A Fish Called Wanda (1988)

In London, four very different people team up to commit armed robbery, then try to doublecross each other for the loot.

Director:

Charles Crichton

Writers:

John Cleese (story), Charles Crichton (story),

Stars:

John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline

Won 1 Oscar. Another 8 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Cleese	...	Archie Leach
Jamie Lee Curtis	...	Wanda Gershwitz
Kevin Kline	...	Otto
Michael Palin	...	Ken Pile
Maria Aitken	...	Wendy
Tom Georgeson	...	Georges Thomason
Patricia Hayes	...	Mrs. Coady
Geoffrey Palmer	...	Judge
Cynthia Cleese	...	Portia (as Cynthia Caylor)
Mark Elwes	...	Customer in Jeweler's Shop
Neville Phillips	...	Manager of Jeweler's Shop
Peter Jonfield	...	Inspector Marvin
Ken Campbell	...	Bartlett
Al Ashton	...	Warder
Roger Hume	...	Locksmith

Storyline

Sexy American diamonds lover Wanda and her boyfriend Otto are in England to plot alongside George and Ken the robbery of a diamond collection. Wanda and Otto want the stolen diamonds for themselves, and inform the police about George not knowing that he has already moved the diamonds to another secret place. Wanda thinks the best way to find out is by getting close to George's lawyer - Archie Leach.

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Plot Keywords:

barrister | stuttering | lawyer | fish tank | dog | 

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Taglines:

A tale of murder, lust, greed, revenge, and seafood.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Italian Russian

Release Date:

15 July 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Los enredos de Wanda

Filming Locations:

Roehampton Church School, Wandsworth, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$7,500,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$63,493,712 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Prominent Features, Star Partners Limited Partnership

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Cleese chose the name Archie Leach, Cary Grant's real name, because he was born 20 miles away from where Grant was born (Hughenden Road, Horfield, Bristol), and because it was the closest Cleese could get to being Grant.

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Goofs

The flat that Archie borrows has an E1 postal address, putting it on the north side of the Thames, but has a view of Tower Bridge from the south side.

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Quotes

Wendy: Your father has finally gone completely mental!

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Crazy Credits

At the very end of the closing credits is the word FIN -- which is how French films say THE END, but in English a "fin" is a part of a fish.

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Connections

Referenced in The Unbelievable Truth (1989)

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Soundtracks

"Nel blu, dipinto di blu"
Written by Franco Migliacci and Domenico Modugno
Performed by Domenico Modugno

User Reviews

Excellent Film! Very Funny!

A Fish Called Wanda is my favourite movie of all time and always will be. John Cleese has written this masterpiece very cleverly, his best best writing piece since Fawlty Towers. Kevin Kline, who won an Oscar for his role in the film, is excellent as the looppy, arm pit sniffing Otto, and is my favourite in the film. Michael Palin is also brilliant as the stuttering Ken. John Cleese, in a role rather different to Basil Fawlty and his Monty Python characters, plays the lawyer Archie Leach fantastically. But the movie is all around Jamie Lee Curtis' Wanda, who is an American thief, after diamonds that she, Otto, Ken and George (Tom Georgeson) stole. In order to get the diamonds, Wanda has a fling with just about everybody. The movie will leave you in suspense wondering who will get the diamonds. Along the way, there are plenty of funny lines and gags, especially from Kline. A top movie. Watch A Fish Called Wanda, don't skip it. A++++