View source for Hudson Hawk

{{short description|1991 film by Michael Lehmann}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Hudson Hawk
| image          = Hudson hawk ver2.jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Michael Lehmann]]
| producer       = [[Joel Silver]]
| screenplay     = {{plainlist|
* [[Steven E. de Souza]]
* [[Daniel Waters (screenwriter)|Daniel Waters]]
}}
| story          = {{plainlist|
* [[Bruce Willis]]
* [[Robert Kraft (composer)|Robert Kraft]]
}}
| starring       = {{plainlist|
* Bruce Willis
* [[Danny Aiello]]
* [[Andie MacDowell]]
* [[Richard E. Grant]]
* [[Sandra Bernhard]]
* [[Donald Burton]]
* [[James Coburn]]
}}
| music          = {{plainlist|
* [[Michael Kamen]]
* Robert Kraft
}}
| cinematography = [[Dante Spinotti]]
| editing        = {{plainlist|
* [[Chris Lebenzon]]
* [[Michael Tronick]]
}}
| studio         = [[Silver Pictures]]
| distributor    = [[TriStar Pictures|Tri-Star Pictures]]
| released       = {{Film date|1991|5|24}}
| runtime        = 100 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $65 million<ref>{{cite news|title= FILM; Why the 'Hudson Hawk' Budget Soared So High|work= The New York Times|date=May 26, 1991|url= http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F2061EF73A5C0C758EDDAC0894D9494D81|access-date=October 29, 2010|first=James|last=Greenberg}}</ref>
| gross          = $97 million
}}

'''''Hudson Hawk''''' is a 1991 American [[action comedy film]] directed by [[Michael Lehmann]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Hudson Hawk |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=May 24, 1991|url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/hudsonhawkrhinson_a0a682.htm |access-date=October 28, 2010|archive-date=November 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111141054/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/hudsonhawkrhinson_a0a682.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Bruce Willis]] stars in the title role and also co-wrote the story. [[Danny Aiello]], [[Andie MacDowell]], [[James Coburn]], [[David Caruso]], [[Lorraine Toussaint]], [[Frank Stallone]], [[Sandra Bernhard]], and [[Richard E. Grant]] are also featured.<ref>{{cite news |title='Hawk' Better Fly|work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=June 2, 1991 |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1991/05/19/real-hudson-hawk/ |access-date=October 29, 2010|archive-date=June 14, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614034451/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-06-02/features/9102190255_1_hudson-hawk-film-million-budget |url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[live action]] film employs [[Animated cartoon|cartoon]]-style [[slapstick]] heavily, including [[sound effect]]s, which enhances the film's signature [[surreal humor]]. The plot combines material based on [[Conspiracy theory|conspiracy theories]], [[Secret society|secret societies]], and historic mysteries, as well as outlandish "[[clockpunk]]" technology ''à la'' Coburn's ''[[Our Man Flint]]'' films of the 1960s.<ref>{{cite news |title=Real 'Hudson Hawk'|work=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=May 19, 1991|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1991/05/19/real-hudson-hawk/ |access-date=October 29, 2010 |first=Glenn |last=Plaskin|archive-date=June 16, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120616052332/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-05-19/entertainment/9102140878_1_eddie-hawkins-hudson-river-film |url-status=live}}</ref>

A recurring plot device in the film has Hudson and his partner Tommy "Five-Tone" (Aiello) singing songs concurrently but separately, to time and synchronize their exploits. Willis-Aiello duets of [[Bing Crosby]]'s "[[Swinging on a Star]]" and [[Paul Anka]]'s "[[Side by Side (1927 song)|Side by Side]]" are featured on the film's soundtrack.

The film was a huge critical and commercial failure in the United States, only grossing $17 million and earning three [[Razzies]] (including [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture|Worst Picture]]), but it was better received internationally and grossed $80 million for a worldwide total of $97 million.

