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IMDbPro

The English Patient

  • 1996
  • R
  • 2h 42m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
195K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,119
76
Ralph Fiennes and Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient (1996)
Trailer for The English Patient
Play trailer1:42
3 Videos
99+ Photos
DramaRomanceWar

At the close of World War II, a young nurse tends to a badly-burned plane crash victim. His past is shown in flashbacks, revealing an involvement in a fateful love affair.At the close of World War II, a young nurse tends to a badly-burned plane crash victim. His past is shown in flashbacks, revealing an involvement in a fateful love affair.At the close of World War II, a young nurse tends to a badly-burned plane crash victim. His past is shown in flashbacks, revealing an involvement in a fateful love affair.

  • Director
    • Anthony Minghella
  • Writers
    • Michael Ondaatje
    • Anthony Minghella
  • Stars
    • Ralph Fiennes
    • Juliette Binoche
    • Willem Dafoe
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.4/10
    195K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    2,119
    76
    • Director
      • Anthony Minghella
    • Writers
      • Michael Ondaatje
      • Anthony Minghella
    • Stars
      • Ralph Fiennes
      • Juliette Binoche
      • Willem Dafoe
    • 561User reviews
    • 132Critic reviews
    • 87Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Won 9 Oscars
      • 62 wins & 77 nominations total

    Videos3

    The English Patient
    Trailer 1:42
    Watch The English Patient
    The English Patient: Miramax Collectors Edition
    Trailer 0:59
    Watch The English Patient: Miramax Collectors Edition
    'The English Patient' | Anniversary Mashup
    Clip 1:29
    Watch 'The English Patient' | Anniversary Mashup

    Photos115

    Ralph Fiennes and Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient (1996)
    Ralph Fiennes and Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient (1996)
    Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient (1996)
    Ralph Fiennes and Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient (1996)
    Juliette Binoche in The English Patient (1996)
    Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient (1996)
    Willem Dafoe in The English Patient (1996)
    Ralph Fiennes in The English Patient (1996)
    Anthony Minghella and Saul Zaentz in The English Patient (1996)
    Juliette Binoche in The English Patient (1996)
    Michael Ondaatje in The English Patient (1996)
    Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient (1996)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Ralph Fiennes
    Ralph Fiennes
    • Almásy
    Juliette Binoche
    Juliette Binoche
    • Hana
    Willem Dafoe
    Willem Dafoe
    • Caravaggio
    Kristin Scott Thomas
    Kristin Scott Thomas
    • Katharine Clifton
    Naveen Andrews
    Naveen Andrews
    • Kip
    Colin Firth
    Colin Firth
    • Geoffrey Clifton
    Julian Wadham
    Julian Wadham
    • Madox
    Jürgen Prochnow
    Jürgen Prochnow
    • Major Muller
    Kevin Whately
    Kevin Whately
    • Hardy
    Clive Merrison
    Clive Merrison
    • Fenelon-Barnes
    Nino Castelnuovo
    Nino Castelnuovo
    • D'Agostino
    Hichem Rostom
    Hichem Rostom
    • Fouad
    Peter Rühring
    • Bermann
    Geordie Johnson
    • Oliver
    Torri Higginson
    Torri Higginson
    • Mary
    Liisa Repo-Martell
    Liisa Repo-Martell
    • Jan
    Raymond Coulthard
    Raymond Coulthard
    • Rupert Douglas
    Philip Whitchurch
    Philip Whitchurch
    • Corporal Dade
    • Director
      • Anthony Minghella
    • Writers
      • Michael Ondaatje
      • Anthony Minghella
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The Germans who shoot at Almásy's plane at the beginning were actually tourists roped into the production because they couldn't afford any more extras.
    • Goofs
      Katharine Clifton (Scott-Thomas) explains to Count László Almásy (Fiennes), that her husband is map making in Ethiopia. The year at this point is 1939, and the country was known as Abyssinia until 1945.
    • Quotes

      Katharine Clifton: My darling. I'm waiting for you. How long is the day in the dark? Or a week? The fire is gone, and I'm horribly cold. I really should drag myself outside but then there'd be the sun. I'm afraid I waste the light on the paintings, not writing these words. We die. We die rich with lovers and tribes, tastes we have swallowed, bodies we've entered and swum up like rivers. Fears we've hidden in - like this wretched cave. I want all this marked on my body. We are the real countries. Not boundaries drawn on maps with the names of powerful men. I know you'll come carry me out to the Palace of Winds. That's what I've wanted: to walk in such a place with you. With friends, on an earth without maps. The lamp has gone out and I'm writing in the darkness.

