Bernie (2011 film)
Encyclopedia
Bernie is an American comedic film directed by Richard Linklater
, and written by Linklater and Skip Hollandsworth
. The film stars Jack Black
as Bernie Tiede, Shirley MacLaine
as the elderly widow, Marjorie Nugent, and Matthew McConaughey
as the local District Attorney. It made its world premiere as the opening night film of the 2011 Los Angeles Film Festival. The film's distributor, Millennium Entertainment
, plans to release the film on March 2, 2012..
Bernie is based on a 1998 Texas Monthly
magazine article by Hollandsworth, "Midnight in the Garden of East Texas," that chronicles the 1996 murder of 81-year-old millionaire Marjorie Nugent in Carthage, Texas
by her 39-year-old homosexual companion, Bernhardt "Bernie" Tiede
. Nugent was shot in the back four times with a rifle by Tiede, who confessed to the 1996 murder. According to the Amarillo Globe-News
, police searched Tiede's home and found many videotapes showing Tiede "engaging in homosexual acts." Tiede admitted the murder to police in August, 1997 and was sentenced to life in prison.
town. He murders Nugent for her money, but no one misses her for months until the local district attorney
(McConaughey) begins to investigate. In the meantime, many citizens of the small, East Texas town of Carthage rally to the murderer's defense, and demand that the authorities go easy on Tiede for the killing of the elderly Nugent.
was a boring read, and that "the gossip element almost kept the film from being made, because it reads boring. I said, “But they’ll be funny characters. I could just imagine the accents.”
, Smithville
, Georgetown
, Lockhart
and Austin
, Texas.
"While the subject matter is no doubt fascinating it's not as funny as Linklater wants it to be providing more chuckles than true laughs...It's no disrespect to the picture, but Bernie could be a film that generates strong word of mouth playing in retirement communities for weeks on end. Beyond that, it's sad to say, but Bernie may be a film you eventually discover on Netflix or Cable... Black is simply great... making you believe someone like Bernie could really exist and while accenting his funny characteristics also portraying him as three-dimensional character."
Eric Kohn of IndieWire:
"Richard Linklater’s Bernie is an oddly endearing love letter to Southern eccentricities that calls to mind no less than his iconic Slacker However, the comparison ends there: With its purposefully naive sense of self-mockery, Bernie is a shape-shifting genre vehicle set apart from anything else in Linklater’s career. There’s a loose sensibility to this mockumentary—mysterious comedy? comedic mystery? It’s tough to categorize as anything beyond an enjoyable experience...'You cannot have grief tragically become comedy,' Bernie says while directing a community play, and yet Linklater does just that."
Pete Hammond of Deadline Hollywood:
"Bernie is an acquistion title and likely will be snapped up immediately by some enterprising distributor... It is Black's best work in some time. It could develop a following on the indie circuit though, and it certainly had the crowd (which included well-wishers like Linklater friend Steven Soderbergh
and wife Jules Asner
) buzzing at the crowded after-party on the L.A. Live parking garage rooftop."
Natasha Bishop of the Internet Movie Database:
"I saw the world premiere of Bernie last night at the Los Angeles Film Festival... I am happy to report, I was not disappointed last night! Jack Black gives one of the best performances of his career in Bernie. Shirley MacLaine was the icing on the cake and Matthew McConaughey was the cherry on top. I loved this movie! Bernie is based on the true story of Bernie Tiede, an assistant funeral director and general do-gooder, who confessed to killing Marjorie Nugent, a very rich and mean old lady. Bernie was a bit eccentric but beloved by his entire community of Carthage, Texas. Jack Black nails this performance. He really shows us what he is capable of as an actor. It was such a pleasure to watch him transform into Bernie Tiede. Great moments of physical comedy and also some twisted, dark moments of catching a glimpse into Bernie's spiraling psyche. Shirley MacLaine was Marjorie Nugent who was known as a mean, bitter lady with no friends and a family who tried to sue her for her money. You can't go wrong with Shirley MacLaine – she's just brilliant. The chemistry between MacLaine and Black was fantastic. I truly enjoyed watching them on the screen together. Even at the world premiere last night they had great chemistry in person. It seems like they truly loved working together on this film. Matthew McConaughey was great as the D.A. Danny Buck Davidson, the character didn't seem to be a huge stretch for him, but who cares – he was great! I'm not sure when it is due to be released, but I will be recommending it to my friends when it hits theaters."
magazine by Skip Hollandsworth
, who also co-wrote the comedic film with Linklater, has divided many of the citizens of Carthage, Texas
, the small town in East Texas where the Nugent murder occurred. In the film, Linklater includes interviews with several Carthage residents about their feelings of support for Bernie Tiede. Some citizens hope the film will stimulate an increase in tourism, while others have voiced anger that a comedy film was derived from the events surrounding the murder of an 81 year-old woman.
