The Fisher King (1991)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Terry Gilliam

Writer (WGA):

Richard LaGravenese (written by)

Release Date:

20 September 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

A Modern Day Tale About The Search For Love, Sanity, Ethel Merman And The Holy Grail.

Plot:

A radio DJ, suicidally despondent because of a horrible mistake he made, finds redemption in helping a deranged homeless man who was a victim of it.

Plot Keywords:

Redemption | Holy Grail | Friendship | Massacre | Love

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 11 wins & 16 nominations

Cast

Jeff Bridges	...	Jack Lucas
Robin Williams	...	Parry
Mercedes Ruehl	...	Anne Napolitano
Amanda Plummer	...	Lydia Sinclair
David Hyde Pierce	...	Lou Rosen (as David Pierce)
Adam Bryant	...	Radio engineer
Paul Lombardi	...	Radio engineer
Ted Ross	...	Limo bum
Lara Harris	...	Sondra
Warren Olney	...	TV anchorman
Frazer Smith	...	News reporter
Kathy Najimy	...	Crazed video customer
Harry Shearer	...	Sitcom actor Ben Starr
Melinda Culea	...	Sitcom wife
James Remini	...	Bum at hotel
Mark Bowden	...	Doorman
John Ottavino	...	Father at hotel
Brian Michaels	...	Little boy
Jayce Bartok	...	First punk
Dan Futterman	...	Second punk
Bradley Gregg	...	Hippie bum
William Jay Marshall	...	Jamaican bum
William Preston	...	John the bum
Al Fann	...	Superintendent
Stephen Bridgewater	...	Porno customer
John Heffernan	...	Stockbroker bum
Chris Howell	...	Red Knight
Michael Jeter	...	Homeless cabaret singer
Richard LaGravenese	...	Strait jacket yuppie
Anita Dangler	...	Bag lady
Mark Bringleson	...	Drooler (as Mark Bringelson)
Johnny Paganelli	...	Pizza boy
Diane Robin	...	Receptionist
John Benjamin Red	...	Motorcyclist
Lisa Blades	...	Mrs. Sagan, Parry's wife
Christian Clemenson	...	Edwin
Carlos Carrasco	...	Doctor
Joe Jamrog	...	Guard
John de Lancie	...	TV executive
Lou Hancock	...	Nurse
Caroline Cromelin	...	Radio show call-in (voice)
Kathleen Bridget Kelly	...	Radio show call-in (voice)
Pat Fraley	...	Radio show call-in (voice) (as Patrick Fraley)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mel Bourne	...	Langdon Carmichael (uncredited)
Kristen Connors	...	Ballroom Dancer (uncredited)
Kevin Fennessy	...	Diner (uncredited)
Jack Mulcahy	...	Passerby (uncredited)
Tom Waits	...	Disabled veteran (uncredited)

Directed by
Terry Gilliam

Writing credits (WGA)
Richard LaGravenese		(written by)

Produced by
Debra Hill	....	producer
Tony Mark	....	associate producer (as Anthony Mark)
Lynda Obst	....	producer
Stacey Sher	....	associate producer

Original Music by
George Fenton

Cinematography by
Roger Pratt		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Lesley Walker

Casting by
Howard Feuer

Production Design by
Mel Bourne

Art Direction by
P. Michael Johnston

Set Decoration by
Cindy Carr

Costume Design by
Beatrix Aruna Pasztor		(as Beatrix Pasztor)

Makeup Department
Zoltan Elek	....	key makeup artist
Craig Lyman	....	makeup artist: New York
Lisa Meyers	....	key hair stylist (as Lisa Joy Meyers)

Production Management
Mark A. Baker	....	assistant unit production manager: New York
Sharre Jacoby	....	post-production supervisor
Tony Mark	....	unit production manager (as Anthony Mark)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Cyd Adams	....	second second assistant director: New York
Carla Corwin	....	second assistant director
David McGiffert	....	first assistant director
Joe Napolitano	....	first assistant director
Marge Piane	....	dga trainee (as Margaret Piane)
Cynthia A. Potthast	....	second second assistant director
Rebecca Saionz	....	DGA trainee: New York

