fink#Jack_Lipnick Jack Lipnick]] is based on Golden Age studio executives (Jack Warner, Louis B.Mayer, etc).

* AdultFear: [[spoiler:One of Charlie's last statements to Barton is how his parents and uncle are "good people". It's left unclear if he killed them or not.]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/barton-fink-1991-01-g_1724.jpg]]

Getting a bad case of WritersBlock, he meets Charlie Meadows (Creator/JohnGoodman), an insurance salesman, "[[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed W.P.]] [[Creator/WilliamFaulkner Mayhew]]" (Creator/JohnMahoney), his mistress (Creator/JudyDavis), an [[LargeHam excitable]] producer, and a cast of others.

** [[spoiler:Mundt methodically kills everyone Fink respects or cares about because of a noise complaint. He also murders an ear doctor because of an argument over $10 (which equals about $160 in today's money, but still). It's implied this is the reason for most of his murders, regardless of what he says otherwise.]]

* HighHopesZeroTalent: Played with. Barton wasn't completely incompetent as a writer, he had some success with his play in the film's opening scene. However, it's strongly implied that the play was the last original thought that he had as a writer, his script for the wrestling movie was his play rewritten (nearly verbatim in places) with a wrestler in place of the original protagonist. These limitations don't stop Barton from thinking of himself as a literary genius. [[spoiler: Lipnick eventually chews him out for his arrogant behavior before effectively blacklisting him]].

* {{Hypocrite}}: Barton makes a big deal about how his work deals with the plights of the common man, yet when Charlie tries talking to him about his own experiences as a common man, Barton insists on talking over him about his own work.

* BerserkButton: Evidently, being slighted or ignored for Charlie.

* HiddenDepths: A disturbing example with Charlie. He presents himself as a dim-witted, happy-go-lucky slob. In fact, he's a highly intelligent serial killer. There are hints of Charlie's intelligence and darker side early on, such as the occasional sentence where he's far more articulate than his standard doltish persona would suggest.
* HighHopesZeroTalent: Played with. Barton wasn't completely incompetent as a writer, he had some success with his play in the film's opening scne. However, it's strongly implied that the play was the last original thought that he had as a writer, his script for the wrestling movie was his play rewritten (nearly verbatim in places) with a wrestler in place of the original protagonist. These limitations don't stop Barton from thinking of himself as a literary genius. [[spoiler: Lipnick eventually chews him out for his arrogant behavior before effectively blacklisting him]].

** After seeing [[spoiler:Audrey's body]], Charlie goes to the bathroom to throw up, but the actual shot is not seen.

* HighHopesZeroTalent: Played with. Barton wasn't completely incompetent as a writer, he had some success with his play in the film's opening scne. However, it's strongly implied that the play was the last original thought that he had as a writer, his script for the wrestling movie was his play rewritten (nearly verbatim in places) with a wrestler in place of the original protagonist. These limitations don't stop Barton from thinking of himself as a literary genius.

Getting a bad case of WritersBlock, he meets Charlie Meadows (Creator/JohnGoodman), an insurance salesman, "W.P. Mayhew" (Creator/WilliamFaulkner), his mistress (Creator/JudyDavis), an [[LargeHam excitable]] producer, and a cast of others.

* AxCrazy: [[spoiler:Charlie Meadows, a.k.a. Karl "Madman" Mundt. Played by John Goodman. A seemingly friendly insurance salesman, with a career as a SerialKiller and a fixation with decapitations.]]

* AffablyEvil: [[spoiler:Charlie Meadows.]] He turns out to be a {{serial killer}}, but he is the friendliest character around.

* AxCrazy: [[spoiler:Charlie Meadows, a.k.a. Karl "Madman" Mundt. Played by John Goodman. A seemingly friendly insurance salesman, with a career as a {{serial killer}} and a fixation with decapitations.]]

* WritersSuck: Ben Geisler certainly thinks so. Fink himself is a self-pitying, pompous hypocrite. Then again, WritersAreWriters.

* HaveAGayOldTime: W.P. Mayhew would be humming or singing "Old Black Joe", which has the lyrics: "Gone are the days when my heart was young and gay..."

Getting a bad case of WritersBlock, he meets Charlie Meadows (Creator/JohnGoodman), an insurance salesman, "W. P. Mayhew" (Creator/WilliamFaulkner), his mistress (Creator/JudyDavis), an [[LargeHam excitable]] producer, and a cast of others.

* HaveAGayOldTime: W.P. Mayhew sings: "Gone are the days when my heart was young and gay..."

** W. P. Mayhew, based on Creator/WilliamFaulkner. Also Barton himself, who is sort of a WritersSuck version of Clifford Odets.

** When Barton first meets Mayhews, the writer is in the bathroom vomiting.

** Mayhews physically abuses Audrey.