==Plot==
 <!-- Per WP:FILMPLOT, plot summary should be between 400 to 700 words. -->
Eddie Hawkins—"Hudson Hawk" (from the bracing winds off the [[Hudson River|Hudson]])—is a master cat burglar and [[Safe-cracking|safe-cracker]] with a penchant for using low-tech solutions against high-tech security systems. He is also known for conducting his robberies with precise, synchronized timing (later revealed to be a robust catalog of memorized music that he and his partner(s) sing along with during jobs).

Upon Hawk's release from prison, and on his first day of parole, he and his former partner, Tommy "Five-Tone" Messina, seek out a good cup of cappuccino. However, before Hawk can drink it, he is [[blackmail]]ed by various entities. These include his parole officer, the minor Mario Brothers [[Italian-American Mafia|Mafia]] family, and the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]], who push him into doing a few art heists.

Hawk refuses each, despite mounting pressure and coercion, stating that his only natural desires are to remain out of prison and enjoy a good cup of cappuccino—though he is [[Running gag|repeatedly interrupted before doing so]]. Hawk eventually relents and proceeds to [[Reconnaissance|case]] the art pieces.

Unbeknownst to Hawk, his blackmailers are all manipulated by the American corporation Mayflower Industries, run by husband and wife Darwin and Minerva Mayflower and their butler Alfred. Headquartered in the [[Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana]], inside of the [[Esposizione Universale Roma]], the company seeks to take over the world by building La Macchina dell'Oro, a machine invented by [[Leonardo da Vinci]] that [[Alchemy|converts lead into gold]].

An assembly of [[crystal]]s needed for the machine to function is hidden in various of Leonardo's artworks: the [[maquette]] of the [[House of Sforza|Sforza]], the [[Codex Trivulzianus|Da Vinci Codex]], and a scale model of da Vinci's helicopter. Sister Anna Baragli is an operative for a secret [[Holy See|Vatican]] [[Counterintelligence|counter-espionage]] agency, working with the CIA to assist in Hawk's mission in Rome, intending to foil the robbery at [[St. Peter's Basilica|St. Peter's]].

After blowing up an auctioneer to cover up the theft of the Sforza, the Mario Bros. take Hawk away in an ambulance. He sticks syringes into Antony Mario's face and falls out of the ambulance on a gurney on the [[Brooklyn Bridge]], and they try to run him down with the ambulance as they speed along the highway.

The brothers get killed when their ambulance crashes. Immediately afterward, Hawk meets [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] head George Kaplan and four codenamed agents (Snickers, Kit Kat, Almond Joy, and Butterfinger) who take him to the Mayflowers.

Hawk successfully steals the Da Vinci Codex from another museum, but later refuses to steal the helicopter design. Tommy Five-Tone fakes his death so they can escape. They are discovered and attacked by the CIA agents; Kaplan reveals that he and his agents stole the piece but, unlike them, had no problem killing the guards. Hawk and Tommy escape when Snickers and Almond Joy are killed and pursue the remaining agents. Kit Kat and Butterfinger take Anna to the castle where the Macchina dell'Oro is reconstructed.

The showdown is in the castle between the remaining CIA agents, the Mayflowers, and the team of Hudson, Five-Tone, and Baragli. Minerva kills Kit Kat and Butterfinger, although Kit Kat frees Baragli before dying. Tommy fights Darwin and Alfred inside a speeding limousine, and Hudson fights George Kaplan on the castle's roof. Kaplan topples from the castle, landing on the limousine. Alfred plants a bomb in it, escaping with Darwin; Tommy gets trapped inside while Kaplan is hanging onto the hood. The bomb detonates as the limousine speeds over a cliff.

Darwin and Minerva force Hawk to assemble the crystal powering the machine, but he intentionally leaves out one small piece. When the machine is activated, it malfunctions and explodes, killing the Mayflowers. Hawk battles Alfred, using his blades to decapitate him.

