SHERDOG MOVIE CLUB: Week 131 - Withnail and I

Yeah, I’ve been having trouble finding it online as well.

I think I might have to TOTALLY LEGALLY download it because I’m honestly not familiar enough w/ the film to blind buy a physical copy.

Buy the Blu Ray a chara, I have a feeling you will love it; though I do often download films through entirely legal and legitimate sources so I can't comment lol
 
How did ya'll watch this? I can pull the trailer up on netflix, prime video, and google play, but the actual movie is not available to watch on any of them for some reason.
A quick search and I found it

Check your pm
 
For fuck sake MusterX you certainly go deep down these rabbit holes in search of some hidden meanings o_O:D

I think you have gone a bit too deep here, he's probably reading that book because the director saw some affinities between the characters, maybe it was a favourite book of his, there are many reasons it may be there rather than reducing the plot of Withnail and I to an actual retelling/recasting of that story.

Maybe so, but you know I do my work on these things. Here is the comparison, coincidence? Maybe so, by worth mentioning.

1. Journey's End takes place over the course of 4 days in a bunker. Whitnail and I takes place over the course of 3 or 4 days in a cottage.
2. The character that dies and is left behind in Journey's End complains of being cold. Whitnail complains incessently of being cold.
3. Journey's End is filled with heavy drinking, they are in a war after all, Whitnail and I is filled with heavy drinking.
4. Journey's End was almost named "Waiting" or "suspense" which is what Whitnail and I are doing in their lives, they are in a state of waiting for something to happen with their acting.
5. Journey's End is the very thing that happens to Whitnail and I at the end of the film, they reach their Journey's End. In the book Ralaigh dies and Stanhope goes on to live his life. In the film "I" goes on with his life and Whitnail is left to his fate.
 
Buy the Blu Ray a chara, I have a feeling you will love it; though I do often download films through entirely legal and legitimate sources so I can't comment lol
hmm yeah maybe you’re right. it looks like it’s right up my alley. I’ve been trying to build my collection recently anyways, & a majority of my recent purchases have in fact been blind buys.
 
Maybe so, but you know I do my work on these things. Here is the comparison, coincidence? Maybe so, by worth mentioning.

1. Journey's End takes place over the course of 4 days in a bunker. Whitnail and I takes place over the course of 3 or 4 days in a cottage.
2. The character that dies and is left behind in Journey's End complains of being cold. Whitnail complains incessently of being cold.
3. Journey's End is filled with heavy drinking, they are in a war after all, Whitnail and I is filled with heavy drinking.
4. Journey's End was almost named "Waiting" or "suspense" which is what Whitnail and I are doing in their lives, they are in a state of waiting for something to happen with their acting.
5. Journey's End is the very thing that happens to Whitnail and I at the end of the film, they reach their Journey's End. In the book Ralaigh dies and Stanhope goes on to live his life. In the film "I" goes on with his life and Whitnail is left to his fate.

Dudes are just jealous of your powers of observation. :D

Keep it up, bro. You're a fuckin' asset to the club.


barris.png
 
Last edited:
Well, naw. But I do think Muster is a big asset to the club.

There are people in this club that are "professionally trained" and people in this club that have seen I think every damn movie ever made, and people in this club that are well watched when it comes to foreign films, there are people that understand camera angles and color schemes, etc. What I try to bring to the table is an eye for the props and symbolism used in the films we watch. Sure, maybe I'm wrong a lot, or maybe I take it too far, but I do my research and actually try to draw the comparisons.

Together, as a group, we cover all the bases, and then each person can take from it what they will.
 
There are people in this club that are "professionally trained" and people in this club that have seen I think every damn movie ever made, and people in this club that are well watched when it comes to foreign films, there are people that understand camera angles and color schemes, etc. What I try to bring to the table is an eye for the props and symbolism used in the films we watch. Sure, maybe I'm wrong a lot, or maybe I take it too far, but I do my research and actually try to draw the comparisons.

Together, as a group, we cover all the bases, and then each person can take from it what they will.

