Water (1985 film)

Last updated

Water
Waterposter1985.jpg
US Theatrical release poster
Directed by Dick Clement
Written by
Based onstory by Bill Persky
Produced byIan La Frenais
Starring
Cinematography Douglas Slocombe
Music by
Production
company
Distributed by Rank Film Distributors
Release date
  • 11 January 1985 (1985-01-11)
Running time
98 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1,256,862 [1]

Water is a 1985 British comedy film directed by Dick Clement and starring Michael Caine. It was scripted by Clement and Ian La Frenais. The plot spoofs elements of the comedies Carlton-Browne of the F.O. (1958) and Passport to Pimlico (1948) and the then-recent invasions of the Falkland Islands and Grenada. Caine plays Baxter Thwaites, a Governor who has 'gone native' (similar to his role in The Honorary Consul ), and Billy Connolly as local biracial activist Delgado, supported by the last performance of Leonard Rossiter, as Sir Malcolm Leveridge, and one of the last performances of Fulton Mackay.

Contents

Plot

The story is set in the fictional Caribbean island and British colony of Cascara. Widely ignored by the British Government, media, and general public, local Governor Baxter Thwaites is having an easy life in his small and peaceful colony. That peace is disturbed when an abandoned oil rig starts delivering water - at the standard of the finest table water brands (and laxative companies, as it contains a substance that makes you "shit like clockwork"). Different parties, including Downing Street, the Cascara Liberation Front, the White House, French bottled water producers, and Cuban guerrillas take interest in the future of the island and threaten to destroy the cosy way of life enjoyed by the island's inhabitants.

Cast

Production

Development

The film was one of three movies that HandMade Films intended to shoot in 1984, the others being A Private Function and a comedy from John MacKenzie, The Travelling Man (which ultimately would not be made). It was written by the experienced comedy duo Ian La Frenais and Dick Clement, who had just made Bullshot (1983) for HandMade. [2] "I guess it was like an Ealing film," said Clement, "but it was not a conscious effort to recreate that style. I can see the analogies with something like Passport to Pimlico ." [3]

Writing

Le Frenais and Clement had made a television pilot in the US with Bill Persky who came up with the idea of a fictional British colony in the Caribbean which sought independence. The three of them wrote a screenplay which Persky wanted to direct (he had made the film Serial (1980)) but they were unable to raise finance. Then when Clement and Le Frenais made Bullshot for Handmade they showed the script to Denis O'Brien, head of the studio. "It was Denis who absolutely loved the script and really responded to it and said, 'Let's do it'," said Clement. [4] The fictional island of Cascara, which was the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia, is a play on Cascara, a plant which has laxative properties because in the film a re-opened oil well is discovered to produce mineral water with a 'slight laxative effect'. After Clement and Le Frenais wrote another draft of the script, they sent it to Michael Caine, who loved it and wanted to be in the film. Clement says, "We were thrilled because we knew that meant we would get the film made, and suddenly it was a go project." [4]

Casting

Denis O'Brien liked to use members of Monty Python in HandMade films and offered the role of Sir Malcolm Leveridge to John Cleese. Cleese read the script and turned it down; Leonard Rossiter played the role instead, in what turned out to be Rossiter's last film. [5]

At the time Billy Connolly was an emerging comedian, much admired by Denis O'Brien. "They were always trying to put him into a movie because Denis was convinced that Billy Connolly was the funniest man in Britain," said Clement. "He was way ahead of the pack there." O'Brien insisted that Connolly be in Bullshot and Water. "He was actually cast before anybody else," said Clement. [6]

Billy Connolly later recalled the making of the movie. "We went to Heathrow to fly out, and fly out we did. Not knowing that - there were no mobile phones then of course - they were racing up to tell us not to go. That the money had fallen through. But by the time the plane landed in Saint Lucia, they'd got the money again!" [7]

The television presenter Paul Heiney played a small role in the film for an episode for the BBC series In at the Deep End .

Filming

The movie started filming in May 1984. The same month A Private Function also went into production and people who worked on that film felt their budget was sacrificed in order to fund Water. [8]

Shooting took place mostly on Saint Lucia. There were few filmmaking facilities so items had to be shipped there by sea. Studio work was done at Shepperton Studios in London and the oil rig scenes were shot in Devon.

