Editing Martin Brest

{{Short description|American film director}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Martin Brest
| image              = 
| caption            = 
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|1951|8|8}}
| birth_place        = [[The Bronx]], [[New York state|New York]], U.S.
| occupation         = {{Hlist|Film director|producer|screenwriter}}
| notable_works      = ''[[Beverly Hills Cop]]''<br />''[[Midnight Run]]''<br />''[[Scent of a Woman (1992 film)|Scent of a Woman]]''<br />''[[Meet Joe Black]]''<br />''[[Going in Style]]''<br /> ''[[Hot Dogs for Gauguin]]''<br /> ''[[Gigli]]''
| education          = [[New York University]] ([[Bachelor of Fine Arts|BFA]])<br />[[AFI Conservatory|American Film Institute]] ([[Master of Fine Arts|MFA]])
| years_active       = 1972–2003
| children           = 
}}

'''Martin Brest''' (born August 8, 1951) is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. After his feature debut, ''[[Going in Style]]'' (1979), he directed the action comedies ''[[Beverly Hills Cop]]'' (1984) and ''[[Midnight Run]]'' (1988), which were critical and commercial hits. He then directed ''[[Scent of a Woman (1992 film)|Scent of a Woman]]'' (1992), starring [[Al Pacino]], who won the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] for his performance, and earned Brest nominations for [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]] and [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]].

He followed it with ''[[Meet Joe Black]]'' (1998), which received mixed reviews. Brest's next film was ''[[Gigli]]'' (2003). After disagreements between Brest and [[Revolution Studios]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gilchrist |first=Todd |date=2023-07-18 |title=Director Martin Brest Revisits the Triumphs of 'Beverly Hills Cop' and 'Midnight Run,' and Reflects On His Post-'Gigli' Hollywood Exile (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2023/film/features/martin-brest-director-beverly-hills-cop-gigli-1235672428/ |access-date=2024-02-09 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref> creative control was taken from him, resulting in a radically re-written and re-shot version of the original film being released,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-12-22 |title=Martin Brest Directed Beverly Hills Cop, Midnight Run and, Yes, Gigli. Then He Vanished. Why? {{!}} Playboy |url=http://www.playboy.com/articles/what-happened-to-director-martin-brest |access-date=2024-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222232939/http://www.playboy.com/articles/what-happened-to-director-martin-brest |archive-date=December 22, 2014 }}</ref> which became his first and only unprofitable film<ref>{{Cite web |title=Martin Brest - All His Movies Ranked |url=https://www.deathbyfilms.com/film_directors/martin-brest-all-his-movies-ranked/ |access-date=2024-02-09 |website=Death By Films |language=en-GB}}</ref> and, in fact, a [[List of biggest box-office bombs|major box-office bomb]] and was widely panned. It remains his last film to date.

==Early life and education==
Brest was born to Eastern European Jewish immigrant parents in a working-class neighborhood in [[the Bronx]] in 1951.<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/martin_brest|title = Martin Brest|website = [[Rotten Tomatoes]]|accessdate = April 5, 2023|publisher = [[Fandango Media]]}}</ref><ref name = Coleman>{{cite web|url = https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/21952%7C0/Martin-Brest/#biography|title = Martin Brest|work = [[Turner Classic Movies]]|last = Coleman|first = Bryce|accessdate = April 5, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=December 5, 1984 |title=Marty Brest, Clicking |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1984/12/06/marty-brest-clicking/41aa6805-a13e-445f-b72e-5974dc41e5cc/ |access-date=2024-06-10 |work=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> He was influenced by watching ''[[The Honeymooners]]'' as a child, saying in a 2023 interview, "I was a kid watching it in a household that was economically not that different than in the show. I felt like it was a show made for my neighborhood. And that character of [[Ralph Kramden]] really touched me, that angry soul whose spirit blossoms".<ref name = Gilchrist>{{cite news|url = https://variety.com/2023/film/features/martin-brest-director-beverly-hills-cop-gigli-1235672428/|title = Director Martin Brest Revisits the Triumphs of 'Beverly Hills Cop' and 'Midnight Run,' and Reflects On His Post-'Gigli' Hollywood Exile|work = [[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|last = Gilchrist|first = Todd|date = July 18, 2023|accessdate = July 18, 2023}}</ref> 

