Withnail and I
Withnail and I is a 1987 British black comedy film written and directed by Bruce Robinson. Loosely based on Robinson's life in London in the late 1960s, the plot follows two unemployed actors, Withnail and "I" (portrayed by Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann, respectively) who share a flat in Camden Town in 1969. Needing a holiday, they obtain the key to a country cottage in the Lake District belonging to Withnail's eccentric uncle Monty and drive there. The weekend holiday proves less recuperative than they expected.
Withnail and I was Grant's first film and established his profile. The film featured performances by Richard Griffiths as Withnail's Uncle Monty and Ralph Brown as Danny the drug dealer. The film has tragic and comic elements and is notable for its period music and many quotable lines. It has been described as "one of Britain's biggest cult films".[4]
The character "I" is named "Marwood" in the published screenplay but goes unnamed in the film credits.[5]
Plot[edit]
In September 1969, two unemployed young actors, flamboyant alcoholic Withnail and contemplative Marwood, live in a messy flat in Camden Town, London. Their only regular visitor is their drug dealer, Danny. One morning, the pair squabble about housekeeping and then leave to take a walk. In Regent's Park, they discuss the poor state of their acting careers and the desire for a holiday; Marwood proposes a trip to a rural cottage near Penrith owned by Withnail's wealthy uncle Monty. They visit Monty that evening at his luxurious Chelsea house. Monty is a melodramatic aesthete, who Marwood infers is homosexual. The three briefly drink together as Withnail casually lies to Monty about his acting career. He further deceives Monty by implying that Marwood attended Eton College ("the other place"), whilst a lithograph of Harrow School seen earlier in the flat suggests that both Monty and Withnail were educated there. Withnail persuades his uncle to lend them the cottage key and they leave.
Withnail and Marwood drive to the cottage the next day but find the weather cold and wet, the cottage without provisions and the locals unwelcoming—in particular a poacher, Jake, who Withnail offends in the pub. Marwood becomes anxious when he later sees Jake prowling around the cottage and suggests they leave for London the next day. Withnail in turn demands that they share a bed in the interest of safety but Marwood refuses. During the night, Withnail fears that the poacher wants to harm them and climbs under the covers with Marwood, who angrily leaves for a different bed. Hearing the sounds of an intruder breaking into the cottage, Withnail again joins Marwood in bed. The intruder turns out to be Monty, with supplies.
The next day, Marwood realises Monty's visit has ulterior motives when he makes aggressive sexual advances upon him; Withnail seems oblivious to this. Monty drives them into town and gives them money to buy wellington boots but they go to a pub instead, and then to a small cafe where they cause a disturbance. Monty is hurt, though he forgets the offence as the three drink and play poker. Marwood is terrified by the thought of Monty's further sexual overtures and wants to leave immediately, but Withnail insists on staying. Late in the night, Marwood tries to avoid Monty's company but is eventually cornered in the guest bedroom as Monty demands sex. Monty also reveals that Withnail, during the visit in London, lied that Marwood was a closet homosexual. Marwood lies that Withnail is the closeted one and that the two of them are in a committed relationship, which Withnail wishes to keep secret from his family and that this is the first night in six years that they have not slept together. Monty, a romantic, believes this explanation and leaves after apologising for coming between them. In private, Marwood furiously confronts Withnail.
The next morning, they find Monty has left for London, leaving a note wishing them happiness together. They continue to argue. A telegram arrives from Marwood's agent with a possible offer of work and he insists they return. As Marwood sleeps in the car, Withnail drunkenly speeds most of the way back until pulled over by the police who arrest him for driving under the influence. The pair return to the flat to find Danny and a friend named Presuming Ed squatting. Marwood calls his agent and discovers he is wanted for the lead part in a play but will need to move to Manchester to take it. The four share a huge cannabis joint but the celebration ends when Marwood learns they have received an eviction notice for unpaid rent, while Withnail is too high to care. Marwood—with new haircut—packs a bag to leave for the railway station. He turns down Withnail's offer of a goodbye drink, so Withnail walks with him to the station. In Regent's Park, Marwood reciprocates Withnail saying that he will miss him, and then leaves. Alone with bottle of wine in hand, Withnail performs "What a piece of work is a man!" from Hamlet to the wolves in a nearby Zoo enclosure, and then turns to walk home in the rain.
Reception[edit]
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 92% based on 37 reviews, with an average rating of 8.50/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann prove irresistibly hilarious as two misanthropic slackers in Withnail and I, a biting examination of artists living on the fringes of prosperity and good taste."[39]
Film critic Roger Ebert added the film to his Great Movies list, describing Grant's performance as a "tour de force" and Withnail as "one of the iconic figures in modern films".[40]
Bruce Robinson won the Best Screenplay award at the 1988 Evening Standard British Film Awards.
Legacy[edit]
The film is routinely regarded as being among the finest British movies ever made, and its influence has been cited by several filmmakers as directly inspiring their work, among them Shane Black's The Nice Guys, James Ponsoldt's The End of the Tour, Todd Sklar's Awful Nice, Jay and Mark Duplass's Jeff, Who Lives at Home, John Bryant's The Overbrook Brothers, David Gordon Green's Pineapple Express, Alexander Payne's Sideways, and Tom DiCillo's Box of Moonlight.[41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48]
In 1999, the British Film Institute voted Withnail and I the 29th greatest British film of all time.[49] In 2001, Withnail and I was ranked 38th in Channel 4's 100 Greatest Films poll.[50] In 2008, the film was ranked number 118 in Empire's 500 Greatest Films of All Time list.[51] A 2009 poll by The Guardian among film critics and filmmakers voted it the second best British film of the last 25 years.[52] In 2011, Time Out London named it the seventh-greatest comedy film of all time.[53] In a 2014 poll, readers of Empire voted Withnail and I the 92nd greatest film.[54]
In 2016, Games Radar voted Withnail and I the 16th greatest comedy film of all time.[55] In a 2017 poll of 150 actors, directors, writers, producers and critics for Time Out magazine, the film was ranked the 15th best British film ever.[56] The line "We want the finest wines available to humanity, we want them here and we want them now", delivered by Richard E. Grant as Withnail, was voted the third favourite film one-liner in a 2003 poll of 1,000 film fans.[57]
There is a drinking game associated with the film.[58] The game consists of keeping up, drink for drink, with each alcoholic substance consumed by Withnail over the course of the film.[59][60] All told, Withnail is shown drinking roughly 9+1⁄2 glasses of red wine, one-half imperial pint (280 ml) of cider, one shot of lighter fluid (vinegar or overproof rum are common substitutes), 2+1⁄2 measures of gin, six glasses of sherry, thirteen drams of Scotch whisky and 1⁄2 pint of ale.[61]
In 1992, filmmaker David Fincher attempted to create an unofficial reunion of sorts, when he tried casting all three of the film's main characters in Alien 3. McGann and Brown appeared; however, Richard E. Grant turned down his role. It eventually went to Charles Dance, who played the character of Clemens in the "spirit of Withnail".[62]
In 1996, the Los Angeles Times reported the film (and the associated drinking game) had achieved cult status prior to its home video re-release in the United States.[63]
In 2007, a digitally remastered version of the film was released by the UK Film Council. It was shown at over 50 cinemas around the UK on 11 September, as part of the final week of the BBC's Summer of British Film season.[64]
In 2010, McGann said that he sometimes meets viewers who believe the film was actually shot in the 1960s, saying "It comes from the mid-1980s, but it sticks out like a Smiths record. Its provenance is from a different era. None of the production values, none of the iconography, none of the style remotely has it down as an 80s picture."[65]