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Uncle
Monty's cottage up fore sale »
Much
of Withnail and I is filmed around Penrith, Shap and in the National
Park. Withnail demands 'the finest wines available to humanity'
at a Penrith café during the film.
In
1996, when the film celebrated its 10th anniversary, Penrith was
offered a special re-launch preview screening - they said no because
they thought film doesn't show the town in a good light!
About
the film
The "I" of the title is Marwood - he and Withnail
are out-of-work actors sharing a house in the sixties. They decide
to escape the cold, damp and washing-up of their Camden flat for
Withnail's uncle's holiday cottage.
The
film was written and directed by Bruce Robinson, based on experiences
during his youth. The character traits seen in Withnail and I are
taken from his own housemates and acquaintances at the time (roughly
seven people rolled into two).
Richard
E. Grant plays 'Withnail' (generally pronounced 'with-null').
The character smokes and drinks heavily and the role is widely regarded
as a triumph of acting - Grant himself is teetotal and has never
been drunk - he smoked herbal cigarettes during the film. Withnail
enjoys all of life's vices - one scene shows him sharing the 'Camberwell
carrot' - a huge cone-shaped spliff.
Paul
McGann plays Marwood. The film follows his diary entries
- the viewer never finds out his name in the film, he's always the
first person, "I". He is the weaker character, always
talked into mischief by Withnail. However, he always has a brighter
outlook and is prepared to take a small acting part to get recognised.
Withnail's attitude is 'all or nothing'. This difference in attitudes
makes the ending of the film very poignant - giving the film an
almost moralistic ending.
Montague
Withnail ('Uncle Monty') is a very camp ex-thespian played
by Richard Griffiths. He owns the cottage which Withnail and Marwood
stay at in the film. He takes a shine to Marwood and follows them
on their holiday. This comes to an hilarious if eventually touching
conclusion at the cottage.
Film information supplied by Iain Nash, Ireleth.
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