Hawk and Baragli escape the castle using the da Vinci flying machine. Baragli implies she will be leaving her order to watch out for Hawk. They discover Tommy waiting for them at a café, having miraculously escaped death through a combination of airbags and a sprinkler system in the limo. With the world saved and da Vinci's secrets protected, Hawk finally enjoys a cappuccino.

==Cast==
{{cast listing|
* [[Bruce Willis]] as Eddie "Hudson Hawk" Hawkins
* [[Danny Aiello]] as Tommy "Five-Tone" Messina
* [[Andie MacDowell]] as Anna Baragli
* [[Richard E. Grant]] as Darwin Mayflower
* [[Sandra Bernhard]] as Minerva Mayflower
* [[Donald Burton]] as Alfred
* [[Don Patrick Harvey|Don Harvey]] as "Snickers"
* [[David Caruso]] as "Kit Kat"
* [[Andrew Bryniarski]] as "Butterfinger"
* [[Lorraine Toussaint]] as "Almond Joy"
* [[Frank Stallone]] as Cesar Mario
* Carmine Zozzora as Antony Mario
* [[James Coburn]] as George Kaplan
* [[Doug and Steve Martin|Doug Martin]] as Igg
* [[Doug and Steve Martin|Steven M. Martin]] as Ook
* [[Leonardo Cimino]] as The Cardinal
* [[Enrico Lo Verso]] as The Apprentice
* [[Frank Welker]] as Bunny The Dog 
* [[William Conrad]] as The Narrator
* Stefano Molinari as [[Leonardo da Vinci]]
}}

==Production==
Before [[Bruce Willis]] became a full-time actor, he had worked at a bar in [[New York City]]. One of the regulars at the bar was Robert Kraft, who worked with Willis on putting a song together called "''The Hudson Hawk''", with Kraft being inspired by a strong wind that blew from the Hudson River across [[Manhattan]] in the fall. Eventually, when Willis became a star, he went back to the idea of doing a super sleuth film, one that Kraft thought could be "the anti-James Bond" with potential for follow-up films. [[Joel Silver]], who had produced Willis with the first two ''[[Die Hard]]'' films, jumped on producing this film. [[Maruschka Detmers]] was originally cast opposite Willis but suffered a back injury and had to depart the role, which saw [[Andie MacDowell]] cast.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brew |first=Simon |date=2013-03-20 |title=Looking back at Hudson Hawk |url=https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/looking-back-at-hudson-hawk/ |access-date=2024-08-31 |website=[[Den of Geek]] |language=en-US}}</ref> [[Michael Lehmann]], director of films such as ''[[Heathers]]'' (which had been written by [[Daniel Waters (screenwriter)|Daniel Waters]], who was hired to co-write the screenplay), envisioned [[Richard E. Grant]] and [[Sandra Bernhard]] as playing manic villains, with one basis of inspiration being Silver. The budget reportedly went from $42 million to around $70 million to go with constant on-set rewriting and rumors of turbulence with producer-star Willis; it was shot in [[Italy]], [[England]], and [[Hungary]]. Grant, who spent four months on the production, wrote about his experiences making the films in his book ''With Nails'', listing various stories such as Willis continuously watching his close-ups on the video replay monitors on takes to go with co-star [[Danny Aiello]] wanting re-writes for the climax.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-06-24 |title=RICHARD E. GRANT: THE 1991 INTERVIEW |url=https://multiglom.com/2017/06/24/richard-e-grant-the-1991-interview/ |access-date=2024-08-31 |website=MULTIGLOM |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Searby |first=Mark |date=2022-02-08 |title=Resurrecting the hawk: Hudson Hawk, over 30 years later |url=https://filmstories.co.uk/features/resurrecting-the-hawk-hudson-hawk-over-30-years-later/ |access-date=2024-08-31 |website=Film Stories |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==Soundtrack==
{{more citations needed|date=January 2021}}
The soundtrack album was released by [[Varèse Sarabande]] in 1991. There are eleven tracks in all. The film's score (represented by tracks 4-9) was composed and conducted by [[Michael Kamen]] with [[Robert Kraft (composer)|Robert Kraft]]. Kraft also wrote "Hawk Swing" and co-wrote the film's theme with star Bruce Willis.

