Splitting Heirs (1993)

A member of the English upper class dies, leaving his estate and his business to an American, whom he thinks is his son who was lost as a baby and then found again. An Englishman who thinks... See full summary »

Director:

Robert Young

Writer:

Eric Idle

Stars:

Eric Idle, Rick Moranis, Barbara Hershey

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eric Idle	...	Tommy Butterfly Rainbow Peace Patel
Rick Moranis	...	Henry Bullock
Barbara Hershey	...	Duchess Lucinda
Catherine Zeta-Jones	...	Kitty
John Cleese	...	Raoul P. Shadgrind
Sadie Frost	...	Angela
Stratford Johns	...	Butler
Brenda Bruce	...	Mrs. Bullock
William Franklyn	...	Andrews
Richard Huw	...	Brittle
Charu Bala Chokshi	...	Mrs. Patel (as Charubala Chokshi)
Jeremy Clyde	...	14th Duke
Eric Sykes	...	Jobson the Doorman
Bridget McConnell	...	Nanny
Bill Stewart	...	Adoption Agent

Storyline

A member of the English upper class dies, leaving his estate and his business to an American, whom he thinks is his son who was lost as a baby and then found again. An Englishman who thinks he is an Indian comes to believe that he is actually the heir. He comes to hate the American who is his boss, his friend, and the man who has stolen the woman after whom he lusts.

---

Plot Keywords:

poisoning | english nobility | incest | cutting car brake line | freeze to death | 

---

Taglines:

A wickedly funny comedy of royal proportions.

---

Genres:

Comedy

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for nudity and sexual dialogue

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 April 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Grandeur et descendance

Filming Locations:

France

Box Office

Gross:

$3,246,063 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Prominent Features

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The final film of Stratford Johns.

---

Quotes

Tommy Patel: [voice-over, upon learning that Rick Moranis' home burned to the ground] I was doomed to an eternity in the fires of hell as a Christian and a horrendous rebirth as a Hindu.

---

Crazy Credits

and *introducing* John Cleese

---

Connections

Referenced in What the Pythons Did Next... (2007)

---

Soundtracks

"REMEMBER NOT LORD OUR OFFENCES"
Music by Henry Purchell
(Public Domain)

User Reviews

Our introduction to Catherine Zeta-Jones, eh?

Eric Idle does his typical zany stuff as an heir to a castle trying to unseat a loopy American (Rick Moranis), who has taken the position. Some of the scenes in the movie really make you think "JESUS H. Christ!!!!!! I'M REALLY WATCHING THIS!!!!!!!" Probably the aspect that catches peoples' eyes the most nowadays is the presence of a very young Catherine Zeta-Jones; when we first saw the movie, we didn't know who she was. But whether or not that's the aspect of "Splitting Heirs" that most catches your eyes shouldn't be the point. The point is that it's a really funny movie. Whether it's Rick Moranis on the roller skates, Eric Idle getting caught with more than his pants down, or something else, you won't find this movie boring. Also starring Barbara Hershey and John Cleese.