Aaron Sorkin (who reportedly did a re-write on the script). Beatty, long involved in politics since his first hero of Robert Kennedy, wanted to make a film that would strike the perceived notion that politics had become too absorbed in polls and fundraising while losing sight on the issues that matters most. Beatty styled his film in hip-hop and rap because of the "great comic contrast" that would come from it. Soundtrack The soundtrack was released on April 21, 1998, by Interscope Records. Critical reception The film generated a great deal of controversy and received a positive reception from film critics. On Rotten Tomatoes it has a 76% approval rating based on 67 reviews, with an average rating of 7.10/10. The site's consensus states: "Star and director Beatty's ambitious take on race and politics in 20th-century America isn't perfect, but manages to provide more than its share of thought-provoking laughs." On Metacritic it has a score of 75% based on reviews from 28 critics. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "C+" on scale of A to F. Writing in Time Out New York, Andrew Johnston observed: "More than anything else, Bulworth is descended from Preston Sturges's topical farces of the 1940s, which juxtaposed a deep belief in the promise of America with irreverent attacks on the hypocrisy of its institutions." Patricia J. Williams saw the film three times, saying: "[Beatty] knows power, if not the ghetto, and this movie is effective precisely because it takes on the issue of power... I kept going back because I am amazed by a movie this overtly left wing, fearless and eccentric." She added: "Bulworth isn't about race alone; more specifically, it's about racism's intersection with America's deep, and growing, class divide." The Washington Post rated the film 19th on a list of "The 34 best political movies ever made". Box office The Los Angeles Times commented that Bulworth did "extremely well" on a limited release. Despite this, the film ultimately grossed just $29,202,884 worldwide at the box office. Accolades Cultural legacy In 2013, The New York Times reported that President Barack Obama had, in private, "talked longingly of 'going Bulworth,'" in reference to the film. References External links 1998 comedy films 1998 films 20th Century Fox films American political comedy films American political satire films Films about elections Films about suicide Films about the media Films directed by Warren Beatty