Art Department
David Aaron	....	assistant property master
Joe Bird	....	set decorator: New York (as Joseph L. Bird)
Larry Clark Bird	....	property master
David B. Brenner	....	construction foreman
Giovanni Ferrara	....	paint foreman
Ed Ferraro	....	construction coordinator: New York
Dale Gordon	....	propmaker foreman
Ann Harmon	....	art department assistant (as Anne Harmon)
Rick Heinrichs	....	set designer
Kristen Kelly	....	leadman
Maurice Larson	....	paint foreman (as Maurice E. Larson)
Kevin McCarthy	....	set decorator: New York
Tom McDermott	....	assistant property master: New York (as Thomas A. McDermott)
David C. Potter	....	leadman
Richard Dean Rankin	....	construction coordinator
Manuel Silvia	....	labor foreman
Jason Weil	....	set designer (as Jason R. Weil)
Thomas Wright	....	property master: New York (as Tom Wright)
Michael Zansky	....	chargeman scenic artist: New York
Ken Zimmerman	....	assistant property master
Kai Blomberg	....	set dresser (uncredited)
Tommy Samona	....	set dresser (uncredited)
Michael P. Sweeney	....	set dresser (uncredited)

Sound Department
Stefna Borges	....	assistant sound editor
Joseph F. Brennan	....	boom operator
Paul Carr	....	sound re-recording mixer
Thomas Causey	....	sound mixer
Robert Farr	....	sound re-recording mixer
John Fundus	....	boom operator: New York (as John K. Fundus)
Richard Kite	....	boom operator
Steve Maguire	....	assistant foley editor
Dennis Maitland II	....	sound mixer: New York
Andrew Melhuish	....	assistant dialogue editor
Alan Paley	....	dialogue editor
Peter Pennell	....	sound editor
Bob Risk	....	foley editor
Steve Scanlon	....	cableman: New York (as Stephen Scanlon)
Lionel Strutt	....	adr mixer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Dennis Dion	....	special effects supervisor
Edward Drohan	....	special effects supervisor: New York
Robert E. McCarthy	....	creative special effects consultant
Daniel Sudick	....	special effects (as Dan Sudick)
Vincent Montefusco	....	special effects: first unit mech/PT, Los Angeles (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
William Cruse	....	visual effects
Allen Blaisdell	....	visual effects operator (uncredited)
Martin Body	....	rostrum/optical cameraman (uncredited)
Kent Houston	....	visual effects (uncredited)
Tim Ollive	....	optical effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Janet Brady	....	stunts
Greg Brickman	....	stunts
Jophery C. Brown	....	stunts (as Jophrey Brown)
Loyd Catlett	....	stunts (as Lloyd Catlett)
Gilbert B. Combs	....	stunts (as Gilbert Combs)
Peter Corby	....	stunts
Jeffrey J. Dashnaw	....	stunts (as Jeff Dashnaw)
Andy Duppin	....	stunts
J.B. Getzwiller	....	stunts
Bonnie Hock	....	stunts
Chris Howell	....	stunt coordinator
Rikke Kesten	....	stunts
Harry Madsen	....	stunts
Bennie Moore	....	stunts
Julie Stone	....	stunts
Steve Wolf	....	stunt safety (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Paul Ary	....	electrical best boy
Patrick Bard	....	grip (as Patrick Shaun Bard)
Roger Blauvelt	....	best boy
Neil S. Buckhantz	....	video assist operator
John Cambria	....	second assistant camera: New York
John Clifford	....	still photographer
Ken Connors	....	chief lighting technician: New York (as Kenneth R. Connors)
Robert Connors	....	rigging gaffer: New York (as Robert G. Connors)
R. Michael De Chellis	....	lighting technician (as R. Michael Dechellis)
Marty W. Eichmann	....	key grip (as Marty Eichmann)
Johnathan Ercole	....	first assistant camera: New York (as Jonathan T. Ercole)
James W. Finnerty	....	grip: New York (as Jimmy Finnerty Jr.)
Antonio V. Garrido	....	dolly grip
Steve Gilbert	....	dolly grip
Johnny Gutierrez	....	lighting technician (as John Gutierrez)
Craig Haagensen	....	camera operator
Stephen V. Isbell	....	second grip
Thomas Jirgal	....	second grip: New York (as Thomas J. Jirgal)
Ron Kunecke	....	lighting technician: musco light
Richard Mader Jr.	....	video assist operator: New York
Mike Miller	....	key grip: New York (as Michael Miller)
Robert Miller	....	grip: New York
Nicholas J. Musuraca	....	first assistant camera (as Nicholas J. Masuraca)
Andrew M. Nelson	....	rigging gaffer (as Andy Nelson)
James Plannette	....	chief lighting technician
William R. Taylor	....	grip
Stephen Vaughan	....	still photographer
Greg Walters	....	second assistant camera (as Gregory D. Walters)
Chuck Whelan	....	second assistant camera
Paul David Williams	....	grip
Michael Cambria	....	camera loader (uncredited)
Simon Jayes	....	crane operator: Technocrane (uncredited)
Kyle T. MacDowell	....	grip (uncredited)

