Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsABFFPride MonthOutfest OutfrontsSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

The Chain

  • 1984
  • 1h 40m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
418
YOUR RATING
The Chain (1984)
Comedy

Comedy featuring interweaving stories of seven households caught up in a property chain on moving day, each one dependent on the other.Comedy featuring interweaving stories of seven households caught up in a property chain on moving day, each one dependent on the other.Comedy featuring interweaving stories of seven households caught up in a property chain on moving day, each one dependent on the other.

  • Director
    • Jack Gold
  • Writer
    • Jack Rosenthal
  • Stars
    • Denis Lawson
    • Rita Wolf
    • Phyllis Logan
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    6.9/10
    418
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Jack Gold
    • Writer
      • Jack Rosenthal
    • Stars
      • Denis Lawson
      • Rita Wolf
      • Phyllis Logan
    • 13User reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 nominations

    Photos

    The Chain (1984)
    Add photo

    Top cast

    Edit
    Denis Lawson
    Denis Lawson
    • Keith
    Rita Wolf
    Rita Wolf
    • Carrie
    Phyllis Logan
    Phyllis Logan
    • Alison
    David Troughton
    David Troughton
    • Dudley
    Jade Magri
    • Tasha
    Maurice Denham
    Maurice Denham
    • Grandpa
    Nigel Hawthorne
    Nigel Hawthorne
    • Mr. Thorn
    Anna Massey
    Anna Massey
    • Betty
    Billie Whitelaw
    Billie Whitelaw
    • Mrs. Andreos
    Judy Parfitt
    Judy Parfitt
    • Deidre
    John Rowe
    John Rowe
    • Alex
    Matthew Blakstad
    • Mark
    Charlotte Long
    • Rosemary
    Leo McKern
    Leo McKern
    • Thomas
    Herbert Norville
    • Des
    Carmen Munroe
    • Des's Mum
    Ron Pember
    • Stan
    Warren Mitchell
    Warren Mitchell
    • Bamber
    • Director
      • Jack Gold
    • Writer
      • Jack Rosenthal
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    The Gospel According to Vic
    6.1
    The Gospel According to Vic
    The London Nobody Knows
    7.4
    The London Nobody Knows
    George & Mildred
    7.2
    George & Mildred
    Radio Parade of 1935
    5.9
    Radio Parade of 1935
    The Winter Guest
    6.9
    The Winter Guest
    The Chain
    Flame in the Streets
    6.6
    Flame in the Streets
    Hell Drivers
    7.2
    Hell Drivers
    Sleeping Car to Trieste
    6.6
    Sleeping Car to Trieste
    The Delivered
    6.2
    The Delivered
    Tollbooth
    5.8
    Tollbooth
    Frances
    7.2
    Frances

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Screenwriter Jack Rosenthal used the same character name, "Bamber", for the head removal man in this movie and in the television series Moving Story (1994). In both cases, the character was a know-it-all who incessantly impressed, and bored, his colleagues with his prodigious knowledge, hence the nickname "Bamber", a reference to Bamber Gascoigne, the Question Master on University Challenge (1962).
    • Goofs
      Des's mum hands a cup of tea to Thomas. When seen from behind, he has the cup and saucer resting on his thigh, When viewed from his front, he has the cup at chest height.
    • Quotes

      [repeated line]

      Bamber: Moving house is very upsetting. It's a big upsetment - people get upset.

    • Connections
      Spin-off Moving Story (1994)
    • Soundtracks
      Karma Chameleon
      Composed by Boy George (as O'Dowd), Roy Hay, Jon Moss, Mikey Craig,

      Phil Pickett

      Performed by Billie Whitelaw

      Used by kind permission of Virgin Music (Publishers) Limited and Warner Bros. Music

    User reviews13

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    7/10
    Reworking of La Ronde
    This is a modern retelling of Arthur Schnitzler's La Ronde, with property transactions standing in for Schnitzler's sexual ones. Rosenthal also effectively plugs in the seven deadly sins.

    Whilst it may seem like a TV drama, this was made for cinema release so it's a bit depressing that the only version seemingly available at the moment is in 4:3.

    I'd forgotten just how good a script it is. It has dated a little since its release, but the cleverness of it, and some of the performances make it deserving of preservation. Mitchell and Hill are spot on as usual and Nigel Hawthorne and Anna Massey are particularly hilarious.

    It's not perfect though. The awful source music (i.e. What people are listening to on the radio/ghetto blaster) that's meant to be "what the kids are listening to" but has clearly been composed by Stanley Myers to save money, really dates it, and there are one or two truly shockingly bad performances from some of the younger actors. Billie Whitelaw is totally miscast, and a number of the lines (mainly from the character Paul) don't land, which is the fault of the director. For these reasons it loses a star from me.

    Overall though, they don't write em like this any more.
    helpful•1
    0
    • ste-34
    • May 16, 2021

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 24, 1984 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Ein Umzug kommt selten allein
    • Filming locations
      • 94 Huddleston Road, Tufnell Park, London, England, UK(Tufnell Park flat)
    • Production companies
      • Quintet Films
      • County Bank
      • Film Four International
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • £1,125,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 40 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Mono

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    The Chain (1984)
    Top Gap
    By what name was The Chain (1984) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.