Dick Clement later said, "We were rewriting the ending as we went along and that's never good... In hindsight, I always think you need to get those decisions out of the way before you get on the set. But, on the whole, it was a good shoot. Michael Caine was a fantastic trouper on the film, he was really a joy to work with, enormously supportive. I can’t be more appreciative of his work on it and how professional he was. In a way, Michael had the straightest part in the film, he was almost the straight man. He kept saying to me, 'You realise I'm having to carry all the plot here?'" [9]

Connolly said Caine "taught me so much, about how to be generous to other actors. We were climbing up a hill and we were being filmed from the top. Suddenly he went, oh! My leg! And he spoiled a whole take. So they said we're doing it again, and he whispered to me 'next time, move further to the right, they can't see you'. He was lovely." [7]

George Harrison normally did not get too involved in production of HandMade's films. However, he helped out on Water by appearing in the concert at the end and getting his friends Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Jon Lord and Ray Cooper to appear. "George was very leery of appearing in his own company's movies," says Clement, "that was a big help to the film. We called in a few favours and, obviously, the Harrison connection didn't hurt. We hoped that scene would be a big selling tool for the movie... didn't work out that way but it was a good idea." [10]

The concert scene was shot in a single day at Shepperton Studios. Clapton, Starr and Harrison were paid the musician's minimum rate for a playback session on set. [11]

Soundtrack

The soundtrack principally featured reggae music by Eddy Grant and was released by Ariston Records.

Side 1
No.TitleWriter(s)ArtistLength
1."Water"Eddy GrantEddy Grant3:56
2."Walking on Sunshine"Eddy GrantEddy Grant3:50
3."All As One"Ian La Frenais, Mike Moran Lance Ellington 3:50
4."The Cascaran National Anthem"Bill Persky, Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais, Mike Moran 0:59
5."Instrumental" Mighty Gabby Mighty Gabby 2:55
6."Focus of Attention"Dick Clement, George Harrison, Mike Moran Jimmy Helms 2:10
Side 2
No.TitleWriter(s)ArtistLength
1."Living on the Frontline"Eddy GrantEddy Grant3:40
2."Cascara"Mike MoranLance Ellington3:48
3."Jack"Mighty GabbyMighty Gabby4:45
4."Celebration"George Harrison, Mike MoranJimmy Helms3:46
5."Freedom"Eric Clapton, Ian La FrenaisBilly Connolly, Chris Tummings, The Singing Rebel's Band4:40
6."Water (Instrumental)"Eddy GrantEddy Grant2:18

The Singing Rebel's Band consists of Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Ray Cooper, Jon Lord, Mike Moran, Chris Stainton and Ringo Starr, with backing singers Jenny Bogle and Anastasia Rodriguez. [12] It spoofs The Concert for Bangladesh organised by Harrison in 1971.

Release

The film premiered in London in January 1985. It was briefly in the top ten box office listing - along with A Private Function - but soon dropped out. It failed to recoup its costs and could not find an American distributor. When it was released there in April 1986 it failed at the box office there too. [3]

Reception

The film received a mixed review in the New York Times, which read in part "The folks who packaged this put-on operated on the theory that a lot of eccentric people doing nutty things produce hilarity. The ingredient missing from the fitfully amusing conglomeration of characters is a character for the whole. In kidding everything, the movie leaves us uncertain about whether anything is being seriously kidded." [13]

The Los Angeles Times called it "so refreshingly funny that you're tempted to forgive its tendency to run dry in its last half-hour... boasts some of the wittiest lines heard on screen since A Private Function ." [14]

Dick Clement later reflected:

I'm happier with Bullshot than I am with Water. I think Water just misses. I feel it's not quite connecting in the right way. I look back on it and I'm fairly uncomfortable. For me I always did have a problem with fictional countries or places, I always like things rooted a little bit more in reality. I have a feeling that kind of thing works perhaps in fiction, but I always find that film is a very literal medium, you've got to sell stuff on the screen and I think it was larger than life in a way that isn't quite comfortable on screen and I don't think I pulled it off... And again in hindsight as much as I love Billy Connolly I think a black guy in that part would have been better. I think that would've helped the credibility of making it a Caribbean island. [15]