Casting Department
Aslihan Coker	....	casting assistant
Todd M. Thaler	....	extras casting: New York (as Todd Thaler)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Mary Gierczak	....	costumer: New York (as Mary Coleman-Gierczak)
Keith Greco	....	red knight costume
Joie Hutchinson	....	costume supervisor
Vincent Jefferds	....	red knight costume
Rainer Judd	....	wardrobe assistant
Randy Starck	....	assistant costume supervisor
Linda Taylor	....	costumer (as Linda Louise Taylor)

Editorial Department
Tristan M. Brighty	....	apprentice film editor: USA (as Tristan Brighty)
Tullio Brunt	....	second assistant film editor
Jeremy Hume	....	assistant film editor
Ed Stabile	....	assistant film editor: USA (as Edward Stabile)
Tara Timpone	....	assistant film editor: USA
Steve Maguire	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Jeff Atmajian	....	additional orchestrator
Ray Cooper	....	music consultant
Keith Grant	....	music scoring mixer
Kevin Lane	....	music editor
Gerry O'Riordan	....	music scoring mixer (as Gerry O'Riorden)
Simon Smart	....	music scoring mixer

Transportation Department
John Leonidas	....	transportation captain: New York
Wayne Roberts	....	transportation captain (as James W. Roberts)
Edward F. Voelker	....	transportation coordinator
Bobby Marsh	....	driver (uncredited)
John Sellars	....	driver (uncredited)

Other crew
Chris Allies	....	title designer
Mark A. Baker	....	location manager: New York
Tristan Paris Bourne	....	production assistant: New York (as Tristan Bourne)
William Bowling	....	location manager (as Bill Bowling)
Jeanne Brennan	....	production secretary: New York (as Jeanne Chrzanowski)
Stephen Bridgewater	....	consultant: DJ
Pierre Caillieriac	....	production assistant: New York (as Pierre Cailliarec)
Todd M. Camhe	....	production assistant: New York
Veronica Claypool	....	assistant accountant
Pam Cornfeld-Walker	....	production coordinator (as Pam Cornfeld)
Mark Galley	....	production assistant
Lawrence P. Ganem	....	assistant location manager: New York
Patrick Garrison	....	production assistant: New York (as Patrick D. Garrison)
Maureen Garvey	....	production assistant: New York
Valencia Giacco	....	assistant: Debra Hill
Robin Horness	....	choreographer
T.R. Jones	....	production assistant (as Tr Jones)
Kathleen Bridget Kelly	....	production assistant: New York (as Kathleen Kelly)
Travis Keyes	....	production assistant
Barbara Lampson	....	production assistant
Timothy C. Lee	....	production assistant: New York
Mark Levenstein	....	assistant production accountant: New York (as Mark J. Levenstein)
Amy Love	....	production assistant
James R. Maceo	....	assistant location manager
Ann F. Markel	....	assistant location manager: New York
Jason Mark	....	production assistant: New York
Jackie Martin	....	production office coordinator: New York
Gary McCarthy	....	assistant accountant (as Gary McCarthy Jr.)
Nicole Miller	....	production assistant
Margaret Mitchell	....	production accountant (as Margaret A. Mitchell)
Desiree Perri	....	assistant production accountant: New York
Susan Pile	....	publicist
Nancy Platt Jacoby	....	news report supervisor
Mark Rhodes	....	additional location manager: New York (as Mark L. Rhodes)
Barry Rosenbush	....	special projects
Carrie Rudolf	....	production assistant: New York
John Rybacki	....	production assistant: New York
Jessica Sher	....	artwork donator
Sy Sher	....	artwork donator
Sharyn Shimada-Huggins	....	production secretary (as Sharyn Shimada)
Ellie Smith	....	production assistant
Yvette S. Taylor	....	assistant: Terry Gilliam
Adrian Thomas	....	synthesizer programmer
Marion Tumen	....	script supervisor
Michael Viglietta	....	production assistant
Carmen B. Weets	....	assistant: Lynda Obst
Ann Weiss-LaGravenese	....	assistant: Anthony Mark
Douglas J. White	....	animal colorist
Marsha Garces Williams	....	assistant: Robin Williams (as Marsha Williams)
James Zoppe	....	horse owner
James Zoppe	....	horse trainer
Jack Holland	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Wendell Morris	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Courtney Pakiz	....	stand-in: Ammanda Plummer (uncredited)
Kevin Phelan	....	cutting room manager: Prominent Studios, London (uncredited)
Kevin Phelan	....	unit projectionist: Prominent Studios, London (uncredited)
Todd Rathner	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Nicholas Wolfert	....	production assistant (uncredited) (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Columbia Pictures Corporation