I think it works very well in some films, I just think that here it's taking it a bit further down the rabbit hole than was intended. Like the funny expression in English literature that 'sometimes the curtains are just fucking blue' lol. But of course not saying I don't appreciate the overall approach. Sometimes the curtains being blue does actually mean something, so maybe there is a deep connection to Journey's End... Or as @Bullitt68 would love to tell you all about :p, perhaps the 'death of the author' means that it doesn't matter what the director meant by putting that book in the film, once it's out in the world the fact that he placed that book there means you're free to interpret it however you see fit :D
 
I think it works very well in some films, I just think that here it's taking it a bit further down the rabbit hole than was intended. Like the funny expression in English literature that 'sometimes the curtains are just fucking blue' lol. But of course not saying I don't appreciate the overall approach. Sometimes the curtains being blue does actually mean something, so maybe there is a deep connection to Journey's End... Or as @Bullitt68 would love to tell you all about :p, perhaps the 'death of the author' means that it doesn't matter what the director meant by putting that book in the film, once it's out in the world the fact that he placed that book there means you're free to interpret it however you see fit :D

I was struck by the way the film ended. I didn't start thinking about the book Journey's End until I saw "I" pack up and basically leave Whitnail behind. It could have easily been a situation where they both are still living together, or both get on the train together and leave, but they don't. "I" is leaving Whitnail behind and he is not returning. Whitnail is left holding a bottle of liquor in a rainstorm as he walks back to a flat he is being evicted from.

I was really taken by surprise the sadness of this ending especially considering it was a comedy. I've seen this happen to friends in real life, where one moves on and the other is left behind, there is a sense of realness to the end of Whitnail and I and the film would be less if not for the sad ending. As @Zer pointed out, Whitnail was talented, more talented than his friend, but for whatever reason his fate was much darker than his friends and he was left to it. I honestly thought the film was just o.k. until the end. The ending makes the film something else entirely, it elevates a nonsensical comedy to a study on life and friendship.
 
About to start this and I see right at the top "A Paul Heller Production." The guy who co-produced Enter the Dragon with Fred Weintraub produced this?

giphy.gif


I think it works very well in some films, I just think that here it's taking it a bit further down the rabbit hole than was intended. Like the funny expression in English literature that 'sometimes the curtains are just fucking blue' lol. But of course not saying I don't appreciate the overall approach. Sometimes the curtains being blue does actually mean something, so maybe there is a deep connection to Journey's End... Or as @Bullitt68 would love to tell you all about :p, perhaps the 'death of the author' means that it doesn't matter what the director meant by putting that book in the film, once it's out in the world the fact that he placed that book there means you're free to interpret it however you see fit :D

dsnt.gif


You know, I felt bad about being busy and not being able to watch Embrace of the Serpent, but now I'm not feeling so guilty.

(BTW: Just for us nerds, I had this behemoth published yesterday. It's the answer to all Barthesian/"death of the author"/poststructuralist/postmodernist bullshit :cool:)

On a serious note, I've tried not to breakdown and stream shit and have instead paid for OnDemand access to movies I couldn't get my hands on otherwise. I spent three and a half years living in the UK with just my laptop (because I'm cheap and lazy, not because they don't make TVs in the UK :D) and now that I have access once again to a glorious HD TV, I don't want to watch shit on my computer anymore. Then again, I'm also super cheap. I dropped ten bucks on Cinderella Man and Heredity and I really don't want to pay for Embrace of the Serpent. Such has been my SMC Sophie's choice.

I literally have Withnail & I on my computer at this very moment. Once I watch it and set that precedent, I'll just accept the reality of streaming and I'll watch Embrace of the Serpent sometime ahead of next week's Battle Royale.
 
I was struck by the way the film ended. I didn't start thinking about the book Journey's End until I saw "I" pack up and basically leave Whitnail behind. It could have easily been a situation where they both are still living together, or both get on the train together and leave, but they don't. "I" is leaving Whitnail behind and he is not returning. Whitnail is left holding a bottle of liquor in a rainstorm as he walks back to a flat he is being evicted from.

I was really taken by surprise the sadness of this ending especially considering it was a comedy. I've seen this happen to friends in real life, where one moves on and the other is left behind, there is a sense of realness to the end of Whitnail and I and the film would be less if not for the sad ending. As @Zer pointed out, Whitnail was talented, more talented than his friend, but for whatever reason his fate was much darker than his friends and he was left to it. I honestly thought the film was just o.k. until the end. The ending makes the film something else entirely, it elevates a nonsensical comedy to a study on life and friendship.

I do agree with you that the ending is very powerful, someone earlier likened it to a comedown after the rest of the film and that feels very accurate to me. I think it is outstanding as a comedy even without the end, but I also agree that the ending adds something extra. I don't necessarily agree that Withnail (ps. this [edit: was] miss-spelled in the title of the thread lol) was the more talented, of course he seemed to have some talent at delivering Shakespeare, but he is also more inflated, self-important and prone to outbursts, which is why we see him trying to deliver Shakespeare in circumstances like that. 'I' on the other hand, is more 'normal', certainly more quiet and restrained in general. We don't actually see him suddenly burst in acting. For all we know (and we might assume, since he got the job) 'I' is the better actor. The fact that he chooses to leave is of course sad, there is a genuine friendship there despite it all, but I think it's understandable that he doesn't want to get stuck in Withnail's pompous rut for the rest of his days.
 