Michael Palin later said the financial failure of the film "was a bit of a turning point in HandMade Films, that Water was such a disaster and yet so much money was put into it. Somehow the luck ran out because judgement up to that time had been pretty good." [3]

Home media

Water was first released on home video by Paramount Home Video on 1 February 1987. The film received its first DVD edition in North America in 2006, courtesy of Anchor Bay Entertainment.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leonard Rossiter</span> British actor (1926–1984)

Leonard Rossiter was an English actor. He had a long career in the theatre but achieved his highest profile for his television comedy roles starring as Rupert Rigsby in the ITV series Rising Damp from 1974 to 1978, and Reginald Perrin in the BBC's The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin from 1976 to 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Caine</span> English actor (born 1933)

Sir Michael Caine is a retired English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over a career that spanned eight decades and is considered a British film icon. He has received numerous awards including two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, three Golden Globe Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. As of 2017, the films in which Caine has appeared have grossed over $7.8 billion worldwide. Caine is one of only five male actors to be nominated for an Academy Award for acting in five different decades. In 2000, he received a BAFTA Fellowship and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

<i>Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?</i> British TV sitcom (1973–1974)

Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? is a British sitcom which was broadcast on BBC1 between 9 January 1973 and 9 April 1974. It was the colour sequel to the mid-1960s hit The Likely Lads. It was created and written, as was its predecessor, by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. There were 26 television episodes over two series, and a subsequent 45-minute Christmas special was aired on 24 December 1974. The show won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Situation Comedy in 1974.

<i>Billy Liar</i> 1959 novel by Keith Waterhouse

Billy Liar is a 1959 novel by Keith Waterhouse that was later adapted into a play, a film, a musical and a TV series. The work has inspired and been featured in a number of popular songs.

<i>Porridge</i> (1974 TV series) British TV sitcom (1974–1977)

Porridge is a British sitcom, starring Ronnie Barker and Richard Beckinsale, written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and broadcast on BBC1 from 1974 to 1977. The programme ran for three series and two Christmas specials. A feature film of the same name based on the series was released in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Connolly</span> Scottish actor and comedian (born 1942)

Sir William Connolly is a Scottish retired comedian, actor, artist, musician, and television presenter. He is sometimes known by the Scots nickname the Big Yin. Known for his idiosyncratic and often improvised observational comedy, frequently including strong language, Connolly has topped many UK polls as the greatest stand-up comedian of all time. In 2022 he received the BAFTA Fellowship for lifetime achievement from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.

Dick Clement is an English writer, director and producer. He became known for his writing partnership with Ian La Frenais for television series including The Likely Lads, Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, Porridge, Lovejoy and Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.

Ian La Frenais is an English writer best known for his creative partnership with Dick Clement. They are most famous for television series including The Likely Lads, Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, Porridge and its sequel Going Straight, Lovejoy and Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.

<i>Streets of Fire</i> 1984 film by Walter Hill

Streets of Fire is a 1984 American action crime neo-noir film directed by Walter Hill, from a screenplay by Hill and Larry Gross. Described on the poster and in the opening credits as "A Rock & Roll Fable", the film combines elements of the automobile culture and music from the 1950s with the fashion style and sociology of the 1980s. Starring Michael Paré, Diane Lane, Rick Moranis, Amy Madigan, Willem Dafoe, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, E.G. Daily, and Bill Paxton, the film follows ex-soldiers Tom Cody (Paré) and McCoy (Madigan) as they embark on a mission to rescue Cody's ex-girlfriend Ellen Aim (Lane), who was kidnapped by Raven Shaddock (Dafoe), the leader of an outlaw motorcycle gang called The Bombers.

<i>Billion Dollar Brain</i> 1967 British film by Ken Russell

Billion Dollar Brain is a 1967 British espionage film directed by Ken Russell and based on the 1966 novel Billion-Dollar Brain by Len Deighton. The film features Michael Caine as secret agent Harry Palmer, the anti-hero protagonist. The "brain" of the title is a sophisticated computer with which an anti-communist organisation controls its worldwide anti-Soviet spy network.

