Film · 2019

Motherless Brooklyn

Name: Motherless Brooklyn
Genre: Crime, Drama
Released: 2019-11-01
Duration: 144 min
Rating: 3.6
Cast: Edward Norton, Leslie Mann, Willem Dafoe, Bruce Willis, Gugu Mbatha-Raw

Directed by Edward Norton · starring Edward Norton, Leslie Mann and Willem Dafoe

2 h 24 min
15
Crime · Drama
USA
Released in the UK 5 December 2019

5.3 AverageMovieNCo
3.6 Users2 votes
7.0 Critics1 review

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Synopsis

'Motherless Brooklyn' takes us to the New York of the fifties, where Lionel Essrog (Edward Norton), a withdrawn private detective who suffers from Tourettes syndrome (a syndrome characterised by the manifestation of multiple tics, both physical and vocal), will have to resolve one of the most importante murders of his professional career: that of his mentor and only friend Frank Minna (Bruce Willis). Armed only with a few clues and his obsessive mentality, this detective manages to unravel the best kept secrets about the fate of New York. Passing through gin-soaked jazz clubs in Harlem, the slums of Brooklyn and, finally, the golden halls of the powerful businesses in New York, Lionel fights the most dangerous and corrupt man in the city with all that he's got to honor his friend and save the woman who might be his own salvation.

The film is stars, and is also written and directed by, Edward Norton ('Birdman', 'American History X' and 'Primal Fear'). Joining the cast are Bruce Willis ('Die Hard', 'Pulp Fiction'), Willem Dafoe ('Spider-Man', 'The Florida Project'), Leslie Mann ('Knocked Up', 'The Other Woman'), Alec Baldwin ('The Departed', 'It's Complicated') and Gugu Mbatha-Raw ('The Beauty and the Beast'), Bobby Cannavale ('The Irishman', 'Jumanji'), Cherry Jones and Michael Kenneth Williams.

Where to watch Motherless Brooklyn

All the options

Available now in the UK:

Availability checked on 8 November 2026.

The essentials

Runtime: 144 min2 hours and 24 minutes
Budget: $26mWarner Bros. Pictures
Box office: $8.8m0.3 times its budget
Rating: 15Suitable only for 15 years and over

How long is Motherless Brooklyn?: 2 hours and 24 minutes (144 minutes).
When was Motherless Brooklyn released in the UK?: It was released in the UK on 5 December 2019.
Who directed Motherless Brooklyn?: Edward Norton.
Who is in Motherless Brooklyn?: It stars Edward Norton, Leslie Mann, Willem Dafoe and Bruce Willis.
Where can I watch Motherless Brooklyn?: In the UK it is available with a subscription on HBO Max, with a channel on Now and a channel on Prime Video and to rent on Apple TV.
How much did Motherless Brooklyn make?: It took $8.8 million in US. It cost $26 million.

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Cast

Full cast (19)

Director: Edward Norton
Writers: Edward Norton
Music: Daniel Pemberton
Producers: Edward Norton

Videos and trailers

See the video

'Motherless Brooklyn' Official Trailer 2:3124 September 2019

Photos and posters

All 11 photos

+3 photosand 3 posters

Reviews

All 2 reviews

3.6 2 votes

What the critics say 7.0, from one outlet

7.0 IndiewireEric Khon "As passion projects go, this one at least does justice to its source material by transforming the plight of urban development into an immersive shaggy dog story." Read
VarietyPeter Debruge "A sprawling, ambitious tale of murder, blackmail and corruption in mid-century New York to rival 'Chinatown' in its complexity, if not necessarily that brain-bender?s elegance or appeal ? but she… Read

Box office

Weekend by weekend

Budget $26m
US $8.8m
UK £153,821

Awards

All the awards

Golden Globes 2020 1 nomination

Soundtrack

All 7 songs

Daily BattlesThom Yorke, Flea Spotify
Relaxing with LeeDizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Curly Russell, Buddy Rich Spotify
Blues WalkWynton Marsalis, Joe Farnsworth, Russell Hall, Isaiah J. Thompson, Jerry Weldon Spotify
Daily BattlesWynton Marsalis, Joe Farnsworth, Russell Hall, Isaiah J. Thompson, Jerry Weldon Spotify

Trivia

All 7 facts

Second film

This is the second film directed by Edward Norton. The first one was 'Keeping the Faith' (2000), starring Ben Stiller, Jenna Elfman and Norton himself.
Credited

It's the first time that Edward Norton is credited as writter of a film, eve though the actor had already worked on scripts such as 'Fight Club', 'Frida' and 'The Incredible Hulk'.
David Lynch

According to the book "Room to Dream", when the book was published, David Lynch eas offered the possibility of producing or directing it. Finally, he did not enter the project.
Fire

A fire borke out during the shooting of the film in a New York building on March 22, 2018. Sadly, a firefighter named Michael Davidson, 37, died in the fire. Two other firefighters were injured.
Real or fiction

Alec Baldwin's character Moses Randolph is based on real life city planner Robert Moses. Moses is largely to blame for the Brooklyn Dodgers leaving Brooklyn for los Angeles. The dodgers leaving Brooklyn is mentioned once in the movie on the radio and hinted at later when Randolph mentions a baseball team playing where he says.