    • Crazy credits
      Disclaimer in end credits: "While a number of the characters who appear in this film are based on historical figures, and while many of the areas described - such as the Cave of Swimmers and its surrounding desert - exist and were explored in the 1930s, it is important to stress that this story is a fiction and that the portraits of the characters who appear in it are fictional, as are some of the events and journeys."
    • Connections
      Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Space Jam/The Mirror Has Two Faces/The English Patient/Breaking the Waves (1996)
    • Soundtracks
      Yes! We Have No Bananas
      Words and Music by Frank Silver and Irving Cohn (as Irving Conn)

      Published by Skidmore Music Co., Inc.

    User reviews561

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    despite a few flaws, "The English Patient" proves itself as an enthralling modern-day epic with that same sweeping sense that made movies like "Lawrence of Arabia"
    One of the most charming and, for me at least, the most powerful elements of Anthony Minghella's enthralling Best Picture-winner "The English Patient" is that, in the mid 90s, when Hollywood was in the initial stage of having lost its nerve for grand new projects, a film was created that brought back traces—very powerful traces—of the sweeping, wonderful majesty that crafted movies such as "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962) and "The Ten Commandments" (1956). "The English Patient" contains very much of what made those films so powerful. It has that glorious feeling, a stretched running time that hardly seems long at all, and fascinating characters with pasts and stories.

    "The English Patient", based on a novel by the same name by Michael Ondaatje, is like "The Godfather: Part II" (1974) in the sense of how it's constructed. It's a blending of two stories: the past and the present and it all revolves around the titular character: an English patient in the post years of World War Two. Ralph Fiennes plays the English patient, who has been scarred for life by a plane crash, and being taken care of in an isolated church by a single nurse played marvelously by Juliette Binoche. Apart from bonding with her raspy-voiced, troubled patient, Binoche comes to learn about his past when a stranger (Willem Dafoe) arrives and the two men appear to know each other.

    That's just one of the two beautifully crafted stories that shape this film. The other one, told in flashback, is the patient's past, before he was scarred and dying in a bed. The story of the present mixed with the patient's past and his love affair that tragically changed his life forever.

    To be blunt, "The English Patient" is a love story blended with a sweeping epic sensation and it blends magnificently. What I really admired about the love story between Ralph Fiennes and Kristin Scott Thomas was how passionate, how obsessive, how enchanting it was shown on screen. Usually in love stories, such as Minghella's later "Cold Mountain" (2003), the romantic elements seem far more lustful than obsessive to me. Some of the love scenes feature elements that may tend to be associated more with lust than love, but still, because it is so well developed and not rushed and not exploited out of proportion, we can believe that there is a sure, true love between these characters. It reminded me a lot of "Vertigo" (1958) in how well the filmmakers and performers convinced us that these were two actual human beings who truly fell in love with each other.

    Performances all around were great. I was especially enthralled by the performance by Juliette Binoche, who took home the Oscar for her performance the following year. I also liked Willem Dafoe playing the sort of cynical, questionable character that he's always quintessential at playing. And of course I can't leave out Fiennes and Scott Thomas and their portrayals of two very passionate lovers.

    Despite my enormous enthusiasm for this epic, I would be dishonest if I were to describe it as a perfect film. There are two flaws that I cannot glance over. Number one, it is a little too long and the reason for this is my second complaint, there are a few unnecessary subplots. I was not enchanted or particularly interested with the second love story between Binoche and a bomb specialist played by Naveen Andrews. My research has led me to assume that this plot element comes from the original book and I'm sure it worked perfectly in there, but in the film, it just seems a little…distracting and the relationship between the two characters didn't fascinate me. I was far more interested by Fiennes character and his relationships with his two leading actresses.

    Nevertheless, these two flaws are easily forgivable even if they do slow things down a bit. Those put aside, "The English Patient" is an extraordinary achievement of film-making. To me, it was sort of like an insane mix up between "Casablanca" (1942) and "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962), two remarkable and better films, and this effective blend proved to be well worth my time. It is a real shame that Anthony Minghella has left us. For he was a truly gifted filmmaker. This is all the evidence anybody needs.
    helpful•29
    10
    • TheUnknown837-1
    • May 26, 2009

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    FAQ3

    • Is 'The English Patient' based on a book?
    • How did Geoffrey (Katharine's husband) know she was having an affair?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 6, 1996 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • United Kingdom
    • Official sites
      • Juliette Binoche: The Art of Being - Official Fansite
      • Official Facebook
    • Languages
      • English
      • German
      • Italian
      • Arabic
    • Also known as
      • Англійський пацієнт
    • Filming locations
      • Mahdia, Tunisia
    • Production companies
      • Miramax
      • Tiger Moth Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $27,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $78,676,425
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $278,439
      • Nov 17, 1996
    • Gross worldwide
      • $231,976,425
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 42 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
      • DTS-Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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