Brest graduated from [[Stuyvesant High School]] in 1969 and from New York University's [[New York University School of the Arts|School of the Arts]] in 1973.<ref name="Coleman" /> His New York University undergraduate student film,  ''[[Hot Dogs for Gauguin]]'' (1972), starring a then unknown [[Danny DeVito]] and with a small part by then unknown [[Rhea Perlman]], was one of 25 films chosen in 2009 by the [[National Film Registry]] of the Library of Congress to "be preserved as cultural, artistic and/or historical treasures"<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2009/09-250.html|title=Michael Jackson, the Muppets and Early Cinema Tapped for Preservation in 2009 Library of Congress National Film Registry|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|date=December 30, 2009}}</ref> and is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. Brest attended the [[AFI Conservatory]], where he graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in 1977.<ref name="Coleman" />

==Career==
Brest's major studio debut was ''[[Going in Style]]'' (1979), which starred [[George Burns]], [[Art Carney]], and [[Lee Strasberg]].<ref name="Canby">{{cite news |last1=Canby |first1=Vincent |author-link1=Vincent Canby |title=Movie: 3 Widowers Try 'Going in Style' |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/12/25/archives/movie-3-widowers-try-going-in-style.html |access-date=October 8, 2018 |date=December 25, 1979 |language=en}}</ref> Brest was then hired to direct ''[[WarGames]]'' (1983), which starred [[Matthew Broderick]], but he was fired three weeks into production amid conflicts with the film's executive producer, and replaced with [[John Badham]].<ref name = Gilchrist/><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2008/07/ff-wargames/|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]|author=Brown, Scott|date=July 21, 2008|title=WarGames: A Look Back at the Film That Turned Geeks and Phreaks Into Stars}}</ref>

The dismissal from ''WarGames'' left Brest highly pessimistic about his career, until he was recruited by [[Don Simpson]] and [[Jerry Bruckheimer]] to direct ''[[Beverly Hills Cop]]'' (1984), starring [[Eddie Murphy]].<ref name = Gilchrist/><ref>{{cite web|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/beverly-hills-cop-1984-review-952752|title='Beverly Hills Cop': THR's 1984 Review|date=December 5, 2016|author=THR Staff}}</ref> The film grossed over $300 million worldwide<ref>{{cite web|publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]]|title=Beverly Hills Cop|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=beverlyhillscop.htm}}</ref> and received Golden Globe nominations for Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) and for Best Actor (Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, Eddie Murphy), as well as an [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] nomination for [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]]. In 2024 it became the second of Brest's films to be chosen by the [[National Film Registry]] of the Library of Congress to "be preserved as cultural, artistic and/or historical treasures."<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=The Washington Post - Breaking news and latest headlines, U.S. news, world news, and video |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=The Washington Post |language=en}}</ref>

Brest was then in pre-production for ''[[Rain Man]]'' (1988), when he cast [[Tom Cruise]] for the role opposite [[Dustin Hoffman]], before [[Barry Levinson]] eventually directed the film.<ref>{{cite web|last=Breihan|first=Tom|title=Rain Man's movie-star chemistry holds up better than its depiction of autism|website=[[The A.V. Club]] |date=June 12, 2020|url=https://www.avclub.com/rain-man-s-movie-star-chemistry-holds-up-better-than-it-1843905089/amp|accessdate=June 19, 2022}}</ref>

Brest's next film was the action-comedy ''[[Midnight Run]]'' (1988), starring [[Robert De Niro]] and [[Charles Grodin]].<ref>{{cite web|work=[[The New York Times]]|title=REVIEW/FILM; DE NIRO AND GRODIN IN CROSS-COUNTRY CHASE|author-link=Vincent Canby|author=Canby, Vincent|date=July 20, 1988|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/20/movies/review-film-de-niro-and-grodin-in-cross-country-chase.html}}</ref> The film was another critical and commercial success, earning Brest another [[Golden Globe Award]] nomination for [[Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy|Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy]] as well as a Best Actor Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy nomination for De Niro.