Last edited:
Not going to do an "as I watch" diary, but I'm seven minutes in and I already love this movie.
 
I do agree with you that the ending is very powerful, someone earlier likened it to a comedown after the rest of the film and that feels very accurate to me. I think it is outstanding as a comedy even with the end, but I also agree that the ending adds something extra. I don't necessarily agree that Withnail (ps. this is miss-spelled in the title of the thread lol) was the more talented, of course he seemed to have some talent at delivering Shakespeare, but he is also more inflated, self-important and prone to outbursts, which is why we see him trying to deliver Shakespeare in circumstances like that. 'I' on the other hand, is more 'normal', certainly more quiet and restrained in general. We don't actually see him suddenly burst in acting. For all we know (and we might assume, since he got the job) 'I' is the better actor. The fact that he chooses to leave is of course sad, there is a genuine friendship there despite it all, but I think it's understandable that he doesn't want to get stuck in Withnail's pompous rut for the rest of his days.

Withnail, no idea why I read it as Whitnail. I blame @europe1 .

Good point about the viewer not seeing "I" actually act. He gets the part and Withnail does not. I liked when Withnail was on the phone to his agent and says I pay you 10% to get me these parts then there is a pause and then he says well lick 10% of the asses then! I also laughed when Withnail was rubbing his entire body down with "deep heat" then he throws the empty tube to "I" and says there wasn't much left so there is none for you. It seriously smelled of a Dumb and Dumber scene but from 1969.
 
I do agree with you that the ending is very powerful, someone earlier likened it to a comedown after the rest of the film and that feels very accurate to me. I think it is outstanding as a comedy even with the end, but I also agree that the ending adds something extra. I don't necessarily agree that Whithnail (ps. this is miss-spelled in the title of the thread lol) was the more talented, of course he seemed to have some talent at delivering Shakespeare, but he is also more inflated, self-important and prone to outbursts, which is why we see him trying to deliver Shakespeare in circumstances like that. 'I' on the other hand, is more 'normal', certainly more quiet and restrained in general. We don't actually see him suddenly burst in acting. For all we know (and we might assume, since he got the job) 'I' is the better actor. The fact that he chooses to leave is of course sad, there is a genuine friendship there despite it all, but I think it's understandable that he doesn't want to get stuck in Withnail's pompous rut for the rest of his days.

I think it's clear why Withnail is doomed to a life of nothingness (The drink). But it's obvious through the entire film that's he's a force of nature and the life of the party, while I is totally bland with no interesting qualities at all. The Hamlet monologue at the end of the film just shows Withnail can channel that energy into a spectacular performance. The sadness is that he'll never get the opportunities because he's a deeply flawed person, and I is rewarded for being ordinary. It's Withnail's flaws that make him extraordinary though

Although I guess like you say you never get to judge I's acting
 
I think it's clear why Withnail is doomed to a life of nothingness (The drink). But it's obvious through the entire film that's he's a force of nature and the life of the party, while I is totally bland with no interesting qualities at all. The Hamlet monologue at the end of the film just shows Withnail can channel that energy into a spectacular performance. The sadness is that he'll never get the opportunities because he's a deeply flawed person, and I is rewarded for being ordinary. Although I guess like you say you never get to judge I's acting

Oh I think you are right as well, Withnail clearly has the capacity but his dragged down by '"demanding to have some booze" at all times, plus his general pompous outlook and inflated ego which means that he refuses to take smaller jobs and work his way up. I just don't think he is necessarily the better actor than 'I', maybe he is, but we just don't know because we don't see 'I' act the same as I say (and you also). Withnail is certainly a force of nature though (not to mention the force of the film).
 
I think it's clear why Withnail is doomed to a life of nothingness (The drink). But it's obvious through the entire film that's he's a force of nature and the life of the party, while I is totally bland with no interesting qualities at all. The Hamlet monologue at the end of the film just shows Withnail can channel that energy into a spectacular performance. The sadness is that he'll never get the opportunities because he's a deeply flawed person, and I is rewarded for being ordinary. It's Withnail's flaws that make him extraordinary though

Although I guess like you say you never get to judge I's acting

Now that I think about it, how interesting that Withnail's uncle is a "failed thespian" who is also always breaking out in a monologue and who has drank so much his nose and cheeks have turned red which is the sign of a true alcoholic. Withnail's uncle is called Monty which is short for Montague. As in the Montagues and the Capulets from Romeo and Juliet which is Shakespeare.
 
