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The Comfort of Strangers

  • 19901990
  • RR
  • 1h 47m
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
5.5K
YOUR RATING
Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
A couple retreat to Venice to work on their relationship, but an encounter with a stranger leads them into a world of intrigue - where their darkest desires are in reach.
Play trailer1:27
1 Video
99+ Photos
  • Crime
  • Drama
  • Fantasy
A couple retreat to Venice to work on their relationship, but an encounter with a stranger leads them into a world of intrigue - where their darkest desires are in reach.A couple retreat to Venice to work on their relationship, but an encounter with a stranger leads them into a world of intrigue - where their darkest desires are in reach.A couple retreat to Venice to work on their relationship, but an encounter with a stranger leads them into a world of intrigue - where their darkest desires are in reach.
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
5.5K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Paul Schrader
  • Writers
    • Ian McEwan(novel)
    • Harold Pinter(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Christopher Walken
    • Rupert Everett
    • Natasha Richardson
Top credits
  • Director
    • Paul Schrader
  • Writers
    • Ian McEwan(novel)
    • Harold Pinter(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Christopher Walken
    • Rupert Everett
    • Natasha Richardson
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 65User reviews
    • 38Critic reviews
    • 61Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win

    Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:27
    Trailer

    Photos117

    Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett, Helen Mirren, Christopher Walken, and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett and Christopher Walken in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Helen Mirren and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
    Natasha Richardson in The Comfort of Strangers (1990)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Christopher Walken
    Christopher Walken
    • Robert
    Rupert Everett
    Rupert Everett
    • Colin
    Natasha Richardson
    Natasha Richardson
    • Mary
    Helen Mirren
    Helen Mirren
    • Caroline
    Manfredi Aliquo
    Manfredi Aliquo
    • Concierge
    David Ford
    • Waiter
    Daniel Franco
    Daniel Franco
    • Waiter
    Rossana Canghiari
    • Hotel Maid
    Fabrizio Sergenti Castellani
    • Bar Manager
    • (as Fabrizio Castellani)
    Mario Cotone
    • Detective
    Giancarlo Previati
    • First Policeman
    Antonio Serrano
    • Second Policeman
    • Director
      • Paul Schrader
    • Writers
      • Ian McEwan(novel)
      • Harold Pinter(screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Christopher Walken said in an interview that he kept the clothes he wore in this movie designed by Georgio Armani.
    • Quotes

      Robert: Let me tell you something: My father was a very big man. And all his life he wore a black mustache. When it was no longer black, he used a small brush, such as ladies use for their eyes. Mascara.

    • Alternate versions
      Rupert Everett gets second billing over Natasha Richardson on the opening credits of international prints while Richardson gets billing above Everett on American prints.
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Postcards from the Edge/Saving Grace/White Hunter, Black Heart/After Dark, My Sweet (1990)
    • Soundtracks
      Amorevole
      Written by Pino Massara, Vito Pallavicini and Vittorio Buffoli

      Performed by Nicola Arigliano

    User reviews65

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    The "menace" all-star team
    Let's think how to put together the all-star team of menace.

    We'd have Paul Shrader direct, and he'd never shoot a centered, straight-on angle. The movie would be filled with nearly empty frames, where the actors can be seen only far off to the side, and the scenes would begin with tracking shots through an alley to the characters, as if from a stalker's P.O.V. Doors and windows would open and close near our protagonists, manipulated by unseen hands, for unspoken reasons.

    We'd have Harold Pinter write the screenplay, and every line would be pregnant with vague menace. The character's actions would be filled with unexplainable and unexplained malice. People would repeat with gravitas lines that don't seem important. People would tell awful stories about their youth and their excessively stern parents.

    We'd locate it in Venice at night, where every corner seems to turn into a deserted and foggy dead end, every street is a waterfront, and there are as many ghosts and echoes as living people.

    We'd star Christopher Walken.

    Sorry, guys, it's already been done. This is a spooky, creepy movie, well presented by the all-star team. I really found only one flaw. The menace was not left unspoken and threatening. The movie ends with people doing explicit and unspeakably awful things for no reason.

    It's one strange movie. Great use of Venice as the backdrop for the story. It is a masterpiece in its own Euro-noir genre. I liked it a lot, but don't expect a typical cinema experience, or a happy ending.
    helpful•37
    4
    • Scoopy
    • Mar 19, 1999

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 1991 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • Italy
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Der Trost von Fremden
    • Filming locations
      • Venice, Veneto, Italy
    • Production companies
      • Erre Produzioni
      • Reteitalia
      • Sovereign Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $1,244,381
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $14,537
      • Mar 17, 1991
    • Gross worldwide
      • $1,244,381
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 47 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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