His work on ''[[Scent of a Woman (1992 film)|Scent of a Woman]]'' (1992) earned him a [[Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama]]. The film also won Golden Globes for [[Al Pacino]] and screenwriter [[Bo Goldman]], as well as a Best Supporting Actor nomination for [[Chris O'Donnell]]. In addition, the film received four Academy Award nominations: [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]], [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]], [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Screenplay (Adapted)]], with Al Pacino winning [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]].<ref name=THR>{{cite web|work=The Hollywood Reporter|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/scent-a-woman-1059207|title=The Cast of 'Scent of a Woman,' Then and Now|date=December 23, 2017|last=Idasetima|first=Courtney}}</ref>

Brest's next film, ''[[Meet Joe Black]]'' (1998), starring [[Brad Pitt]] and [[Anthony Hopkins]], was a loose remake of 1934's ''[[Death Takes a Holiday]]''.<ref name=NYT>{{cite web|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/11/13/movies/film-review-when-death-comes-to-call-serve-peanut-butter.html|title=FILM REVIEW; When Death Comes to Call, Serve Peanut Butter|author-link=Janet Maslin|last=Maslin|first=Janet|date=November 13, 1998}}</ref> The film had an American box-office return of $44.6 million, taking in an additional $98.3 million overseas for a worldwide total of $142.9 million.<ref name=B>{{cite web|publisher=Box Office Mojo|title=Meet Joe Black|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=meetjoeblack.htm}}</ref>

Brest wrote and directed ''[[Gigli]]'' (2003), starring [[Ben Affleck]] and [[Jennifer Lopez]].<ref name=PB>{{cite web|work=[[Playboy]]|url=http://www.playboy.com/articles/what-happened-to-director-martin-brest|title=MARTIN BREST DIRECTED BEVERLY HILLS COP, MIDNIGHT RUN AND, YES, GIGLI. THEN HE VANISHED. WHY?|last=Patches|first=Matt|date=December 19, 2014|archive-date=December 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222232939/http://www.playboy.com/articles/what-happened-to-director-martin-brest}}</ref> During filming, production company [[Revolution Studios]] took creative control from him, resulting in a radically re-written and re-shot version of the original film being released.<ref name = PB/> That version became one of the more notorious films of its time, being widely panned by critics. A 2014 article in ''Playboy'' observed that in the then-eleven years since ''Gigli''{{'}}s release, Brest "went Full [[J. D. Salinger|Salinger]]", appearing to have left the entertainment industry completely, without any further credits or major public appearances to his name.<ref name = PB/> However, in 2021, he appeared as a featured guest at a screening of ''Beverly Hills Cop'' and ''Midnight Run'' in Los Angeles, where he was interviewed by fellow filmmaker [[Paul Thomas Anderson]].<ref>{{cite news|url = https://moveablefest.com/martin-brest-paul-thomas-anderson-midnight-run/|title = "Every Day Was Like, 'How Do We Pull This Off?'" Martin Brest on "Midnight Run"|date = July 26, 2021|accessdate = September 15, 2021|last = Saito|first = Stephen|work = Moveable Feast}}</ref> Two years later, he gave an interview to ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' in which he reflected:
{{blockquote|Once [''Gigli''] happened, I thought I'll never be invited back [to make more films]. Second, I would never be able to operate with the kind of control that a director, I feel, needs and deserves. So that felt like a clear signal it was time for me to back away.

