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A Fish Called Wanda ()

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In London, four very different people team up on a jewel heist, then try to double-cross one another for the loot, complicated by their efforts to fool the very proper barrister Archibald Leach.
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Writers:
Stars:
Awards:
  • Won 1 Oscar. Another 8 wins & 22 nominations.
  • See more »
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Photos and Videos

143 photos | 1 video

Cast verified as complete

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Archie
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Wanda
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Otto
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Ken
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Wendy
Tom Georgeson ...
George
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Mrs. Coady
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Judge
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Portia (as Cynthia Caylor)
Mark Elwes ...
Customer in Jeweler's Shop
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Manager of Jeweler's Shop
Peter Jonfield ...
Inspector Marvin
Ken Campbell ...
Bartlett
Al Ashton ...
Warder
Roger Hume ...
Locksmith
Roger Brierley ...
Davidson
Llewellyn Rees ...
Sir John
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Percival
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Magistrate
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Copper (as Robert Cavendish)
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Zebedee
Roland MacLeod ...
Vicar
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Mr. Johnson
Pamela Miles ...
Mrs. Johnson
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Child Johnson (13)
Katherine John ...
Child Johnson (10)
Sophie Johnstone ...
Child Johnson (8)
Kim Barclay ...
Nanny
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1st Junior Barrister (Defence Counsel) (as Sharon Twomey)
Patrick Newman ...
2nd Junior Barrister (Defence Counsel)
David Simeon ...
Clerk of Court (Old Bailey)
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Stenographer
Tia Lee ...
Junior Barrister (Prosecutor Counsel)
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Police Officer (Old Bailey)
Waydon Croft ...
1st Prison Officer
John Dixon ...
2nd Prison Officer
Anthony Pedley ...
Irate Driver
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Hotel Clerk
Clare McIntyre ...
Airline Employee
Charu Bala Chokshi ...
Indian Cleaner
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Hutchison
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Roy Beck ...
Man in Street (uncredited)
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Clerk of the Magistrate's Court (uncredited)
Chris Chering ...
Prisoner (uncredited)
Terence Conoley ...
Airline Passenger (uncredited)
Gary Dean ...
Man in Court (uncredited)
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Street thug (uncredited)
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Man at Airport (uncredited)
Aidan Harrington ...
Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Barrie Holland ...
Defence Barrister (uncredited)
Rebecca Moore ...
Jury member (uncredited)
Mike Reynell ...
Man in Street (uncredited)
Peter Roy ...
Man in Street (uncredited)
...
Jeweler (uncredited)
David Stone ...
Man in Line Up (uncredited)

Directed by

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Charles Crichton
John Cleese ... (uncredited)

Written by

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John Cleese ... (story) and
Charles Crichton ... (story)
 
John Cleese ... (written by)

Produced by

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Steve Abbott ... executive producer
John Cleese ... executive producer
John Comfort ... associate producer
Michael Shamberg ... producer

Music by

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John Du Prez

Cinematography by

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Alan Hume

Editing by

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John Jympson

Editorial Department

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Kevin Phelan ... unit projectionist: Mercury Theatres, London
William Webb ... assistant film editor
David Barrett ... assistant editor (uncredited)
Jonathan Lucas ... assistant editor (uncredited)

Casting By

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Priscilla John

Production Design by

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Roger Murray-Leach

Art Direction by

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John Wood

Set Decoration by

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Stephenie McMillan

Costume Design by

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Hazel Pethig

Makeup Department

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Lynda Armstrong ... make-up artiste (as Lynda Armstrong-Lawlor)
Paul Engelen ... make-up supervisor
Barry Richardson ... chief hairdresser

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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Jonathan Benson ... assistant director
Melvin Lind ... second assistant director
David Skynner ... third assistant director
Derek Harrington ... third assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department

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David Allday ... set designer
Leon Apsey ... head of construction
Bruce Bigg ... property master
Roy Evans ... construction manager
Dougie Lankston ... props
Kevin Phipps ... assistant art director
Brian Read ... production buyer
Alfie Smith ... stand-by property supervisor
Micky Swift ... stand-by propman (as Mickey Swift)
Gill Andrae-Reid ... portrait artist (uncredited)
Michael Law ... carpenter (uncredited)
Bill Stallion ... storyboard artist (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Jonathan Bates ... sound editor
Charlotte Haupt ... sound editor
Gerry Humphreys ... re-recording mixer
Chris Munro ... sound recordist
Andrew Sissons ... sound maintenance engineer
Colin Wood ... boom operator

Special Effects by

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George Gibbs ... special effects supervisor
David Watson ... special effects technician (as Dave Watson)
Terence J. Cox ... special effects technician (uncredited)
Alan Poole ... special effects technician (uncredited)

Visual Effects by

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Alan Church ... optical camera (uncredited)
Simon Margetts ... director of photography: main title sequence (uncredited)

Stunts

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Romo Gorrara ... stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department

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Neil Binney ... camera operator
Bob Bremner ... gaffer (as Bobby Bremner)
Graham Hall ... clapper loader
Simon Hume ... focus puller
David James ... still photographer
Bill Thornhill ... best boy
Jimmy Waters ... grip
Jimmy Worley ... electrician (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Stephen Cornish ... wardrobe assistant (as Steve Cornish)
Jenny Hawkins ... wardrobe assistant
Ray Usher-Cooper ... wardrobe master (as Ray Usher)

Location Management

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Nick Daubeny ... location manager: Oxford
Christopher Knowles ... assistant location manager: London
William Lang ... location manager