# "Hudson Hawk Theme" - [[Dr. John]] (05:38)
# "[[Swinging on a Star]]" - [[Bruce Willis]] and [[Danny Aiello]] (02:53) - Sung in incorrect order of verses (the [[plot device]] in the movie refers to the original track length as 5:32)
# "[[Side by Side (1927 song)|Side by Side]]" - Bruce Willis and Danny Aiello (02:18) (the plot device in the film refers to the original track length as 6:00)
# "Leonardo" (04:55)
# "Welcome to Rome" (01:46)
# "Stealing the Codex" (01:58)
# "Igg and Ook" (02:22)
# "Cartoon Fight" (02:54)
# "The Gold Room" (05:57)
# "Hawk Swing" (03:41)
# "Hudson Hawk Theme" (instrumental) (05:18)

The song "[[The Power (Snap! song)|The Power]]" by [[Snap!]] is featured, although not included on the soundtrack, when Hudson Hawk is taken for the first time to the headquarters of the Mayflowers. Minerva Mayflower, played by [[Sandra Bernhard]], is sitting on a desk and sings the song while it plays on her headphones.

==Reception==
{{Rotten Tomatoes prose|score=30|average=|count=46|consensus=''Hudson Hawk'''s kitchen-sink approach to its blend of action and slapstick results in a surreal, baffling misfire.|ref=|access-date={{RT data|access date}}}}<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hudson_hawk/ |title= Hudson Hawk |website= Rotten Tomatoes |access-date= September 25, 2025 |archive-date= May 30, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160530043251/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hudson_hawk/ |url-status= live }}</ref> {{Metacritic film prose|17|15|access-date=25 June 2025}}<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.metacritic.com/movie/hudson-hawk |title= Hudson Hawk |website= Metacritic |access-date= August 30, 2016 |archive-date= May 17, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160517131134/http://www.metacritic.com/movie/hudson-hawk |url-status= live }}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale.<ref name="CinemaScore">{{cite web |url= https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |title= Cinemascore |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181220122629/https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |archive-date= December 20, 2018 |access-date= August 30, 2019 }}</ref>

In the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'', Terry Clifford observed that: "The end result is being thrown up on ''selected'' screens this weekend, and the suspicion that this was a pooch turns out to be undeniably correct. Boring and banal, overwrought and undercooked, ''Hudson Hawk'' is beyond bad."<ref>{{cite news|title=Smug 'Hudson Hawk' Looks Like A Turkey|work=Chicago Tribune|date=May 24, 1991|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1991/05/24/smug-hudson-hawk-looks-like-a-turkey/|access-date=October 29, 2010|first=Clifford|last=Terry|archive-date=June 10, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610201337/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-05-24/entertainment/9102160454_1_hudson-hawk-eddie-hawkins-heathers|url-status=live}}</ref>

As [[Kenneth Turan]] wrote in the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'':
{{cquote|The saddest thing about ''Hudson Hawk'' is that director Lehmann and co-screenwriter Waters were previously responsible for the clever, audacious ''[[Heathers]]'', a film that represented all that is most promising about American film, while this one represents all that is most moribund and retrograde. Perhaps they both earned enough money here so that they won't be tempted to indulge themselves in similar big-budget fiascoes. Here's hoping.<ref>{{cite news |title= Bruce Willis' 'Hudson Hawk' Fails to Fly as Comedy Caper |work= [[Los Angeles Times]] |date= 1991-05-24 |url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-05-24-ca-2308-story.html |access-date= 2010-10-28 |first= Kenneth |last= Turan |archive-date= 2012-11-03 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121103073250/http://articles.latimes.com/1991-05-24/entertainment/ca-2308_1_hudson-hawk |url-status= live }}</ref>|}}

