The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989)

The wife of an oafish restaurant owner becomes bored with her husband and considers an affair with a regular patron.

Director:

Peter Greenaway

Writer:

Peter Greenaway

Stars:

Richard Bohringer, Michael Gambon, Helen Mirren

5 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Bohringer	...	Richard Borst
Michael Gambon	...	Albert Spica
Helen Mirren	...	Georgina Spica
Alan Howard	...	Michael
Tim Roth	...	Mitchel
Ciarán Hinds	...	Cory
Gary Olsen	...	Spangler
Ewan Stewart	...	Harris
Roger Ashton-Griffiths	...	Turpin
Ron Cook	...	Mews
Liz Smith	...	Grace
Emer Gillespie	...	Patricia
Janet Henfrey	...	Alice
Arnie Breeveld	...	Eden
Tony Alleff	...	Troy

Storyline

The wife of a barbaric crime boss engages in a secretive romance with a gentle bookseller between meals at her husband's restaurant. Food, colour coding, sex, murder, torture and cannibalism are the exotic fare in this beautifully filmed but brutally uncompromising modern fable which has been interpreted as an allegory for Thatcherism.

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Plot Keywords:

restaurant | food | sex | allegory | murder | 

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Taglines:

Lust...Murder...Dessert. Bon Appetit!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

NC-17

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

UK France

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 April 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Spica

Filming Locations:

Goldcrest Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Box Office

Gross:

$7,724,701 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Allarts Cook, Erato Films, Films Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min 98 min (R-rated)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The four title characters are named for the actors writer-director Peter Greenaway originally wanted to play them. Richard (The Cook) is for Richard Bohringer, the only one of Greenaway's original choices retained in the final film. Albert (The Thief) is named after Albert Finney, while Georgina (His Wife) is for Georgina Hale. Michael (The Lover) is named, interestingly enough, for Michael Gambon, whom Greenaway eventually re-cast as Albert.

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Quotes

Georgina: Try the cock, Albert. It's a delicacy, and you know where it's been.

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Connections

Referenced in 100 Greatest Sexy Moments (2003)

User Reviews

Color changes everything!

The "inside story" of this film is color. Most professional reviewers, with nation-wide media exposure, missed this underlying story element entirely, as did I, until half way through my first viewing. Once I realized the colors of the costumes changed, as the characters passed from room to room, I had to go back and see it again. That's how I got hooked.

During the next viewing, I took note of the creativity and effort that went into the design and construction of the costumes, several times, as each one had to be rendered in several colors. The next time through, I noticed how the color of each room related to the activity that normally took place there, even in the outdoor sequences. With the subsequent viewing, I concentrated on the soundtrack.

From that point on, my awareness of all these elements, served to enhance my appreciation of each character and his or her contribution to the story line. That's when the much talked about "gross-out" aspects of the film seemed to diminish in their ability to shock. In fact, by that point, they seemed to fit much more naturally, although the "NC-17" rating is absolutely appropriate.

This is a sumptuous feast for the eyes and ears of intelligent "adult" viewers. Not to be missed.