Distributors

• TriStar Pictures (1991) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1991) (USA) (video)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1992) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (1992) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1994) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International (Argentina)
• Columbia TriStar Films de España (Spain)
• Columbia TriStar (Brazil) (DVD)
• LK-TEL Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• LK-TEL (Argentina) (video)

Special Effects

• Peerless Camera Company (visual effects and opticals)

Other Companies

• Bill Cruse & Co.  model consultants
• Caballero Home Video  special thanks
• Helen Uffner Vintage Clothing  vintage clothing rentals
• MCA Records  original soundtrack album published by
• Mayflower Recording  adr recording
• Miele  special thanks
• New York Post  special thanks
• Prominent Studios  post-production facilities
• Roger Cherrill  re-recorded at
• Sapex Scripts  post-production script services
• The Arthur Company  special thanks
• The Metropolitan Transportation Authority  special thanks

MPAA:

Rated R for language and violence.

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:14 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Australia:M | Germany:16 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:15 | Sweden:15 | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Peru:14 | Spain:13 | UK:15 | USA:R | Norway:15

Filming Locations:

101 Park Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

The "castle" in New York is the facade of the Squadron A Armory, now part of the Hunter College Campus Schools building, located at 94th and Madison Avenue. When Robin Williams tells the story of the fisher king, he says, "I think I heard it at a lecture once... I don't know... a professor... at Hunter."

Goofs:

Continuity: Jack and Anne have a violent quarrel, upon which he grabs her from behind to calm her down. In the next shot, Anne is in Jack's arms facing him.

Quotes:

Anne Napolitano: Have another one, Jack. It's on the house... just like everything else.

Movie Connections:

References Summertime (1955)

Soundtrack:

Chill Out Jack

The perfect Robin Williams movie (and much more)

This movie is really exceptional in a lot of ways. It's got one of those plots, full of ironic reversals and personal struggle, that's been turned into melodramatic trash in every creative medium ever invented. With Robin Williams as the magic crazy guy and Jeff Bridges in an 80s ponytail, the ways the basic concept could have gone awry (in other hands) are truly frightening to contemplate. But with Terry Gilliam at the helm, The Fisher King speaks to your emotions more directly and powerfully than 90% of the movies out there without degenerating into sappiness.

Perhaps the most brilliant acheivement of this movie is the way it takes Robin Williams' crazy-improvisational persona and makes it an integral part of the story. Instead of being a tacked-on adjunct to the "real" movie, Williams' stream-of-consciousness patter is essential to the work as a whole.

At the same time, Gilliam is making an almost-mainstream movie for the first time in his career, while explicitly referencing his past (the Holy Grail). It all comes together into a movie you will never forget.