[[Roger Ebert]] and [[Gene Siskel]] gave the film a "two thumbs down" review on their ''At the Movies'' TV show. Ebert described the film as a complete disaster: "every line starts from zero and gets nowhere". Siskel's review was marginally more positive, saying that Willis had a few funny moments and furthermore that the film might have been salvaged if Willis and Aiello had been the only zany characters against a cast of [[Straight man|straight men]], as opposed to a cast full of [[overacting]], where everyone tried too hard to make each line funny.<ref>{{cite AV media | url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nq0r-t-xljM | title = Siskel and Ebert review Hudson Hawk | via = [[YouTube]] }}</ref>

''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' called the film "a relentlessly annoying clay duck that crash-lands in a sea of wretched excess and silliness. Those willing to check their brains at the door may find sparse amusement."<ref>{{cite web |url= https://variety.com/1990/film/reviews/hudson-hawk-1200428876/ |title= Hudson Hawk |website= Variety.com |date= December 31, 1990 |access-date= December 11, 2017 |archive-date= August 9, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170809042234/http://variety.com/1990/film/reviews/hudson-hawk-1200428876/ |url-status= live }}</ref> [[Peter Travers]] of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' said of the film: "A movie this unspeakably awful can make an audience a little crazy. You want to throw things, yell at the actors, beg them to stop."<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/5948221/review/5948222/hudson_hawk |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |title=Hudson Hawk |first=Peter |last=Travers |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080616083946/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/5948221/review/5948222/hudson_hawk |archive-date=June 16, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> James Brundage of ''AMC filmcritic'' said the film was "so implausible and so over the top that it lets inconsistency roll off like water on a duck's back."<ref>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071106060928/http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/Hudson-Hawk |archive-date=November 6, 2007 |url=http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/Hudson-Hawk |website=Filmcritic |title=Hudson Hawk |first=James |last=Brundage |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Janet Maslin]] in the ''[[New York Times]]'' called the film "a colossally sour and ill-conceived misfire" and denounced the film for "smirky, mean-spirited cynicism."<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9D0CE2DD173BF937A15756C0A967958260 |title= Review/Film Bruce Willis as a Hip Cat Burglar |first= Janet |last= Maslin |author-link=Janet Masking |newspaper= [[The New York Times]] |date= May 24, 1991 |access-date= August 30, 2016 |archive-date= September 13, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160913222440/http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9D0CE2DD173BF937A15756C0A967958260 |url-status= live }}</ref> Writing in ''[[The Washington Post]]'', Joe Brown said: "To say this megamillion Bruce Willis vehicle doesn't fly is understatement in the extreme... ''Hudson Hawk'' offers a klutzy, charmless hero, and wallows dully in limp slapstick and lowest common denominator crudeness."<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/hudsonhawkrbrown_a0adc7.htm |title= Hudson Hawk |first= Joe |last= Brown |newspaper= Washington Post |date= May 24, 1991 |access-date= August 30, 2016 |archive-date= March 4, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160304035613/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/hudsonhawkrbrown_a0adc7.htm |url-status= live }}</ref> Chris Hicks wrote in the ''[[Salt Lake City]] [[Deseret News]]'': "What is most amazing is the pervasive silliness that has the cast acting like fools without ever getting a laugh from the audience. It's hard to imagine a major, big-budget movie that could come along this year and be worse than ''Hudson Hawk'', a solid contender for the longest 95 minutes in movie history.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700000828/Hudson-Hawk.html |title= Film review: Hudson Hawk |first= Chris |last= Hicks |newspaper= [[Deseret News]] |date= May 27, 1991 |access-date= August 30, 2016 |archive-date= October 7, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161007092204/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700000828/Hudson-Hawk.html |url-status= dead }}</ref> [[Owen Gleiberman]] in ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' called the film "a fiasco sealed with a smirk."<ref>{{cite magazine |url= http://www.ew.com/article/1991/05/31/hudson-hawk |title= Hudson Hawk |magazine= Entertainment Weekly |date= May 31, 1991 |access-date= August 30, 2016 |archive-date= June 6, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160606010703/http://www.ew.com/article/1991/05/31/hudson-hawk |url-status= live }}</ref>

