Peter's Friends (1992)

Director:

Kenneth Branagh

Writers:

Rita Rudner (written by) and
Martin Bergman (written by)

Release Date:

25 December 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Plot:

Six former college friends, with two new friends, gather for a New Years Eve weekend reunion at a large English countryside manor after ten years to reminisce about the good times now long gone.

Plot Keywords:

Friend | New Year | College | Countryside | Weekend

Awards:

4 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Hugh Laurie	...	Roger
Kenneth Branagh	...	Andrew
Stephen Fry	...	Peter Morton
Alphonsia Emmanuel	...	Sarah Johnson
Emma Thompson	...	Maggie Chester
Imelda Staunton	...	Mary Charleston
Richard Briers	...	Lord Morton
Phyllida Law	...	Vera
Alex Scott	...	Paul (age 7)
Edward Jewesbury	...	Mr. Gooch, Peter's Solicitor
Hetta Charnley	...	Carol's fan at Airport
Rita Rudner	...	Carol Benson
Bill Parfitt	...	Baby Ben Charleston
Ruby May Musto	...	Baby Ben Charleston
Ann Davies	...	Brenda
Magdalena Buznea	...	Old Lady
Tony Slattery	...	Brian
Alex Lowe	...	Paul (age 17)
Chris Pickles	...	The Benson's Chauffeur
Nicola Wright	...	Brian's Wife
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Yasser Arafat	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Leonid Brezhnev	...	Himself (archive footage) (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
George Bush	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Boy George	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Mikhail Gorbachev	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Rock Hudson	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Saddam Hussein	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Michael Jackson	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Ayatollah Khomeini	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
John Major	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Nelson Mandela	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Pope John Paul II	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Dan Quayle	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Ronald Reagan	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Salman Rushdie	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Sylvester Stallone	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Donald Trump	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)

Directed by
Kenneth Branagh

Writing credits
Rita Rudner		(written by) and
Martin Bergman		(written by)

Produced by
Martin Bergman	....	co-producer
Kenneth Branagh	....	producer
Stephen Evans	....	executive producer
David Parfitt	....	line producer

Cinematography by
Roger Lanser

Film Editing by
Andrew Marcus

Production Design by
Tim Harvey

Art Direction by
Martin Childs

Costume Design by
Susan Coates
Stephanie Collie

Makeup Department
Peter Frampton	....	makeup supervisor
Martin Samuel	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Mark Cooper	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Christopher Newman	....	first assistant director
Carl Oprey	....	third assistant director
Keith Young	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Brian Aldridge	....	property manager
Micky Bacon	....	property master
Celia Bobak	....	property master
Martin Kingsley	....	property manager
Alf Newvell	....	rigger
Terry Newvell	....	stagehand
Trevor Nicol	....	carpenter
Andy Soane	....	property chief
Brian Western	....	painter

Sound Department
Mark Auguste	....	sound editor
Orin Beaton	....	sound assistant
Gary Beckerman	....	jobfit sound trainee
Jeremy Child	....	assistant sound editor
David Crozier	....	production sound mixer
Martin Evans	....	sound editor
Dominic Lester	....	sound re-recording mixer
Bettina McCaul	....	assistant sound editor
Robin O'Donoghue	....	sound re-recording mixer
Andrew Sissons	....	sound maintenance
Tommy Goodwin	....	adr mixer (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Pete Hanson	....	studio manager: CFC (uncredited)
Mark Nelmes	....	digital artist (uncredited)
Janek Sirrs	....	digital artist (uncredited)
David Smith	....	optical cameraman (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Angela Conway	....	jobfit camera trainee
Clive Coote	....	still photographer
Kevin Edland	....	best boy
John Higgins	....	gaffer
Chris Mortley	....	electrician
Terry Mulligan	....	electrician
Toby Plaskitt	....	grip
Andy Shuttleworth	....	Steadicam operator
Simon Starling	....	clapper loader
Simon Starling	....	second assistant camera
Gary Turnbull	....	focus puller

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Lisa Shanley	....	wardrobe assistant
Fiona Smithies	....	wardrobe assistant
Nancy Thompson	....	wardrobe mistress

Editorial Department
Simon Cozens	....	second assistant editor
Kerry Kohler	....	associate editor
Lucy Maunsell	....	first assistant editor
Mark Waddell	....	color timer
Bob Wenokur	....	studio post-production representative (uncredited)

Music Department
Bob Bryan	....	vocal coach
Clive Farrell	....	music supervisor
Gavin Greenaway	....	musical director

Transportation Department
Peter Allison	....	driver
Mike Crawley	....	driver
Richard Moore	....	driver

Other crew
Liz Barron	....	production accountant
Joyce Branagh	....	unit runner
Hugh Cruttwell	....	production consultant
Graham Kern	....	montage openeing title sequence design & production
Randal McDonell	....	production assistant
Annie Penn	....	script supervisor (as Annie Wotton)
Iona Price	....	production coordinator
Al Senter	....	production notes
Paul Shersby	....	location manager
Neris Thomas	....	production secretary
Tamar Thomas	....	assistant: Mr. Branagh
Peter Thompson	....	press representative
David Toguri	....	choreographer
John Trevithick	....	unit runner (as Jonathan Trevithick)
Richard Turner	....	financial controller

Production Companies

• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• Channel Four Films
• Renaissance Films
• Samuel Goldwyn Company, The

Distributors

• Samuel Goldwyn Company, The (1992) (USA) (theatrical)
• Union Générale Cinématographique (UGC) (1993) (France) (theatrical)
• Argentina Video Home (Argentina) (video)
• Cine Company S.A. (Spain)
• Entertainment Film Distributors (UK)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• Look Filmes (199?) (Brazil) (VHS)

Special Effects

• Computer Film Company, The (CFC) (end title)

Other Companies

• ARRI Lighting Rental  light equipment
• Film and Television Completions  completion bond
• Five Star Location Services  caterer
• Media Film Services  Arriflex 535 camera and Zeiss Lenses
• Peerless Camera Company  titles and optical effects
• SVC Television (London)  post-production for montage opening title sequence
• Sapex Scripts  post-production script services
• Technicolor  processing
• Twickenham Studios  sound re-recording (as Twickenham Film Studios)
• Walton & Parkinson  insurance

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for language, and for some sexuality

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Finland:K-12 | Germany:12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | Canada:14A | Iceland:L | Singapore:NC-16 | Netherlands:AL (video rating) | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade)

Filming Locations:

Wrotham Park, Barnet, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Peter has an Apple Macintosh computer, but does not own a TV. Stephen Fry was the second person in the UK to purchase a Mac, after Douglas Adams bought the first two.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the beginning of the film, Mary and Roger's nanny Brenda refers to Mary as "Mrs. Anderson", but according to the credits, Mary and Roger's last name is Charleston

Quotes:

Andrew:I think adults are just children who owe money.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Peep Show: Quantocking (#3.6)" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Let's Stay Together

Very British

You won't find a laugh track. Or even any side-splitting laughs. Its not slapstick, indeed most of the humor is directed ironically at the character who's making the self-deprecating comment. Its not really tragic - its a situation comedy of the old school, with great actors, a reasonable framework for them to perform, and no artificial beginning or ending, just characterization. Like many movies of this kind, you have to bring your brain along and do some of the work yourself. It is, however, an effort that will be greatly rewarded, and highly rewarding. So find the movie, watch it, think about it, and enjoy it. You'll probably continue to do so through many viewings.

And while its not out on DVD in the US, it available out on laserdisc (if anyone still has one - I did for many years). Not much, but its something.