A Fish Called Wanda (1988)

A Fish Called Wanda (1988) is a Dad Movie. You know, movies that find patronage among the nation's population of Dads. I remember my dad really liking this movie, but I was too young at the time to watch it. And then, unlike some of the other movies my dad was a fan of, I never found the time to sit down and watch it.

Until I started my Google search for iconic heist movies. And what do you know? A Fish Called Wanda showed up on multiple Best Of lists everywhere I turned my head.

So, I decided to give it a go.

I. What is It?

This is the story of a diamond heist, featuring a crew of wacky, treacherous thieves.

II. I Don't Really Feel One Way or the Other

I didn't really LIKE this movie. It was overly long, overly wacky, and so fucking 80s that it hurt. Kevin Kline won a Best Supporting Actor award for his performance as the Nietzsche-spouting American buffoon. And ya know? He's good... but... like... not Oscar good. Fight me.

The script is trying very hard to be clever and consistently falls short. The film feels, at times, like it's trying to be a Looney Toons cartoon come to life, but less compelling. At an hour-and-forty-eight-minutes, it isn't a terribly long film, but it sags in the middle, like a comedy sketch pulled too far.

But, here's the thing: I didn't hate it, either. I chuckled more than a few times. I always enjoy watching John Cleese do John Cleese. But. Eh.

I'm kind of lukewarm on the whole thing. And that's fairly damning praise in and of itself.

III. Jamie Lee Curtis is Awesome

Jamie Lee Curtis is awesome. She does great work as a comical femme fatale, here.

IX. Should You See It?

Is this your dad's favorite movie? Maybe give it a go in that case. Otherwise, just leave this one be. It isn't a waste of your time, but I can't in good conscience recommend it.

Miscellany

Nah.

Comments

American Myth - Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

"Keep your lovin' brother happy." I remember the time my dad came home from Costco with the DVD of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly . It was a special edition, with a second disc full of features. I'd never seen anything like it: Sergio Leone had a specific vision that many would try, and fail, to replicate. He was the innovator of the so-called "Spaghetti Western." "Spaghetti," because Leone was Italian, and shot most of his movies in Europe and Italy on shoe-string budgets. It is an interesting thing to see this genre filtered through the eyes of a foreigner. His old west became even more fantasized, but not in the idealistic way: his westerns are gritty, larger than life epics that feel more like modern mythology than any John Wayne film ever did. You might think of John Ford as making the Disney-fied version of The American West: they are celebrations of American spirit and determination. But in the dark back corner of the library, you...

American Myth: A Series on the American Western

American Myth America is a young country. Younger, in context, than most of the other storied nations of the world. And, because of that, our nation's mythology is a bit different than other parts of the world. We don't have knights and castles and magic witches. No, the American mythology was formed when our country set its eyes westward. The American mythology was born when men and women set off from their homes and forged a life in untamed wilderness. That wilderness brought out the best in people. And the worst. And it brought out our myths. We traded knights for cowpokes, magic swords for six shooters, and dragons for deadly outlaws. Our castles were ramshackle towns in the middle of the desert, standing defiantly in the face of the natural order. A Genre is Born When the American film industry started, movies based on famous Old West tales were easy: there were no rights to speak of, they were adventurous and entertaining, and they celebrated the American spir...

American Myth - Tombstone (1993)

"You tell 'em I'm coming. I'm coming, and hell's coming with me." I grew up on this movie. I watched it on TV. I rented it from Blockbuster. I owned the VHS. I bought a DVD of it, when that finally dropped. I was reluctant, then, to go back and revisit it. So much of one's childhood is amazing in the moment, but, upon reflection, weaknesses and faults start to show. It's been a long time since I saw Tombstone all the way through: conservatively, maybe 15 years. The American Myth series gave me an opportunity to add it to my list, and, after watching John Ford's My Darling Clementine , Ford's own telling of the shootout at The OK Corral, its addition to the list of famous westerns became imperative. While watching My Darling Clementine , I couldn't help but compare it to Tombstone . So, did Tombstone live up to nostalgia's weighty expectations? Summary: The Earp brothers, and their wives, are headed for new fortunes. Fresh...

Some Dude Reviews Movies

Search This Blog