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      Permanent Midnight

      R Released Sep 12, 1998 1 hr. 25 min. Drama List
      59% 54 Reviews Tomatometer 54% 5,000+ Ratings Audience Score As television writer Jerry Stahl (Ben Stiller) becomes more successful, his heroin habit grows worse. Already using when he comes to Los Angeles, Stahl finds his problems intensify when he moves in with his friend Nicky (Owen Wilson), also an addict. Eventually, Stahl marries producer Sandra (Elizabeth Hurley) to help her get a green card, and she gets him jobs on top television shows. However, more and more, he is unable to separate his addiction from his working life. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Oct 04 Buy Now

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      Critics Consensus

      Aimless storytelling undermines the gripping, unsettling subject of this film.

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      Audience Reviews

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      Steve D Stiller and the script are great. The story is just too dark for me. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 11/20/23 Full Review Audience Member I'm surprised the ratings aren't good. Maybe because it's Ben Stiller and everyone's expecting a comedy. This remimds me of a California version of Bright Lights Big City. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/24/21 Full Review Audience Member Stiller is stellar, and Wilson has never been better, in this compelling character study about the intermingling of entertainment and addiction. Much too simple to really stick to the ribs, but nonetheless an undeniable piece of convincing anti-drug propaganda. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/24/23 Full Review Audience Member Not so much a comedy for Ben Stiller on this one. Sad. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review adam b A pretty gripping and disturbing turn for Ben Stiller and damn, the story is weird but I accepted it for what it was and throughly enjoyed it Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Jerry Stahl is a comedy writer who wrote ALF and Moonlighting and this heroin addiction drama, based on his own memoirs, chronicles the destruction he wrecks on his body and his life with trite bleakness and tiresome monologue from Ben Stiller. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Permanent Midnight

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      Critics Reviews

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      Globe and Mail Rated: 3/4 Jul 12, 2002 Full Review Marjorie Baumgarten Austin Chronicle Rated: 3.5/5 Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times The movie gets credit for not making the high life seem colorful or funny. Rated: 3/4 Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Eddie Harrison film-authority.com …while a little woolly in trems of narrative, Permanent Midnight does a persuasive job of depicting the high personal cost of addiction…’ Rated: 3/5 Jul 9, 2023 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Stiller's forceful performance does his character a solid. Rated: C+ Mar 6, 2017 Full Review Joe Leydon The Moving Picture Show Stiller's fearless performance makes it painfully and graphically clear that being a junkie is an exhausting full-time job. Jul 19, 2014 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis As television writer Jerry Stahl (Ben Stiller) becomes more successful, his heroin habit grows worse. Already using when he comes to Los Angeles, Stahl finds his problems intensify when he moves in with his friend Nicky (Owen Wilson), also an addict. Eventually, Stahl marries producer Sandra (Elizabeth Hurley) to help her get a green card, and she gets him jobs on top television shows. However, more and more, he is unable to separate his addiction from his working life.
      Director
      David Veloz
      Executive Producer
      Yalda Tehranian
      Screenwriter
      Jerry Stahl, David Veloz
      Distributor
      Paramount Pictures
      Production Co
      Artisan Entertainment
      Rating
      R
      Genre
      Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Sep 12, 1998, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Jan 1, 2009
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $1.2M
      Sound Mix
      Surround, SDDS, Dolby Digital
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