Withnail & I (1987) on Netflix
Two out-of-work actors, Withnail and Marwood, share a squalid Camden flat. Withnail's wealthy uncle Monty lends them his cottage near Penrith, and the pair head north for a holiday.
- Netflix3.5/5
- IMDb7.5/1053,041 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes94%
Trailer
Plot summary
It is September 1969. Withnail and Marwood are two actors without work who share a squalid flat in Camden Town, London. Danny, their drug dealer, is the only person who visits them regularly. One morning the pair squabble about housekeeping, then walk in Regent's Park, where they talk about how badly their acting careers are going and about wanting a holiday. Marwood suggests the cottage near Penrith that belongs to Withnail's wealthy uncle Monty. That evening they visit Monty at his Chelsea house, and Withnail talks him into lending them the key.
Cast
- Michael Wardleas Isaac Parkin
- Irene Sutcliffeas Waitress
- Robert Oatesas Policeman 1
Show all 14 cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Withnail & I (1987)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Though he plays a raging alcoholic, Grant is a teetotaller with an allergy to alcohol and had never been drunk before making the film, so Robinson "forced" him on a drinking binge; Grant said he was "violently sick" after each drink and found the experience deeply unpleasant.
- During the filming of the scene in which Withnail drinks a can of lighter fluid, Robinson changed the contents of the can between takes from water to vinegar to get a better reaction from Grant.
SPOILER
The end of Robinson's novel saw Withnail commit suicide by pouring a bottle of wine into the barrel of Monty's shotgun and pulling the trigger as he drank from it; Robinson changed the ending because he believed it was "too dark".- Uncle Monty's question to Marwood, "Are you a sponge or a stone?", is a direct quotation of Zeffirelli, referring to the sexual harassment Robinson alleges he suffered at his hands when, at 21, he won the role of Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet.
- Marwood is Robinson himself, Withnail is based on Vivian MacKerrell, a friend with whom he shared a Camden house, and Uncle Monty is loosely based on Franco Zeffirelli, from whom Robinson received unwanted amorous attentions when he was a young actor.
- McGann was Robinson's first choice for "I" but was fired during rehearsals because Robinson decided his Scouse accent was wrong for the character; after several other actors read for the role, McGann persuaded Robinson to re-audition him, promising a Home Counties accent, and won the part back.
- Denis O'Brien, who oversaw the filming on behalf of HandMade Films, nearly shut the film down on the first day of production, thinking it had no "discernible jokes" and was badly lit.
- Sleddale Hall was offered for sale in January 2009 with a starting price of £145,000 and won at auction for £265,000, but the winning bidder failed to secure financing and the property was resold to an architect from Kent whose original bid had failed.
