173. 'Withnail & I' (1987)

12/14/23 • 117 min

One of the most quotable and iconic of British films, born out of writer/director Bruce Robinson's personal experiences and shepherded to the big screen by George Harrison and his Handmade Films company. 'Withnail & I' is a beloved comedy but in this episode I talk as much about its forlorn, end-of-an-era wistful heart as I do the incredibly quotable lines. Particularly I was interested to learn of Bruce's formative me-too experience on the set of Zeffirelli's 'Romeo & Juliet' and how that informed the character of Monty. But Monty is more than a monster or a would-be abuser; his portrayal on the page and in the flesh by the brilliant Richard Griffiths is layered and sympathetic and very much informed by the realities for gay people in Britain in the 1960's. In Monty we have a great analogy for the film; at first glance laughable, uproarious, a characture and character...but just beneath that is writing and performing of great complexity and nuance. This is what we'll celebrate in this episode all about the brilliant, the ever-fresh and continuingly fascinating 'Withnail & I'. LINKS: A 1999 documentary about Bruce Robinson. Bruce's excellent 2020 'Withnail & I' Watchalong Commentary for Esquire. The incredible live version of 'Whiter Shade of Pale' played by King Curtis and his band at the Fillmore West in 1971. Here's a bizarro artifact from the 60's: Bruce Robinson starring in a coffee ad aimed at tripping hippies looking to come down/go up/not sure really how coffee and acid is a great combo but there you have the 60's! Bruce Robinson in Zeffirelli's 'Romeo & Juliet' as Benvolio 'Smoking In Bed: Conversations with Bruce Robinson' on Amazon Toby Benjamin's excellent book about the making of 'Withnail and I' is essential for any fan of the film. The inspiration for Withnail, Vivian MacKerrell.

Previous Episode

172. 'The French Connection' (1971)

Billy Friedkin's iconic 1971 game-changing NYC police procedural/car chase classic 'The French Connection' has a fascinating backstory and making-of history, and, hey: that's what I'm here for! To bring you all the best stories behind the scenes on the streets of New York and all the context and color that helps place this movie in the pantheon of the films that came before and after it.

The NY Times article about this summer's censorship of the film is linked here.

Mark Kermode's very well made BBC documentary about the making of The French Connection can be seen on YouTube.

Owen Roizman, the film's brilliant and prolific cinematographer's IMDB page is here.

Do yourself a favor and watch the films of the brilliant French director Jean-Pierre Melville.

Listen to David Shire's iconic score for The Taking of Pelham 123 on YouTube.

Don Ellis' haunting end credits music from The French Connection.

Next Episode

174. 'Aliens' and 'Alien 3'

Ridley Scott's brilliant 1979 sci-fi/horror classic 'Alien' burnished his deserved reputation as bold re-interpreter of techno-dystopian futurism and exploder of genres.

But it made a lot of money and dollar signs in the eyes of 'Alien' producers Brandywine Productions led them to turn for a sequel to James Cameron, who had already done a similar turn on the Rambo franchise, penning a "rewritten" script for the sequel 'Rambo: First Blood Part II' that paved the way for the ridiculously over-the-top guns 'n poses Rambo films that followed.

Discarding with the quality actors and brilliantly lived-in future of the Nostromo and the original 'Alien', 'Aliens' is a box-office-pleasing symbiotic mutual masturbation effort where both audience and filmmaker are complicit in a liason that leaves both dirty and discredited. It should be noted that I am fairly alone in this opinion, and many 80's blockbuster-loving film fans revere 'Aliens' as even a superior 'Alien' film to the original!

One such fan is my frequent guest Bruce Edwards. Previously we've digested our love for 'Bladerunner' and 'Alien' on episodes of the podcast. Here we get into 'Aliens' from our differing perspectives and find more common ground in a discussion about David Fincher's very first feature film, 'Alien 3', which he directed at the ripe old age of 27 and which was and is a legandary troubled production resulting in several competing alien babies; various cuts of the film exist and Fincher himself disavows the film.