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The Annihilation of Fish (2001)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted: 10
Fresh: 7
Rotten:3
Average Rating: 6.1/10
Rated: R
Genre: Comedies
Theatrical Release:Nov 2, 2001 Limited
Synopsis: Mississippi native Charles Burnett directs this quirky romantic comedy starring James Earl Jones as Fish, a retired Jamaican janitor who has spent the last ten years of his life in and out of... Mississippi native Charles Burnett directs this quirky romantic comedy starring James Earl Jones as Fish, a retired Jamaican janitor who has spent the last ten years of his life in and out of mental institutions. Although he is still haunted by an inner demon, whom he believes embodies pure evil, Fish lives in a ramshackle boarding house in Los Angeles run by a warmhearted and eccentric widow (Margot Kidder in a boldly unrecognizable performance). His neighbor, Poinsettia (Lynn Redgrave) is a lonely woman who has given up real romance for an imaginary love affair with the long-dead opera star Puccini. One day, Fish finds Poinsettia drunk on the stairs of their boarding house and takes her into his room to recuperate. The two misfits, who have chosen to live within their own imaginary worlds, are shocked to find each other in the land of the living and begin a friendship that soon evolves into a tender and sometimes humorous romance. Together they must weather a set of unique challenges: imaginary devils, interracial dating, and long-dormant sexuality. This enchanting glimpse into the hearts and minds of two troubled souls who find each other in the twilight of their lives is driven by the honest and unflinching performances of James Earl Jones and Lynn Redgrave who shine together on screen. THE ANNIHILATION OF FISH is based on the lyrical Jamaican novel THE LUNATIC by screenwriter Anthony C. Winkler. [More]
Starring: Lynn Redgrave, James Earl Jones, Margot Kidder
Starring: Lynn Redgrave, James Earl Jones, Margot Kidder
Director: Charles Burnett
Director: Charles Burnett
Screenwriter: Anthony C. Winkler
Producer: Paul M. Heller, William L. Fabrizio, John Remark
Composer: Laura Karpman
Studio: Regent Releasing
Reviews for The Annihilation of Fish
It's a small, graceful movie, and one of the beauties of it is imagining moviegoers tromping into Minneapolis' Parkway Theater to see it and -- for a couple of hours, at least -- forgetting their own feelings of loneliness.
The romantic comedy avoids the trap of being cloyingly cute, winning us over to the appealingly daffy world view of its two wonderful stars.
Burnett has crafted a poignant, utterly believable film out of the most unlikely of set-ups.
[Burnett] creates a dreamily solid world where in Jones' heroic sweetness can flourish, and Redgrave and Kidder can disappear into their roles with a dazzling, playful intensity.
There are few comic staples less convincing or more timeworn than charming lunatics in love, and the only thing that lifts this film beyond TV-movie quality is Jones' performance.
A guaranteed crowd-pleaser, no doubt due to the fine performances from Jones (other than his poor accent) and Redgrave.
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