Jo Berry from ''[[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]]'' gave it three out of five stars, noting that it "reached UK screens with the added burden of having been slaughtered by US critics who likened it to famous big budget turkeys like ''[[Raise The Titanic (film)|Raise The Titanic]]'' and ''[[Ishtar (film)|Ishtar]]''. True, the film has its flaws, but the positives do outweigh the negatives, with Bruce Willis at his wisecracking best in the title role."<ref>{{cite magazine |url= https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/hudson-hawk-review/ |title= Hudson Hawk Review |magazine= [[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]] |date= July 1991 |access-date= January 1, 2020 |archive-date= January 12, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200112121720/https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/hudson-hawk-review/ |url-status= live }}</ref>

Jane Lamacraft reassessed the film as one of the "Forgotten Pleasures of the Multiplex" for ''[[Sight & Sound]]'''s June 2011 magazine.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}

===Box office===
The film performed poorly in the United States, partly because the film was intended as an absurd comedy, yet was marketed as an action film one year after the success of ''[[Die Hard 2]]''.<ref>{{cite news|title=No Blockbusters Among This Crop of Memorial Day Movies|newspaper=[[The Los Angeles Times]]|date=May 28, 1991|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-05-28-ca-2601-story.html|access-date=December 20, 2010|first=David J.|last=Fox|archive-date=November 4, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104104534/http://articles.latimes.com/1991-05-28/entertainment/ca-2601_1_memorial-day|url-status=live}}</ref> It grossed only $17 million in the United States and Canada.<ref name="boxofficemojo.com">{{cite web|work=[[Box Office Mojo]]|title=Hudson Hawk |url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=hudsonhawk.htm |access-date=August 3, 2009|archive-date=June 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090630143400/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=hudsonhawk.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Internationally, it performed much better, grossing $80 million<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Daily Variety]]|page=2|date=October 24, 1991|last=Archerd|first=Army|author-link=Army Archerd|title=Just For Variety}}</ref> for a worldwide total of $97 million. By the end of its theatrical run, the film had lost the studio an estimated $90 million.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://theguardian.com/film/2021/may/14/hudson-hawk-bruce-willis-hear-me-out |title=Hear me out: why Hudson Hawk isn't a bad movie &#124; Movies |work=The Guardian |date=May 14, 2021 |access-date=2022-05-16}}</ref>

The film performed well on home video<ref name=video/> and by 1995 started to pay out to profit participants, including Bruce Willis.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Daily Variety]]|page=2|date=October 19, 1995|last=Archerd|first=Army|author-link=Army Archerd|title=Just For Variety}}</ref>

===Accolades===
It received three [[1991 Golden Raspberry Awards]] for [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director|Director]] (Lehmann), [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay|Screenplay]] and [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture|Picture]] with additional nominations for [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor|Actor]] (Willis), [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actor|Supporting Actor]] (Grant), and [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress|Supporting Actress]] (Bernhard). It was also nominated for Worst Picture at the 1991 [[Stinkers Bad Movie Awards]], losing to ''[[Nothing but Trouble (1991 film)|Nothing but Trouble]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Past Winners Database |url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1991/1991st.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070106124822/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1991/1991st.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 6, 2007 |website=The Envelope at LA Times |access-date=September 25, 2019}}</ref>

