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Curtis is Wanda, part of a diamond group along with Ken (Palin), George Thomason (Tom Georgeson), and her brother Otto (Kline). They pull off a multi-million pound heist in England, and hide the loot. It seems, though, that Wanda and Otto (who aren’t actually brother and sister but lovers) want it all for themselves. So they turn George into the police to try to find out where he hid the loot. It seems the only person George would have told about where the loot is would be his barrister Archie Leach (Cleese). So, naturally, Wanda goes up to him and becomes “friends” with him, much to the dismay of Otto.
A Fish Called Wanda is a twistful and delightful comedy that shows the new sex comedies that they don’t need gross body functions to be funny. I’m not saying this movie is completely tasteful. Ken, who is an animal lover, accidentally kills dogs. But, it’s not too explicit.
Most of the humor comes from Kline, who always shows up whenever Archie and Wanda are together, and who pretends he’s gay and tries to get Ken. Some of those subplots, such as the gay one and Kline hating people that call him stupid, seem to not matter. But it is funny. Cleese’s script is full of surprises. And most of these laughs were genuine, unlike the fakey ones from other movies. Who can forget Kline’s shout whenever he’s in the car? It is a memorable movie.
Kline puts up his best comedic performance, and deserved his Oscar for best supporting actor. He has excellent comedic timing, always putting the joke on at the right time. He had great chemistry with everyone; it seemed to blend in with the lifestyles of the others. Curtis was excellent in a comedic role. Of course, Cleese and Palin are no strangers to comedy. Cleese seemed like a typical British person-stuck up and courteous. He actually talks about that during the film. Palin was great with a stutter that actually is an important part of the film.
It seems that A Fish Called Wanda thinks itself as “bad” and “let’s offend everyone!” However, it’s one of the more tasteful comedies I’ve seen recently. Its jokes are almost always funny and tasteful, with Kline’s trigger-happy attitude that explodes every once in a while. This group, that came back for 1997’s Fierce Creatures, were excellent and they look like they had fun together. Which is good for them. However, after the first forty minutes or so, the humor kind of wavers and it becomes a little uneven. There are still jokes, of course, but not as rapid-fire as the ones before. But considering the humor of the film in its entirety, it could be considered a moot point.
A Fish Called Wanda is a very hilarious comedy that you’ll remember for a while, and looks like it can stick up for repeated viewings, because there are so many jokes you’ll forget a lot of them.
Rated R for language and comic violence and sexuality.
Review Date: December 28, 2002