Owners of the Hawthorne Funeral Home in Carthage, Texas, where Bernie Tiede met Marjorie Nugent, refused to allow the film to use the name of the funeral home in the movie. “We felt we did not want the Hawthorn Funeral Home name or family name thought of in a dark comedy... you always know locally these are real people and families so there is a sting.”
Comments by "Gloria G" on August 12, 2010, and F. Joiner on September 29, 2011, posted on the website of the Panola County Watchmen (the local newspaper), express the feelings of some of the area residents:
F. Joiner, September 29, 2011:
"Wow! I had no idea Hollywood would make a comedy about the brutal murder of an elderly woman. More suprising to me is that Texas Monthly
would make a big joke about shooting an old woman in the back.".”
Gloria G., August 12, 2010
"Once again, the people in Carthage, Texas will be shown to be the fools they are & will be too stupid to realize they are being made fun of. Stupid people...Dark comedy. I'm sure there are sick individuals who would find comedy in the fact that low life scum, Bernie Tiede, lived off an 81 year old widow & stole her money to give to other people in the community & then shot her in the back 4 times & hid her body in her own freezer for 9 months. Extremely comedic, isn’t it? ... People of Carthage, Texas…be prepared to be made the laughing stock of Hollywood. By all means…stand in line & audition for a part in this “comedy.” Make your town proud! Geez…stupid people!"--Gloria G
Other residents of Carthage support the film:
"Everytown has their own village idiots! Carthage has some too! However instead of looking at it as embarrassing which in a way it is........... but look at it as a way for people outside of Carthage to know what horrible thing happened here. Just because Bernie was a class A moron doesnt make the rest of us morons!!! I think its a good thing even that the story gets told!"--confused24
Richard Linklater
-Early life:Linklater was born in Houston, Texas. He studied at Sam Houston State University and left midway through his stint in college to work on an off-shore oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. While working on the rig he read a lot of literature, but on land he developed a love of film through...
, and written by Linklater and Skip Hollandsworth
Skip Hollandsworth
Walter Ned Hollandsworth , better known by his pen name of Skip Hollandsworth, is a journalist and screenwriter, and is one of Texas’ best-known writers. He is the Executive Editor of Texas Monthly magazine, and also writes for Glamour magazine...
. The film stars Jack Black
Jack Black
Jack Black , is an American actor and musician, notably of Tenacious D.Jack Black may also refer to:* Jack Black , late 19th - early 20th Century author and hobo* Jack Black , drummer for 1970s UK punk band The Boys...
as Bernie Tiede, Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in new age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career...
as the elderly widow, Marjorie Nugent, and Matthew McConaughey
Matthew McConaughey
Matthew David McConaughey is an American actor.After a series of minor roles in the early 1990s, McConaughey gained notice for his breakout role in Dazed and Confused . He then appeared in films such as A Time to Kill, Contact, U-571, Tiptoes, Sahara, and We Are Marshall...
as the local District Attorney. It made its world premiere as the opening night film of the 2011 Los Angeles Film Festival. The film's distributor, Millennium Entertainment
Millennium Entertainment
Led by CEO Bill Lee, Millennium Entertainment is a leading independent supplier that acquires and distributes feature films, television series and specialty programming...
, plans to release the film on March 2, 2012..
Bernie is based on a 1998 Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Austin, Texas. Texas Monthly is published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. and was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, Texas Monthly chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the environment, industry, and education...
magazine article by Hollandsworth, "Midnight in the Garden of East Texas," that chronicles the 1996 murder of 81-year-old millionaire Marjorie Nugent in Carthage, Texas
Carthage, Texas
Carthage is a city in Panola County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,664 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Panola County, and is situated in East Texas near the Louisiana state line.-Geography:...
by her 39-year-old homosexual companion, Bernhardt "Bernie" Tiede
Bernhardt "Bernie" Tiede
Bernhardt "Bernie" Tiede is a convicted murderer, who confessed to killing the wealthy 81 year-old widow Marjorie Nugent in Carthage, Texas on November 16, 1996...
