It's a comedy classic.
A Fish Called Wanda (1988)
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Reviews Counted:45
Fresh:43
Rotten:2
Average Rating:8.1/10
Runtime: 1 hr 52 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: In A FISH CALLED WANDA, veteran director Charles Crichton and scriptwriter-star John Cleese create a dazzling quilt from various strands of English and American comedy. The plot, in which four... In A FISH CALLED WANDA, veteran director Charles Crichton and scriptwriter-star John Cleese create a dazzling quilt from various strands of English and American comedy. The plot, in which four disparate characters attempt a daring heist, comes from Ealing caper comedies, such as Crichton's own THE LAVENDER HILL MOB. Cleese and Michael Palin, as the hit man with a stutter and a love of animals, come from the anarchic tradition of Monty Python. The movie pays savage tribute to another Ealing comedy, THE LADYKILLERS, as Palin attempts to kill a witness to the gang's getaway. The glamorous con woman (Jamie Lee Curtis) is from Preston Sturges's great comedy THE LADY EVE, while Kevin Kline provides his own unique feverish comic intensity. But, in the midst of this breathless comedy, something else happens. The barrister, Archie Leach (Cleese), who is defending one of the gang, is jolted out of his tight-laced British existence by Curtis's life force. And Curtis--like Barbara Stanwyck in THE LADY EVE--falls into her own trap: falling in love with the man she's conning. The 78-year-old Crichton never before had such rich material. He times everything in this brilliant comedy with the precision of a Swiss watch. [More]
Starring: John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, Michael Palin
Starring: John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, Michael Palin, Tom Georgeson, Maria Aitken
Director: Charles Crichton
Director: Charles Crichton
Screenwriter: John Cleese, Charles Crichton
Producer: Michael Shamberg
Composer: John Du Prez
Reviews for A Fish Called Wanda
There's nothing deep, nothing ground-breaking, but it's a never-dull, tightly scripted yarn with some very funny gags.
Mixing acerbic Pythonesque humour with a sweet rom-com touch and wonderful comic performances, this may be the finest hour for any former Python.
Wanda defies gravity, in both senses of the word, and redefines a great comic tradition.
Although filled with clever twists and double-crosses, the film's storyline is less important than the opportunities it gives the actors to exploit their goofy characterizations.
Like many of the best English comedies, much of the humor here is based on character, good-natured high spirits, and fairly uninhibited vulgarity.
Though it is less tasteless, irreverent and satirical than the Python pics, film still is wacky and occasionally outrageous in its own, distinctly British way.
No pun intended, but all the stars aligned for this film. It was the perfect blend of British and American humor.
it's the right time to watch A Fish Called Wanda, so it can finally get the quotable legacy it so richly deserves
It's the humor, the quick pace of the film and the hilarious performance put forth by Kline that ultimately carries this thing, with its tight ending making it all that much better.
A surprisingly stylish comedy from 1988 -- an era not known for stylish comedies.
Latest News for A Fish Called Wanda
January 19, 2009:
John Cleese Preps Fish Called Wanda Musical ![]()
He's talked about doing it before, but it appears that John Cleese has finally gotten around to working on a stage musical adaptation of "A Fish Called Wanda." More...
October 01, 2008:
EW Looks Back on 30 Unforgettable Nude Scenes ![]()
The MPAA doesn't like it, but America has never been able to get enough of naked people on the big screen -- and Entertainment Weekly has honored our fondness for flesh with a... More...
June 17, 2008:
A Fish Called Wanda: The Musical? ![]()
John Cleese has announced plans to put together a musical version of his classic film A Fish Called Wanda. More...
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