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The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover

Lust...Murder...Dessert. Bon Appetit!

7.3

1989•2h 4m

When churlish mobster Albert Spica acquires an upscale French restaurant in London, he dines there nightly, effectively scaring off the clientele with his bad manners. His wife, Georgina, is especially disgusted by him, and soon begins an affair with regular guest Michael. Despite their best efforts to keep it secret, Spica learns about their trysts, and he plots a terrible revenge.

Production

Production

Trailers & Videos

Thumbnail for video: THE COOK, THE THIEF, HIS WIFE, AND HER LOVER Trailer | Food on Film 2016

THE COOK, THE THIEF, HIS WIFE, AND HER LOVER Trailer | Food on Film 2016

Thumbnail for video: Steve Pemberton on The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover | BFI

Steve Pemberton on The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover | BFI

Cast

Photo of Michael Gambon

Michael Gambon

Albert Spica

Photo of Richard Bohringer

Richard Bohringer

Richard Boarst

Photo of Helen Mirren

Helen Mirren

Georgina Spica

Photo of Alan Howard

Alan Howard

Michael

Photo of Tim Roth

Tim Roth

Mitchel

Photo of Ciarán Hinds

Ciarán Hinds

Cory

Photo of Liz Smith

Liz Smith

Grace

Photo of Gary Olsen

Gary Olsen

Spangler

Photo of Ewan Stewart

Ewan Stewart

Harris

Photo of Roger Ashton-Griffiths

Roger Ashton-Griffiths

Turpin

Photo of Ian Dury

Ian Dury

Terry Fitch

Photo of Ron Cook

Ron Cook

Mews

Photo of Emer Gillespie

Emer Gillespie

Patricia

Photo of Janet Henfrey

Janet Henfrey

Alice

Photo of Willie Ross

Willie Ross

Roy

Photo of Roger Lloyd Pack

Roger Lloyd Pack

Geoff

Photo of Alex Kingston

Alex Kingston

Adele

Photo of Ian Sears

Ian Sears

Phillipe

Photo of Sophie Goodchild

Sophie Goodchild

Dancer

Photo of Sue Maund

Sue Maund

Kitchen Staff

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Reviews

T

talisencrw

9/10

Having previously watched Greenaway's 'Prospero's Books', basically from the same era, one definitely gets a sense of the auteur, of great visualizing prowess in the Welsh native. I adore watching Helen Mirren from ANY era, but particularly here, in between the young adulthood beauty she displayed in Michael Powell's 'Age of Consent', through the remarkably absurd and audacious 'Caligula', straight to the sophisticated and very dangerous gorgeousness displayed in 'The Comfort of Strangers'.

It's great to see any dude who's mean to a beautiful woman get their comeuppance (particularly the wealthy--it offers a sort of 'wish fulfillment' for the 99% of us), and the climax here is one of cinema's most articulate presentation of that phenomenon. It definitely made me wish to see the rest of both Greenaway's movies and of Mirren's performances. Well worth the acquired taste necessary for this sort of delicacy.

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