. Nugent was shot in the back four times with a rifle by Tiede, who confessed to the 1996 murder. According to the Amarillo Globe-News
Amarillo Globe-News
Amarillo Globe-News is a newspaper in Amarillo, Texas, owned by the Morris Communications Company.The current-day Globe-News is a combination of several newspapers published in Amarillo. One began on November 4, 1909, as a prohibition publication by the Baptist deacon Dr. Joseph Elbert Nunn...
, police searched Tiede's home and found many videotapes showing Tiede "engaging in homosexual acts." Tiede admitted the murder to police in August, 1997 and was sentenced to life in prison.
Plot
Local mortician Bernie Tiede (Black) befriends a rich widow (MacLaine) in a small TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
town. He murders Nugent for her money, but no one misses her for months until the local district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
(McConaughey) begins to investigate. In the meantime, many citizens of the small, East Texas town of Carthage rally to the murderer's defense, and demand that the authorities go easy on Tiede for the killing of the elderly Nugent.
Screenplay
In an interview with Linklater published on June 17, 2011, the director told IndieWire that the screenplay he co-wrote with Skip HollandsworthSkip Hollandsworth
Walter Ned Hollandsworth , better known by his pen name of Skip Hollandsworth, is a journalist and screenwriter, and is one of Texas’ best-known writers. He is the Executive Editor of Texas Monthly magazine, and also writes for Glamour magazine...
was a boring read, and that "the gossip element almost kept the film from being made, because it reads boring. I said, “But they’ll be funny characters. I could just imagine the accents.”
Production
Filming took place in September and October, 2010, in BastropBastrop, Texas
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there are 5340 people in Bastrop, organized into 2034 households and 1336 families. The population density is 734.8 people per square mile . There are 2,239 housing units at an average density of 308.1 per square mile...
, Smithville
Smithville, Texas
Smithville is a city in Bastrop County, Texas, United States, near the Colorado River. The population was 3,901 at the 2000 census. The population grew to an estimated 4,339 for 2004.-History:...
, Georgetown
Georgetown, Texas
Georgetown is a city and also the county seat of Williamson County, Texas, United States with a population of 47,400 at the 2010 census. Southwestern University, founded in 1840, is the oldest university in Texas and is located in Georgetown, about 1/2 mile east of the historic square...
, Lockhart
Lockhart, Texas
-External links:* *...
and Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, Texas.
Critical Reception
Gregory Ellwood of HitFix:"While the subject matter is no doubt fascinating it's not as funny as Linklater wants it to be providing more chuckles than true laughs...It's no disrespect to the picture, but Bernie could be a film that generates strong word of mouth playing in retirement communities for weeks on end. Beyond that, it's sad to say, but Bernie may be a film you eventually discover on Netflix or Cable... Black is simply great... making you believe someone like Bernie could really exist and while accenting his funny characteristics also portraying him as three-dimensional character."
Eric Kohn of IndieWire:
"Richard Linklater’s Bernie is an oddly endearing love letter to Southern eccentricities that calls to mind no less than his iconic Slacker However, the comparison ends there: With its purposefully naive sense of self-mockery, Bernie is a shape-shifting genre vehicle set apart from anything else in Linklater’s career. There’s a loose sensibility to this mockumentary—mysterious comedy? comedic mystery? It’s tough to categorize as anything beyond an enjoyable experience...'You cannot have grief tragically become comedy,' Bernie says while directing a community play, and yet Linklater does just that."
Pete Hammond of Deadline Hollywood:
"Bernie is an acquistion title and likely will be snapped up immediately by some enterprising distributor... It is Black's best work in some time. It could develop a following on the indie circuit though, and it certainly had the crowd (which included well-wishers like Linklater friend Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh
Steven Andrew Soderbergh is an American film producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, editor, and an Academy Award-winning film director. He is best known for directing commercial Hollywood films like Erin Brockovich, Traffic, and the remake of Ocean's Eleven, but he has also directed smaller less...
and wife Jules Asner
Jules Asner
Jules Asner is an American television personality, writer, and former fashion model.- Personal life :Asner was born Julie Ann White in Tempe, Arizona, the daughter of Lee White, a furniture saleswoman. At the age of sixteen Jules was discovered at a modeling convention in Scottsdale, Arizona. She...
