Withnail and I

Withnail and I
Original UK release poster
Art by Ralph Steadman
Directed byBruce Robinson
Written byBruce Robinson
Produced byPaul Heller
Starring
CinematographyPeter Hannan
Edited byAlan Strachan
Music by
Distributed byHandMade Films
Release date
  • 1 January 1987 (1987-01-01) (United Kingdom)[1]
Running time
107 minutes[2]
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget£1.1 million[1][a]
Box office$1.7 million[3]

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]

  1. ^ a b Smith, Adam (1 January 2012). "EMPIRE ESSAY: Withnail & I Review". Empire Online.
  2. ^ "Withnail and I (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 27 March 1987. Retrieved 15 January 2012.
  3. ^ "Withnail & I". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  4. ^ Russell, Jamie (October 2003). "How "Withnail & I" Became a Cult". BBC. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
  5. ^ "Withnail and I". Handmade Films. Retrieved 17 January 2020.


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