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A Fish Called Wanda Details

1988 Certificate 15
  • Rated:
  • 70
  • from 21,100 members

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 .. Read more

Starring John Cleese, Michael Palin, Kevin Kline, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director Charles Crichton
Genres Comedy

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A Fish Called Wanda

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.

Starring John Cleese, Michael Palin, Kevin Kline, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director Charles Crichton
Studio MGM ENTERTAINMENT
Run time DVD: 1 hr 43 mins
Certificate Certificate 15
Collections 100 Rom-Coms
Genres Comedy
Language DVD: English
Dubbed German
Hearing-impaired English, German
Subtitles DVD: Croatian, Danish, English, Finnish, German, Greek, Hungarian, Norwegian, Swedish, Turkish
Released DVD: 10 Feb 2003
Production year: 1988
Format DVD

A Fish Called Wanda (1988)

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  • Critics' reviews (3) of A Fish Called Wanda

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  • 5 stars out of 5

    Audiences around the world were not alone in appreciating this sparkling British-set comedy, as stars John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline and Michael Palin so enjoyed the experience that they went on to make a second feature together, the sadly disappointing Fierce Creatures. The comic credentials are impeccable, for not only were Cleese and Palin Monty Python colleagues, but director Charles Crichton was also responsible for those Ealing classics Hue and Cry, The Lavender Hill Mob and The Titfield Thunderbolt. The American pair more than play their part, however, with Kline wonderfully manic as the unhinged Otto and winning a best supporting actor Oscar in the process. The film even had the unlikely effect of making Cleese something of a sex symbol. A real belter.

    • Radio Times
    • Posted 29 Jan 2006
  • 2 stars out of 4

    Deft, blackish comedy with a little romance thrown in; its humour relied too much on Cleese's familiar, if expert, performance as an overbearing, uptight buffoon.

    • Halliwell's Film Guide
    • Posted 02 Mar 2006

  • Most helpful member's review of A Fish Called Wanda

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  • 10 out of 11 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    An 80s classic

    A bit dated, but do watch this, as it's a great ensemble cast that will really make you laugh. Don't bother with the 'sequel', Fierce Creatures, though.

      • A customer from Notting Hill, London
      • Posted 17 Sep 2003 03:25

  • Most recent members' review of A Fish Called Wanda

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  • 1 out of 1 person found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    comedy genius

    highly amusing, fantastic story, good selection of films finest, A must see film

      • lady galadriel from Devon, England
      • Posted 02 Jan 2006 12:04

  • News and features

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    Time Bandits - BLU-RAY Version

    Palin turned down move to Hollywood

    • 27 Nov 2009

    Monty Python star Michael Palin refused to take his career to Hollywood - because he prefers the comfort of his British home. The actor starred in a string of successful films in the 1980s, but declined offers to move to Tinseltown as he was put off by the hectic lifestyle. And he feared the only movie parts available to him in Los Angeles would be stereotypical English roles. He says, "I'm not sure that failure's quite the right word. What happened was that, all these films that I made, like... Read more

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Rating breakdown

21,100 Member ratings
  • 100
1,845
  • 90
2,094
  • 80
4,403
  • 70
4,360
  • 60
3,952
  • 50
2,134
  • 40
1,157
  • 30
604
  • 20
360
  • 10
191

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      • 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 ...