Withnail & I
If you don't remember the 60s don't worry, neither can they.
Country
Production
Budget
$0
Box office
$1 803 539
Director
Actors
Richard E. Grant, Paul McGann, Richard Griffiths, Ralph Brown, Michael Elphick, Daragh O'Malley, Michael Wardle, Una Brandon-Jones, Noel Johnson, Irene Sutcliffe
All actors and roles (10)
All actors and roles (10)
Scenario
Producer
Paul M. Heller, George Harrison, Denis O'Brien
Camera operator
Peter Hannan
Composer
David Dundas
Artist
Michael Pickwoad
Audition
Editing
Alan Strachan
Whole Team (42)
Whole Team (42)
Short description
Two out-of-work actors -- the anxious, luckless Marwood and his acerbic, alcoholic friend, Withnail -- spend their days drifting between their squalid flat, the unemployment office and the pub. When they take a holiday "by mistake" at the country house of Withnail's flamboyantly gay uncle, Monty, they encounter the unpleasant side of the English countryside: tedium, terrifying locals and torrential rain.
What's left behind the scenes
- Daniel Day-Lewis could have starred in the film.
- Withnail is played by a staunch teetotaler, Richard E. Grant. Only once did he drink a glass of vodka in one go for the sake of authenticity, after which he immediately became intoxicated. McGann and Robinson later told him that the footage had never seen anything funnier.
- There were quite a few contenders for the role of Withnail, including Kenneth Branagh, Edward Tudor-Pol, and the director's friend Bill Nighy. However, the final choice fell on Richard E. Grant, a British actor of Swazi origin, who, on the director's advice, was supposed to lose weight before filming.
- The director immediately invited Paul McGann to play Marwood, his onscreen alter ego, but after auditions, he rejected him due to a strong Liverpool accent. But since Bruce Robinson couldn't find anyone else for the role, and Paul McGann had meanwhile practically gotten rid of the accent, he was the one who embodied the image of Marwood in the film.
- Bruce Robinson received a token sum of one pound from Harrison's company for the screenplay, £80,000 for directing, and £30,000 for additional filming.
- Bruce Robinson's screenplay is largely autobiographical. He based it on his unpublished novel of the same name from 1969, in which he implied himself under the name "Marwood." However, in the film, this is an unnamed character, "I." The name Marwood flashes before the viewer only once, in the address on a telegram.
- In 1968, Bruce Robinson played Benvolio in Franco Zeffirelli's "Romeo and Juliet." The director, being gay, constantly tried to seduce him. Robinson used his habits and manner of speech in his film, endowing Uncle Monty, who attempts to seduce Marwood, with them.
- The name "Whitnail" comes from Robinson's childhood. It's a local guy named Jonathan Whitnail who crashed into a police car in the parking lot near a pub.
- Bruce Robinson's screenplay is largely autobiographical. He based it on his own unpublished novel of the same name from 1969, in which he cast himself as a character named 'Marwood.' However, in the film, this is an anonymous 'I' character. The name Marwood appears before the viewer only once, in an address on a telegram.
- Daniel Day-Lewis was considered for a role in the film.
- In 1968, Bruce Robinson played Benvolio in Franco Zeffirelli's 'Romeo and Juliet.' The director, who was gay, constantly tried to seduce him. Robinson used the man's mannerisms and speech patterns in his own film, attributing them to Uncle Monty, who attempts to seduce Marwood.
- The name 'Withnail' comes from Robinson's childhood. It was a local guy named Jonathan Withnail, who crashed into a police car in a parking lot near a pub.
- Whitney is played by Richard E. Grant, a committed teetotaler. Only once, for the sake of authenticity, did he down a glass of vodka in one go, after which he became intoxicated immediately. McGann and Robinson later told him that the film had never captured anything funnier.
- There were quite a few candidates for the role of Whitney, including Kenneth Branagh, Edward Tudor-Pole, and the director's friend Bill Nighy. However, the final choice fell on Richard E. Grant, a British actor of Swazi descent, who, on the director's advice, had to lose weight before filming.
- For the role of Marwood, his on-screen alter ego, the director immediately invited Paul McGann, although he initially rejected him after auditions due to a strong Liverpool accent. But since Bruce Robinson found no one else for the part, and Paul McGann had by then practically eliminated the accent, it was he who embodied the character of Marwood in the film.
- Bruce Robinson received a symbolic sum of one pound from Harrison's company for the screenplay; he was paid 80,000 pounds for directing and 30,000 pounds for additional filming.
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Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
