Arthur (1981)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Steve Gordon

Writer:

Steve Gordon (written by)

Release Date:

7 August 1981 (Brazil)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Not everyone who drinks is a poet, some of us drink because we're not.

Plot:

Arthur is a happy drunk with no pretensions at any ambition. He is also the heir to a vast fortune which...

Plot Keywords:

Love | Inheritance | Waitress | Class Differences | Butler

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Dudley Moore	...	Arthur Bach
Liza Minnelli	...	Linda Marolla
John Gielgud	...	Hobson
Geraldine Fitzgerald	...	Martha Bach
Jill Eikenberry	...	Susan Johnson
Stephen Elliott	...	Burt Johnson
Ted Ross	...	Bitterman
Barney Martin	...	Ralph Marolla
Thomas Barbour	...	Stanford Bach
Anne De Salvo	...	Gloria - Hooker
Marjorie Barnes	...	Hooker
Dillon Evans	...	Plaza Maitre d'
Maurice Copeland	...	Uncle Peter Bach
Justine Johnston	...	Aunt Pearl Bach
Paul Vincent	...	Plaza Waiter

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Singapore:PG | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Netherlands:6 | New Zealand:PG | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | Iceland:L | Norway:12 (1981) | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

5th Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

John Gielgud turned down the role of Hobson several times, finally accepting it only because the salary he was offered was too good to pass up.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Bitterman drops Linda off at her apartment complex, she looks out the back window of the car and asks that he wait until her neighbor is there before he opens the car door for her. When Linda does get out of the car, the woman is approaching the car from the front, not from the back.

Quotes:

Hobson: Here, read this magazine. There are many pictures.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Derailed (2005/I)

Soundtrack:

Its Only Love

Dudley Moore Proves he's a Comic Powerhouse

The late Dudley Moore had the most famous role of his too-short career in 1981's ARTHUR, a raucously funny and alternately touching tale that generates warm smiles, big belly-laughs, and an occasional tear if you're in the right mood. Moore received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his performance as Arthur Bach, a drunken playboy who "races cars, plays tennis, fondles women, but he has weekends off and he's his own boss." Arthur is destined to inherit 750 million dollars when he marries a snooty society girl named Susan Johnston (Jill Eikenberry)who is the spoiled daughter of an undercover gangster. Things get sticky when Arthur meets Linda Morolla (Liza Minnelli) a waitress/struggling actress from Queens who steals neckties for her father's birthday. Moore lights up the screen in one of the single funniest performances of the last 50 years. The late Sir John Gielgud won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his flawless turn as Arthur's acid-tongued butler and best friend, Hobson, whose outward disdain for Arthur's behavior covers more paternal feelings. There are other funny contributions by Barney Martin as Linda's father. Stephen Elliott as Susan's father, and Geraldine Fitzgerald as Arthur's demented grandmother. The film was directed with a keen eye for comedy by a first time director named Steve Gordon, who, sadly, died the following the year. There was also a forgettable sequel several years later, but this instant classic is not to be missed.