Music Department

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Peter Holt ... music editor
André Jacquemin ... music producer
Luis Jardim ... musician: percussion
Skaila Kanga ... musician: harp
Dick Lewzey ... orchestral recordist
John Williams ... musician: solo guitar
John Du Prez ... conductor (uncredited)
George Hamer ... orchestra contractor (uncredited)

Script and Continuity Department

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Diana Dill ... continuity

Transportation Department

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Mark White ... production driver / transportation
Roy Clarke ... driver: Jamie Lee Curtis (uncredited)

Additional Crew

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Andy Birmingham ... production accountant
Peter Byck ... assistant: Mr. Shamberg, USA
Sophie Clarke-Jervoise ... assistant: Dr. Cleese
Pauline Clift ... animal supplier
Robert Conway ... legal advisor
Wayne Docksey ... Fish Supplier
Bill Edwards ... unit publicist
Yvonne Heeks ... assistant accountant
Ralph Kamp ... production assistant
Liz Lehmans ... production assistant
Ian Miles ... financial controller
Janine Modder ... production coordinator (as Janine Lodge)
Alexandra Stone ... assistant to producer
Mark Birmingham ... production assistant (uncredited)
John Cleese ... unused stand-by director (uncredited)
Robin Demetriou ... catering supervisor (uncredited)
Yvonne Eastmond ... assistant production accountant (uncredited)
Alan Ladd Jr. ... presenter (uncredited)
Richard Morrison ... title designer (uncredited)
Kimberley Vashiell ... choreographer (uncredited)
Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

In London, Georges Thomason (Tom Georgeson), his seductive American girlfriend Wanda Gershwitz (Jamie Lee Curtis), and their associate Ken Pile (Sir Michael Palin) are planning their latest crime: a diamond heist that should net them 13 million pounds sterling. They plan to leave the country with the goods after the heist. On Wanda's recommendation, they enlist the help of her weapons-expert brother Otto West (Kevin Kline) for this heist. Actually, Otto isn't Wanda's brother, but her latest lover, a dimwit who gets off on his own body odor and believes he's an intellectual because he reads Nietzsche and does not tolerate being called stupid by anyone. Wanda has one weakness in men which is how Otto was able to get her to be his lover: speaking Italian in seduction. Wanda and Otto plan to double-cross Georges by having him arrested for the heist while they abscond with the jewels. Wanda further plans to triple-cross Otto by eliminating him from the picture after she has the jewels. They are able to get Georges arrested with him not knowing who tipped the off the police, and implicated by elderly eyewitness Eileen Coady (Patricia Hayes). With Georges in jail, Wanda and Otto discover that he has protected his investment by moving the jewels from their agreed location to a hidden one, telling nobody where they are but offering Ken a slight hint. Georges gives Ken, an animal lover with an extreme stutter, the task of killing Mrs. Coady before she is able to testify against him, as she is the Crown's primary witness. Meanwhile, Wanda has her own plan to reach her end goal: seduce George's defense lawyer Archie Leach (John Cleese) and find out Georges' secrets about the heist, including the location of the jewels. Archie may be easy prey for Wanda's seduction, as his wife Wendy (Maria Aitken) is a self-absorbed woman who pays him little attention. Otto might throw a wrench into Wanda's plans if he finds out what she's doing. Written by Huggo

Plot Keywords
Taglines A tale of murder, lust, greed, revenge, and seafood. See more »
Genres
Parents Guide View content advisory »
Certification

Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • Los enredos de Wanda (United States, Spanish title)
  • Fish Called Wanda (India, English title)
  • Un poisson nommé Wanda (France)
  • Ein Fisch namens Wanda (Germany)
  • Un peix anomenat Wanda (Spain, Catalan title)
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Runtime
  • 108 min
Country
Language
Color
Aspect Ratio
Sound Mix
Filming Locations

Box Office

Budget $7,500,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend United Kingdom GBP147,607, 16 Oct 1988

Did You Know?

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Trivia Michael Palin's father stuttered, so Palin used a lot of his real-life experience when playing Ken Pile, including the fact that Ken's stutter is less pronounced around people he trusts (George Thomason and Wanda Gershwitz) and worse around people with whom he is uncomfortable (Otto West). See more »
Goofs When Otto fires his gun on the safe in the hideout, the gun makes the sound of a silenced weapon, but his gun is not equipped with a silencer. See more »
Movie Connections Featured in The Dead Pool/Phantasm II/Midnight Run/Boyfriends and Girlfriends/Die Hard (1988). See more »
Soundtracks Nel blu, dipinto di blu See more »
Crazy Credits Archie and Wanda were married in Rio, had seventeen children, and founded a leper colony. See more »
Quotes Wanda: [after Otto breaks in on Wanda and Archie in Archie's flat and hangs him out the window] I was dealing with something delicate, Otto. I'm setting up a guy who's incredibly important to us, who's going to tell me where the loot is and if they're going to come and arrest you. And you come loping in like Rambo without a jockstrap and you dangle him out a fifth-floor window. Now, was that smart? Was it shrewd? Was it good tactics? Or was it stupid?
Otto West: Don't call me stupid.
Wanda: Oh, right! To call you stupid would be an insult to stupid people! I've known sheep that could outwit you. I've worn dresses with higher IQs. But you think you're an intellectual, don't you, ape?
Otto West: Apes don't read philosophy.
Wanda: Yes they do, Otto. They just don't understand it. Now let me correct you on a couple of things, OK? Aristotle was not Belgian. The central message of Buddhism is not "Every man for himself." And the London Underground is not a political movement. Those are all mistakes, Otto. I looked them up.
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