Now that I think about it, how interesting that Withnail's uncle is a "failed thespian" who is also always breaking out in a monologue and who has drank so much his nose and cheeks have turned red which is the sign of a true alcoholic. Withnail's uncle is called Monty which is short for Montague. As in the Montagues and the Capulets from Romeo and Juliet which is Shakespeare.

Or Monty is equally short for Montgomery, a more common first name even amongst posh English folk lol
 
Or Monty is equally short for Montgomery, a more common first name even amongst posh English folk lol

When Monty left the cottage in the middle of the night after being rebuffed by "I", he signed his goodby letter Montague.

Also, I'm still thinking about that ending. Withnail kinda brought it on himself always trying to throw "I" under the bus. He does it repeatedly throughout the film, like for example when he tells his uncle the "I" is gay. Here is another example.

  • [Marwood comes out of the toilets and passes the large Irishman again]

    Irishman : Perfumed ponce!

    [wearing a fixed smile, Marwood joins Withnail at the bar]

    Withnail : You'll be pleased to hear Monty's invited us for drinks.

    Marwood : Balls to Monty. We're getting out.

    Withnail : Balls to Monty? I've just spent an hour flattering the bugger!

    Marwood : There's a man over there that doesn't like the perfume, the big one. Don't look, don't look! We're in danger, we've got to get out.

    Withnail : What are you talking about?

    Marwood : I've been called a ponce.

    Withnail : What fucker said that?

    [the big scary Irishman gets up and walks up to them. Withnail freezes in terror with a mouthful of pie]

    Irishman : I called him a ponce. And now I'm calling you one, PONCE!

    Withnail : [smiling] Would you like a drink?

    Irishman : [ripping Withnail's tartan scarf off his neck] What's your name, MacFuck?

    Withnail : I have a heart condition. I have a heart condition, if you hit me it's murder.

    Irishman : I'll murder the pair of yers!

    Withnail : [close to tears] My wife is having a baby! Listen, I don't know what my f... acquaintance did to upset you but it's nothing to do with me. I suggest you both go outside and discuss it sensibly, in the street.

    [suddenly runs out of the pub screaming "AAAARGGHH!"]

Highlighted in red, he doesn't call "I" his friend, he says acquaintance and then tries to get the guy to kick "I's" ass. Funny, yes, but he's always trying to throw "I" under the bus. Its no wonder he is left behind at the end.
 
When Monty left the cottage in the middle of the night after being rebuffed by "I", he signed his goodby letter Montague.

Good catch, as I say I havent rewatched for this week.

Also, I'm still thinking about that ending. Withnail kinda brought it on himself always trying to throw "I" under the bus. He does it repeatedly throughout the film, like for example when he tells his uncle the "I" is gay. Here is another example.

  • [Marwood comes out of the toilets and passes the large Irishman again]

    Irishman : Perfumed ponce!

    [wearing a fixed smile, Marwood joins Withnail at the bar]

    Withnail : You'll be pleased to hear Monty's invited us for drinks.

    Marwood : Balls to Monty. We're getting out.

    Withnail : Balls to Monty? I've just spent an hour flattering the bugger!

    Marwood : There's a man over there that doesn't like the perfume, the big one. Don't look, don't look! We're in danger, we've got to get out.

    Withnail : What are you talking about?

    Marwood : I've been called a ponce.

    Withnail : What fucker said that?

    [the big scary Irishman gets up and walks up to them. Withnail freezes in terror with a mouthful of pie]

    Irishman : I called him a ponce. And now I'm calling you one, PONCE!

    Withnail : [smiling] Would you like a drink?

    Irishman : [ripping Withnail's tartan scarf off his neck] What's your name, MacFuck?

    Withnail : I have a heart condition. I have a heart condition, if you hit me it's murder.

    Irishman : I'll murder the pair of yers!

    Withnail : [close to tears] My wife is having a baby! Listen, I don't know what my f... acquaintance did to upset you but it's nothing to do with me. I suggest you both go outside and discuss it sensibly, in the street.

    [suddenly runs out of the pub screaming "AAAARGGHH!"]

Highlighted in red, he doesn't call "I" his friend, he says acquaintance and then tries to get the guy to kick "I's" ass. Funny, yes, but he's always trying to throw "I" under the bus. Its no wonder he is left behind at the end.

Hilarious scene, but yes Withnail is very selfish throughout the film, only interested in himself. Fuck sake he only does the dishes because it hurt his pride and he thought I was calling him inhumane, not because of the mess lol.
 
Back
Top