) buzzing at the crowded after-party on the L.A. Live parking garage rooftop."
Natasha Bishop of the Internet Movie Database:
"I saw the world premiere of Bernie last night at the Los Angeles Film Festival... I am happy to report, I was not disappointed last night! Jack Black gives one of the best performances of his career in Bernie. Shirley MacLaine was the icing on the cake and Matthew McConaughey was the cherry on top. I loved this movie! Bernie is based on the true story of Bernie Tiede, an assistant funeral director and general do-gooder, who confessed to killing Marjorie Nugent, a very rich and mean old lady. Bernie was a bit eccentric but beloved by his entire community of Carthage, Texas. Jack Black nails this performance. He really shows us what he is capable of as an actor. It was such a pleasure to watch him transform into Bernie Tiede. Great moments of physical comedy and also some twisted, dark moments of catching a glimpse into Bernie's spiraling psyche. Shirley MacLaine was Marjorie Nugent who was known as a mean, bitter lady with no friends and a family who tried to sue her for her money. You can't go wrong with Shirley MacLaine – she's just brilliant. The chemistry between MacLaine and Black was fantastic. I truly enjoyed watching them on the screen together. Even at the world premiere last night they had great chemistry in person. It seems like they truly loved working together on this film. Matthew McConaughey was great as the D.A. Danny Buck Davidson, the character didn't seem to be a huge stretch for him, but who cares – he was great! I'm not sure when it is due to be released, but I will be recommending it to my friends when it hits theaters."
Controversy
The making of the film, based on an article in Texas MonthlyTexas Monthly
Texas Monthly is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Austin, Texas. Texas Monthly is published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. and was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, Texas Monthly chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the environment, industry, and education...
magazine by Skip Hollandsworth
Skip Hollandsworth
Walter Ned Hollandsworth , better known by his pen name of Skip Hollandsworth, is a journalist and screenwriter, and is one of Texas’ best-known writers. He is the Executive Editor of Texas Monthly magazine, and also writes for Glamour magazine...
, who also co-wrote the comedic film with Linklater, has divided many of the citizens of Carthage, Texas
Carthage, Texas
Carthage is a city in Panola County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,664 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Panola County, and is situated in East Texas near the Louisiana state line.-Geography:...
, the small town in East Texas where the Nugent murder occurred. In the film, Linklater includes interviews with several Carthage residents about their feelings of support for Bernie Tiede. Some citizens hope the film will stimulate an increase in tourism, while others have voiced anger that a comedy film was derived from the events surrounding the murder of an 81 year-old woman.
Owners of the Hawthorne Funeral Home in Carthage, Texas, where Bernie Tiede met Marjorie Nugent, refused to allow the film to use the name of the funeral home in the movie. “We felt we did not want the Hawthorn Funeral Home name or family name thought of in a dark comedy... you always know locally these are real people and families so there is a sting.”
Comments by "Gloria G" on August 12, 2010, and F. Joiner on September 29, 2011, posted on the website of the Panola County Watchmen (the local newspaper), express the feelings of some of the area residents:
F. Joiner, September 29, 2011:
"Wow! I had no idea Hollywood would make a comedy about the brutal murder of an elderly woman. More suprising to me is that Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Austin, Texas. Texas Monthly is published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. and was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, Texas Monthly chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the environment, industry, and education...
would make a big joke about shooting an old woman in the back.".”
Gloria G., August 12, 2010
"Once again, the people in Carthage, Texas will be shown to be the fools they are & will be too stupid to realize they are being made fun of. Stupid people...Dark comedy. I'm sure there are sick individuals who would find comedy in the fact that low life scum, Bernie Tiede, lived off an 81 year old widow & stole her money to give to other people in the community & then shot her in the back 4 times & hid her body in her own freezer for 9 months. Extremely comedic, isn’t it? ... People of Carthage, Texas…be prepared to be made the laughing stock of Hollywood. By all means…stand in line & audition for a part in this “comedy.” Make your town proud! Geez…stupid people!"--Gloria G
Other residents of Carthage support the film:
"Everytown has their own village idiots! Carthage has some too! However instead of looking at it as embarrassing which in a way it is........... but look at it as a way for people outside of Carthage to know what horrible thing happened here. Just because Bernie was a class A moron doesnt make the rest of us morons!!! I think its a good thing even that the story gets told!"--confused24