==Home media==
The film was released on [[VHS]] and [[LaserDisc]] in late 1991. Upon its home video release, the tagline "Catch the Excitement, Catch the Adventure, Catch the Hawk" was changed to "Catch the Adventure, Catch The Laughter, Catch the Hawk".<ref>{{cite news|title='Backdraft' Burns 'Hawk's' Wings at the Box Office|work=[[The Los Angeles Times]]|date=May 29, 1991|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-05-29-ca-2570-story.html|access-date=October 3, 2010|first=David J.|last=Fox|archive-date=November 2, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102183603/http://articles.latimes.com/1991-05-29/entertainment/ca-2570_1_box-office|url-status=live}}</ref> Despite the film's failure at the US box office, the film was successful on home video.<ref name=video>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=January 6, 1992|page=5|title='Terminator 2' Takes Ring In $200 Million Year|last=Putzer|first=Gerald}}</ref>

It was released twice on [[DVD]], first in 1999 and again in 2007 with new extras. In 2013, Mill Creek Entertainment released ''Hudson Hawk'' on [[Blu-ray]] for the first time; it was included in a set with ''[[Hollywood Homicide]]''. All extras were dropped for the latter release.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.millcreekent.com/hollywood-homicide-hudson-hawk-bd-double-feature.html| title= Double Feature - Blu-ray: Hollywood Homicide, Hudson Hawk| website= millcreekent.com| publisher= Mill Creek Entertainment| access-date= August 8, 2017| archive-date= July 14, 2017| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170714102235/http://www.millcreekent.com/hollywood-homicide-hudson-hawk-bd-double-feature.html| url-status= live}}</ref>

==Video game==
A video game based on the film was released in 1991 under the title ''[[Hudson Hawk (video game)|Hudson Hawk]]'' for various home computers and game consoles. [[Sony Imagesoft]] released versions of the game for the [[Nintendo Entertainment System|NES]] and [[Game Boy]], while [[Ocean Software]] released it for the [[Commodore 64]], [[Amiga]], [[ZX Spectrum]], [[Amstrad CPC]], and [[Atari ST]]. It is a side-scrolling game where the player, as the Hawk, must steal the [[Sforza]] and the [[Codex]] from the auction house and the Vatican, respectively. Then, Castle Da Vinci has to be infiltrated in order to steal the mirrored crystal needed to power the gold machine. On his journey, Hawk must face many oddball adversaries, including dachshunds that try to throw him off the roof of the auction house, janitors, photographers, killer nuns and a tennis player (presumably Darwin Mayflower).

==See also==
* [[Cultural references to Leonardo da Vinci]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0102070}}

{{S-start}} {{S-ach|aw}}
{{Succession box
| title=[[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture|Razzie Award for Worst Picture]]
| years=[[12th Golden Raspberry Awards]]
| before=''[[Ghosts Can't Do It]]'' and ''[[The Adventures of Ford Fairlane]]''
| after=''[[Shining Through]]''
}}
{{s-end}}

{{Michael Lehmann}}
{{Steven E. de Souza}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for ''Hudson Hawk''
|list =
{{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture}}
{{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director}}
{{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay}}
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hudson Hawk}}
[[Category:1991 films]]
[[Category:1991 action comedy films]]
[[Category:1991 crime comedy films]]
[[Category:American action comedy films]]
[[Category:American crime comedy films]]
[[Category:American heist films]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Michael Lehmann]]
[[Category:Films produced by Joel Silver]]
[[Category:Films set in Italy]]
[[Category:Films shot in Budapest]]
[[Category:Films shot in Hungary]]
[[Category:Silver Pictures films]]
[[Category:Films about the Central Intelligence Agency]]
[[Category:TriStar Pictures films]]
[[Category:Films set in Vatican City]]
[[Category:Films scored by Michael Kamen]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Steven E. de Souza]]
[[Category:Golden Raspberry Award–winning films]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Daniel Waters (screenwriter)]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:English-language crime comedy films]]
[[Category:English-language action comedy films]]