Ishtar (film)

Ishtar
Ishtar
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Elaine May
Written by	Elaine May
Produced by	Warren Beatty
Starring	Dustin Hoffman; Warren Beatty; Isabelle Adjani; Charles Grodin; Jack Weston;
Cinematography	Vittorio Storaro
Edited by	Richard P. Cirincione; William H. Reynolds; Stephen A. Rotter;
Music by	Bahjawa; Dave Grusin; Paul Williams;
Production; company	Delphi V Productions
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date	May 15, 1987;
Running time	107 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$51 million
Box office	$14.4 million

Ishtar is a 1987 American adventure-comedy film written and directed by Elaine May, and produced by Warren Beatty, who co-stars opposite Dustin Hoffman. The story revolves around a duo of talentless American songwriters who travel to a booking in Morocco and stumble into a four-party Cold War standoff.

Shot on location in Morocco and New York City by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro, the production drew media attention before its release for substantial cost overruns on top of a lavish budget, and reports of clashes between May, Beatty, and Storaro. A change in studio management at Columbia Pictures during post-production also led to professional and personal difficulties that undermined the film's release.

Ishtar polarized critics and became a notorious failure at the box office. Many initially considered it to be one of the worst films ever made, although critical support has increased significantly since release,^[a] to the point where it received two votes for the Greatest Movie of All Time in the 2022 iteration of the British Film Institute's Sight and Sound decennial polls. Its 2004 DVD release excluded North America, where a director's cut, running two minutes shorter, was released on Blu-ray in August 2013.^[10]

^ Cite error: The named reference NYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference mojo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Brody, Richard (August 9, 2010). "To Wish Upon Ishtar". The New Yorker.
^ Rosenbaum, Jonathan (June 14, 1987). "Elaine And Erich...Two Peas in a Pod?". JonathanRosenbaum.net. Archived from the original on April 18, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
^ Murray, Noel (August 6, 2013). "Ishtar". The Dissolve.
^ Labuza, Peter (November 13, 2012). "The Disc-Less: 5 Re-Evaluated Classics Not Available On DVD, Including 'Greed,' 'Song Of The South' & 'Ishtar'". Indiewire. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
^ Hillis, Aaron (August 6, 2013). "DVD Is The New Vinyl: Rock Hudson Has 'Seconds,' Nazi Escapes & 'Ishtar'". Indiewire. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
^ Haglund, David (August 6, 2013). "Ishtar Is Finally on Blu-ray. And It's Good!". Slate's Culture Blog.
^ Olsen, Mark (August 11, 2013). "'Ishtar' rises from the ashes on Blu-ray". Los Angeles Times.
^ Smith, Jeremy (May 21, 2022). "The Legacy and Lunacy of Ishtar". The A.V. Club. Retrieved March 9, 2024.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

[NYT-1] Cite error: The named reference NYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[mojo-2] Cite error: The named reference mojo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[3] Brody, Richard (August 9, 2010). "To Wish Upon Ishtar". The New Yorker.

[4] Rosenbaum, Jonathan (June 14, 1987). "Elaine And Erich...Two Peas in a Pod?". JonathanRosenbaum.net. Archived from the original on April 18, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2016.

[Murray-5] Murray, Noel (August 6, 2013). "Ishtar". The Dissolve.

[Labuza-6] Labuza, Peter (November 13, 2012). "The Disc-Less: 5 Re-Evaluated Classics Not Available On DVD, Including 'Greed,' 'Song Of The South' & 'Ishtar'". Indiewire. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2016.

[Hillis-7] Hillis, Aaron (August 6, 2013). "DVD Is The New Vinyl: Rock Hudson Has 'Seconds,' Nazi Escapes & 'Ishtar'". Indiewire. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2016.

[Haglund-8] Haglund, David (August 6, 2013). "Ishtar Is Finally on Blu-ray. And It's Good!". Slate's Culture Blog.

[Olsen-9] Olsen, Mark (August 11, 2013). "'Ishtar' rises from the ashes on Blu-ray". Los Angeles Times.

[11] Smith, Jeremy (May 21, 2022). "The Legacy and Lunacy of Ishtar". The A.V. Club. Retrieved March 9, 2024.

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