I had a good run, and I enjoyed success and freedom, and that was fantastic. I would've liked it to go on longer, but everybody likes everything to go on longer.<ref name = Gilchrist/> }}

Brest has received the American Film Institute's [[Franklin J. Schaffner Achievement Award]], which "celebrates the recipient's extraordinary creative talents and artistic achievements."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://conservatory.afi.com/franklin-j-schaffner-award/ | title=Franklin J. Schaffner Award }}</ref>

His essays about art and artists have appeared in various books.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wendy M. ; Siedell Daniel A. Brest |first=Martin; Blazier |title=An Unfinished Conversation: Collecting Entique Martinez Celaya |date=2009-01-01 |publisher=Boca Raton Museum of Art |isbn=978-0-936859-80-4 |language=English}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Tom Chamberlain: Regardless |url=https://drawingroom.org.uk/product/tom-chamberlain-regardless/ |access-date=2024-02-09 |website=Drawing Room |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Text Book Tamy BenTor Miki Carmi |url=https://www.spdbooks.org/Products/9781735230924/text-book-tamy-bentor--miki-carmi.aspx |access-date=2024-02-09 |website=www.spdbooks.org}}</ref>

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
!width=65| Director
!width=65| Producer
!width=65| Writer
!Editor
! Notes
|-
| 1972
| ''[[Hot Dogs for Gauguin]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| NYU student film
|-
| 1977
| ''[[Hot Tomorrows]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| AFI student film
|-
| 1979
| ''[[Going in Style]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
|1983
|''[[WarGames]]''
| {{partial|Uncredited}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|Replaced by [[John Badham]]<ref name="Gilchrist" />
|-
| 1984
| ''[[Beverly Hills Cop]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| 1988
| ''[[Midnight Run]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| 1992
| ''[[Scent of a Woman (1992 film)|Scent of a Woman]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| 1993
| ''[[Josh and S.A.M.]]''
| {{no}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| 1998
| ''[[Meet Joe Black]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
| 2003
| ''[[Gigli]]''
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{no}}
|
|-
|}

'''Acting roles'''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
| 1972
| ''[[Hot Dogs for Gauguin]]''
| Man on Ferry
|
|-
| 1982
| ''[[Fast Times at Ridgemont High]]''
| Dr. Miller
|
|-
| 1984
| ''[[Beverly Hills Cop]]''
| "bathrobe" Hotel Clerk
| Uncredited
|-
| 1985
| ''[[Spies Like Us]]''
| Drive-In Security Guard
|
|-
| 1988
| ''[[Midnight Run]]''
| Airline Ticket Clerk
| Uncredited
|}

==Awards and nominations==
{| class="wikitable"
!Institution
!Year
!Category
!Work
!Result
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[Academy Awards]]
| rowspan="2" |[[65th Academy Awards|1993]]
|[[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]]
| rowspan="2" |''[[Scent of a Woman (1992 film)|Scent of a Woman]]''
|{{nom}}
|-
|[[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
|{{nom}}
|-
|[[American Film Institute]]
|1994
|[[Franklin J. Schaffner Achievement Award]]
|{{N/A}}
|{{won}}
|-
|[[Jupiter Award (film award)|Jupiter Awards]]
|1986
|Best International Film
|[[Beverly Hills Cop|''Beverly Hills Cop'']]
|{{nom}}
|-
|[[Producers Guild Film Awards]]
|1993
|[[Producers Guild of America Award for Best Theatrical Motion Picture|Best Theatrical Motion Picture]]
|''Scent of a Woman''
|{{nom}}
|-
|[[Valladolid International Film Festival]]
|1988
|Golden Spike
|[[Midnight Run|''Midnight Run'']]
|{{nom}}
|-
|[[Venice Film Festival]]
|[[37th Venice International Film Festival|1980]]
|[[Golden Lion]]
|[[Going in Style|''Going in Style'']]
|{{nom}}
|}
Two of Brest's films, ''Hot Dogs for Gauguin'' and ''Beverly Hills Cop'', have been entered into the [[National Film Registry]] of the [[U.S. Library of Congress]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0000976}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brest, Martin}}
[[Category:1951 births]]
[[Category:20th-century American male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century American screenwriters]]
[[Category:21st-century American screenwriters]]
[[Category:AFI Conservatory alumni]]
[[Category:American film editors]]
[[Category:American male film actors]]
[[Category:American comedy film directors]]
[[Category:Film directors from New York City]]
[[Category:Jewish American screenwriters]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Male actors from the Bronx]]
[[Category:Screenwriters from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Stuyvesant High School alumni]]
[[Category:Tisch School of the Arts alumni]]
[[Category:Writers from the Bronx]]