Classic 80s Movie: “A Fish Called Wanda”

Today’s Classic 80s Movie guest post comes from John Hörnschemeyer.

Movie Title: A Fish Called Wanda

Year: 1988

Writers: John Cleese & Charles Crichton (story) John Cleese (screenplay)

Lead Actors: John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, Michael Palin

Director: Charles Crichton & John Cleese (uncredited)

Plot Summary:

George Thomason (Tom Georgeson) and his right-hand man, Ken Pile (Michael Palin), a beleaguered animal lover with a bad stutter, plan a jewel heist and bring in two Americans to help: an alluring con artist, Wanda Gershwitz (Jamie Lee Curtis) and a “weapons man”, Otto West (Kevin Kline). Wanda and Otto are lovers pretending to be siblings so that Wanda can work her charms on George and Ken. Wanda and Otto plan to betray Ken and George after the heist, and vice-versa. Wanda, it later transpires, is also planning to betray Otto.

After the robbery, Wanda and Otto betray George to the police, intending to take all the loot for themselves, but discover that George and Ken have moved the loot to a new location. Wanda decides to seduce George’s unhappily married lawyer, Archie Leach (John Cleese) to find out where it is. Meanwhile, Ken is charged by George to silence a key witness, and Otto exerts his energies in fits of jealousy over Wanda and Archie and of impatience with Ken and Britain in general. Otto’s interference, and other incidences of bad luck, lead Wanda and Archie’s liaisons to go disastrously wrong.

There is subsequent confusion and slapstick. For example, in various attempts to kill the witness, the animal-loving Ken accidentally instead kills her three Yorkshire Terriers one by one. The witness eventually suffers a fatal heart attack when her third Terrier is killed. The title is derived from the name of Ken’s favorite tropical fish, which Otto eats alive, to Ken’s distress, during the farcical torture scene.

Archie and Wanda gradually fall in love and the movie ends with those two leaving the country with the jewels. Ken finally has his revenge on Otto by running him over with a steamroller (which he somehow survives). Title cards at the end of the movie reveal their futures: “Archie and Wanda were married in Rio, had seventeen children, and founded a leper colony. Ken became Master of Ceremonies at the London Sea World. Otto emigrated to South Africa and became Minister for Justice.

Why I Think This Is A Classic 80s Movies: If ever there were a comedy that flaunts the virtues of British auto-derision, then this is it. Cleese’s screenplay is a masterpiece of wit, that combines both intelligent dialogue with painfully funny visuals. The actors play their roles to perfection; none more so than Kevin Kline, who epitomizes imbecility with a skill that makes it seem almost credible. John Cleese is as stiff as a constipated Brit can be, Michael Palin is the perfect fall guy, and Jamie Lee Curtis is as dangerous and unpredictable as a manipulative woman can be. And perhaps I forget to mention… it’s very funny!

My Favorite Moment In The Movie:

Otto takes torture to new intellectual and psychological heights

Archie dances for the crowd:

My Favorite Dialogue In the Movie:

[Otto dangles Archie out a window]

Archie: All right, all right, I apologize.
Otto: You’re really sorry.
Archie: I’m really really sorry, I apologize unreservedly.
Otto: You take it back.
Archie: I do, I offer a complete and utter retraction. The imputation was totally without basis in fact, and was in no way fair comment, and was motivated purely by malice, and I deeply regret any distress that my comments may have caused you, or your family, and I hereby undertake not to repeat any such slander at any time in the future.
Otto: OK.

Key Things You Should Look For When Watching This Movie: There are so many things to discover in this film, but beyond the wonderful performances of the four principal characters, I would also single out the scenes in which Archie interacts with his wife, or ‘how to be a wimp’. Other than that, just laugh.

Thanks, John! To show our gratitude for your guest post, here’s a dash of creative juju for you. Whoosh!

Tomorrow: Another Classic 80s Movie!

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