Billy Bob Thornton, Frances McDormand, Michael Badalucco

A laconic, chain-smoking barber blackmails his wife's boss and lover for money to invest in dry cleaning, but his plan goes terribly wrong.

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82% liked it

32,156 ratings

Critics

80% liked it

151 critics

R, 1 hr. 56 min.

Directed by: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen

Release Date: October 31, 2001

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DVD Release Date: April 16, 2002

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Flixster Reviews (1,500)


  • September 3, 2009
    The Coen's most beautifully directed film, hands down. The smooth black and white finish is sublime. Thornton is fantastic, in what I believe to be his best role to date (Just beating his character in sling blade). The whole cast are on top form and for me, this has my favourite ...( read more)Coen film ending.
  • October 25, 2008
    When I saw The Man Who Wasn't There in the theater I was incredibly disappointed. Not enough of the Coens' trademarked weirdness and way too much wayward boredom. Since 2001 I've grown a whole new appreciation for film noir (which The Man Who Wasn't There pays homage to almost pe...( read more)rfectly) and thought I might have a whole different perspective on the film.

    Unfortunately not.

    The Man Who Wasn't There bored me to tears just as badly as it did in its initial run I'm sorry to say. The story is still too quiet and subdued for me to see how anyone can possibly be interested in it, but Roger Deakins' photography is nothing short of brilliant and breathtaking.
  • August 12, 2008
    a little work of art. first of all brilliant acting from the whole cast even though it's not even needed when you've got a story as powerful as this one. second of all i was waiting ages hoping that one day i'd see a coen brothers film that lived up to the standards of fargo. thi...( read more)s was just as good! forget the newer no country for old men. this is much much better
  • May 25, 2008
    Slow, odd and morose neo noir, with a unusually quiet, restrained but remarkable performance by Billy Bob Thornton. Roger Deakins' cinematography, although too flashy for my taste (in the context of the story) is a undeniably strong point.
  • May 1, 2008
    I should start by saying that I normally hate black and white films, they really annoy me. I think it's because colours really show emotions and give films more character, I just find it more interesting. But in this case I survived watching this whole film, and came to realise t...( read more)hat the black and white made this movie more.. mysterious. It was probably the better choice than making this in colour, it gave me an idea of the film when it had only just started. It's unique, mysterious, strange, humorous and unlike any other film I have seen before.

    It's definitely something strange from Billy Bob Thornton, it's nothing at all like any of his other films. Obviously it's not a comedy, though it does have a few jokes, so it's nothing like his new comedy movies. And even some of the drama ones I have seen before of his.. it was like another actor. That, by the way, isn't a bad thing. It's a great thing, I love the way he can go from films like Sling Blade, to this, to Bad Santa. He has a huge range of characters he can play so well, and they're all so different. In this movie Billy Bob is Ed Crane, very mysterious and somehow seemed to be the normal, boring kind of guy. We are shown important parts of his life before and after an incident that would change his whole life.

    Apart from Billy Bob Thornton, this movie also had some great stars. Scarlett Johansson was great as her role of a young girl who Ed finds an important part of his life, and is determined to make sure her life isn't as much of a disaster as his. Tony Shalhoub was also quite good in this film, there wasn't much to his character but he mastered him and made the movie a lot more entertaining to watch.

    This is definitely worth seeing if you are a Billy Bob Thornton fan, it's complex at times, but definitely a beautifully made film. The movie climax at the end was done exceptionally well and the feeling still stayed with me after the credits. "I don't know what waits for me, beyond the earth and sky. But I'm not afraid to go."
  • November 7, 2009
    A tribute and homage to film noir and classic cinema. Billy Bob Thornton's narration makes this depressing, dark humor film something very extraordinary. The movie is idea-driven (on existentialism of a modern man) and not plot-driven which may explain its slow pacing. Music scor...( read more)e is perfect for the film's tone. Not Coen's best but definitely the most underrated film from the brothers.
  • October 13, 2009
    Et voila - homage to Film Noir Coen-style. Bold lighting gives the viewer a pallet of shadows and textures in a visual treat which draws them into a black and white world of complex yet understated characters through which complications within relationships are explored. In true ...( read more)Coen fashion, the story appears simple and straightforward on the surface but quickly morphs into a progressively convoluted series of events, which mirror the chain reaction set off by Ed Crane's initial lie. Thornton's low-key performance as Ed speaks volumes and can easily be ranked as amongst his best, while Frances McDormand perfectly fills Doris Crane's sassy stilettos. Whereas the ending may appear bleak to most, it's important to put it in context of Ed's character arc which, though ambiguous at first, revolves around his detached attitude towards Doris. Initially unable to communicate his feelings to her, or even himself, he comes to realize that he truly does love her, and in true existential manner, finds his final moments uplifting with the notion of being able to finally spill his heart to her face-to-face.
  • October 5, 2009
    One of the Coens most underrated films. A perfect homage to the Film Noir. From the visuals, to the score, to the impeccable cast, this film is perfect. Completely understated and utterly hilarious. Billy Bob Thornton is frighteningly watchable. Seeing this film again, makes me r...( read more)ealize that there isn't a wasted moment in the entire movie. In fact, that's one of the greatest trademarks of the Coens' greatest films: EVERY scene is dynamite. Just when one great little sequence ends, yet another gem appears. How do they do it? Pure genius.
  • September 18, 2009
    An absolutely terrific Billy Bob Thronton and an unparalelled direction and script by the Coen Bros., 40's film-noirish style, result in a contemporary crime masterpiece, full of suspense and unforgettable scenes.

    80/100
  • September 6, 2009
    The movie that wasn't there.

Critic Reviews


March 22, 2002
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

A paradoxical film even by the Coen brothers' standards: a painstakingly crafted throwaway. full review

November 2, 2001
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

A loving tribute to midcentury cinema. full review

November 2, 2001
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Man Who Wasn't There is so assured and perceptive in its style, so loving, so intensely right, that if you can receive on that frequency, the film is like a voluptuous feast. full review

November 1, 2001
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

There are goofy flourishes here, the in-jokey, left-field rummies that are the Brothers Coen's stock-in-trade. But this is altogether a quieter, more philosophical sort of endeavor. full review

October 31, 2001
A.O. Scott, The New York Times

Full of delightful idiosyncrasies and surprising bits of acting. full review

October 29, 2001
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

For all its lapses, Man is steadily engrossing and devilishly funny, and, o brother, does it look sharp. full review

View more The Man Who Wasn't There reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

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The Man Who Wasn't There Trivia


  • When I was going up the stairs, I met a man who wasn't there. He wasn't there again today, I wish, I wish he'd go away. this quote is from what movie?  Answer »
  • This poem appears in the movie: As I was going up the stair I met a man who wasn't there He wasn't there again today I wish, I wish he'd go away  Answer »
  • Which of these is a Coen Brothers film?  Answer »
  • What movie is this quote from? "As I walked up the stairs I met a man who wasn't there. He wasn't there again today. I wish, I wish he'd go away."  Answer »

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