MovieChat Forums > Heartburn (1986) Discussion > Carl Bernstein's Reaction To The Movie.....

Carl Bernstein's Reaction To The Movie...


A few weeks ago, I watched HEARTBURN and took the time to express my thoughts on the movie in the User Comments. I.E. "Not a Bad Movie But Could Have Been Better." While I still feel the same way, I have often wondered what Carl Bernstein's reaction to the final film was as Nora Ephron (his ex-wife) based the movie on their marriage together and Jack Nicholson's character in the movie was loosely based on him (Bernstein). I had read in the book "Jack's Life" by Patrick McGilligan, which was a biography on Jack Nicholson, that while filming, Carl Bernstein was outraged that he was being portrayed as the heavy in this film and did everything he could to challenge the writers and have them downplay his supposed character's bad behavior. Hence, many of the scenes were constantly being re-written on a day to day basis. Anyhow, does anybody know what Bernstein thought of the final project? Also, I wonder what Nora Ephron's feeling about the rendered project was. While I have not read anything indicating her thoughts on the final project, I get the feeling it was quite different from what she and Mike Nichols (the director) had intended when they began filming the movie. Also, while I have never read Nora Ephron's book by the same title, it is my understanding that Bernstein was not happy about it at all, much less the fact that this was being turned into a feature length film. Meanwhile, I would be interested to read other people's comments about Bernstein's reaction (or Ephron's for that matter) towards this movie.

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[deleted]

Well, if you look at the film and Nicholson's character, I think it is perfectly understandable why Bernstien would be angry after seeing the film.

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How is that understandable? Nicholson's character was not named 'Carl Bernstein.' Even then, wouldn't the boilerplate at the end of most movies that says similarities with real people are entirely coincidental have covered this?

If Bernstein committed those acts, why would he be angry? He should "man up."



The things you own end up owning you.

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Yeah, if he didn't want to leave himself open to criticism, then he shouldn't have done the things he did.

You can't do unkind things and then complain that you're being portrayed in a bad light... You made yourself look that way.






Born when she kissed me, died when she left me, lived whilst she loved me

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Well said, Dave.

"Live on, love all, and let live" - River Phoenix.

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Thanks Al!








Born when she kissed me, died when she left me, lived whilst she loved me

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Jeez, what a hippocrit. He was perfectly fine with telling the truth about Nixon adn revealing how bad of a guy he was. Then someone writes about him and hes gets all upset.

All I know is that I dont know, All I know is that I don't know nothing

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Agree with you, Frederson. Ain't karma grand for Carl ?

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[deleted]

critics described it as a "roman-a-clef" because everyone knew who it was about but Ephron had taken it to the edge with changing just enough (i.e. in real life she had 2 boys, not girls and had never been a food writer and her father actually ended up marrying the maid). the book was also very different from the movie in some key ways

supposedly Bernstein tried to sue because Ephron was so furious and vindictive she attempted to sell a hatchet job everywhere she could, including a comic strip

"Heartburn was published in 1983 and made into a movie starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson. It was phenomenally successful. I have always wondered if any of the characters on which it was based threatened to sue. "Yes, Carl did." He didn't go through with it, "but he made my life a misery".
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2007/mar/03/fiction

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