The Evening Standard British Film Awards were established in 1973 by London's Evening Standard newspaper. The Standard Awards is the only ceremony "dedicated to British and Irish talent," judged by a panel of "top UK critics." Each ceremony honours films from the previous year.

<i>Villain</i> (1971 film) 1971 film by Michael Tuchner

Villain is a 1971 British gangster film directed by Michael Tuchner and starring Richard Burton, Ian McShane, Nigel Davenport and Donald Sinden. It is based on James Barlow's 1968 novel The Burden of Proof. Villain was director Michael Tuchner's first feature film after directing in television.

<i>Ghost in the Noonday Sun</i> 1974 British film

Ghost in the Noonday Sun is a 1974 British comedy film directed by Peter Medak starring Peter Sellers, Anthony Franciosa and Spike Milligan. The film suffered a difficult production due to Sellers's erratic behavior and was not theatrically released. Medak described the film as "the biggest disaster of my life" in 2016.

<i>Bullshot</i> (film) 1983 British film

Bullshot is a 1983 British comedy film, based on the stage play Bullshot Crummond. The name comes from a parody of the 1929 film Bulldog Drummond with the lead character having elements of Drummond and Biggles.

<i>The Magus</i> (film) 1968 British film

The Magus is a 1968 British mystery film directed by Guy Green. The screenplay was written by John Fowles, based on his 1965 novel of the same name. It starred Michael Caine, Anthony Quinn, Candice Bergen and Anna Karina.

Sheila Fearn is an English retired actress best known for playing Audrey, the sister of Terry Collier in BBC situation comedies The Likely Lads and Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?, and also later on as Ann Fourmile, the next door neighbour in the Thames Television sitcom George and Mildred.

<i>Otley</i> (film) 1969 British film by Dick Clement

Otley is a 1968 British comedy thriller film directed by Dick Clement and starring Tom Courtenay and Romy Schneider. It was adapted by Clement and Ian La Frenais from the 1966 novel of the same name by Martin Waddell, and released by Columbia Pictures.

<i>The Prisoner of Zenda</i> (1979 film) 1979 film by Richard Quine

The Prisoner of Zenda is a 1979 American comedy film directed by Richard Quine that stars Peter Sellers, Lynne Frederick, Lionel Jeffries, Elke Sommer, Gregory Sierra, Jeremy Kemp, and Catherine Schell. It is adapted from the 1894 adventure novel by Anthony Hope. The novel tells the story of a man who has to impersonate a king, whom he closely resembles, when the king is abducted by enemies on the eve of his coronation.

<i>Porridge</i> (film) 1979 British comedy film by Dick Clement

Porridge is a 1979 British comedy film directed by Dick Clement and starring Ronnie Barker, Richard Beckinsale, Fulton Mackay and Brian Wilde. It was written by Clement and Ian La Frenais based on their BBC television series Porridge (1974–1977). Most of prison officers and inmates from the original series appear in the film, with the notable exceptions of Lukewarm, Blanco, Heslop and Harris. There is also a different governor, played by Geoffrey Bayldon rather than series regular Michael Barrington.

Travis McGee is a 1983 American TV movie based on the 1978 novel The Empty Copper Sea by John D. MacDonald. It was the second film adaptation of the Travis McGee series. It was made by Warner Bros.

References

  1. Water at Box Office Mojo
  2. Sellers p 143
  3. 1 2 3 Sellers p 165
  4. 1 2 Sellers p 145
  5. Sellers p 146
  6. Sellers p 156
  7. 1 2 Brew, Simon (24 September 2014). "Billy Connolly interview: What We Did, Muppets, X-Files". Den of Geek.
  8. Sellers p 154
  9. Sellers p 155
  10. Sellers p 157
  11. Sellers p 158
  12. full cast list at IMDB
  13. "Michael Caine in Water", Walter Goodman, New York Times, 18 April 1986
  14. Thomas, Kevin (19 April 1986). "COME ON IN, THE 'WATER' IS REFRESHING". Los Angeles Times. p. E9.
  15. Sellers p 164-165