A Fish Called Wanda
Metascore
80 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 17
  3. Negative: 1 out of 17
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  1. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Peter Stack
    100
    I laughed so hard, my eyes watered. I laughed so loud, I lost track of whether anyone else was laughing. I laughed so much, I ached afterwards. [29 July 1988, Daily Notebook, p.E1]
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  2. ReelViews
    Reviewed by: James Berardinelli
    100
    One of the best-constructed, funniest, and most clever comedies to grace motion picture screens in recent years. It's outrageous, offensive, and even a little sick -- and all the more enjoyable because of it.
  3. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    100
    The funniest movie I have seen in a long time.
  4. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Jay Scott
    100
    May be less than the sum of its parts, but its parts are more impressive than most other wholes around.
  5. Mr. Showbiz
    Reviewed by: Carmel Dagan
    100
    Director Charles Crichton's hilarious romp.
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  6. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Sheila Benson
    100
    A convulsively funny affair.[15 July 1988, Calendar, p. 6-1]
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  7. Time
    Reviewed by: Richard Schickel
    100
    Think of A Fish Called Wanda as the next best thing to a Looney Tunes-Merrie Melodies summerfest…Wanda defies gravity, in both senses of the word, and redefines a great comic tradition. [July 18, 1988]
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  8. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Rita Kempley
    90
    It's a deliciously dishy comedy, but like sushi an acquired taste.
  9. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Jonathan Rosenbaum
    90
    Crichton keeps the laughs coming with infectious energy.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.3 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 44 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 10
  3. Negative: 1 out of 10
  1. lasttimeisaw
    8
    Hardly a Monty Python vehicle, but its remnants, Cleese and Palin has brought forth perhaps their best work so far (including the python period), a contemporary satire homing in the UK/USA self-mocking kernel, with their US counterparts, Curtis and Kline. Entertaining to its very core, the crime-light, pratfall-heavy comedy ingenuously spikes British humor in its comparatively foolhardy story of a manipulative woman… Full Review »
  2. FIlmsareawesome
    9
    This was just pure comedy, what happen to comedy nowadays. This movie was amazing, well written, with good dialogues between the characters, it kept the public interested, and they sure did select the perfect cast for this movie, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, John Cleese and Michael Palin were able to do everything in the movie, but they completely smashed it in the comedy scenes, so freaking funny, and therefore the result was pretty damn good.… Full Review »
  3. kango
    10
    This is a very well written and often very funny film which doesn't let-up for a second. Cleese, Palin, Kline and Lee-Curtis are magnificent as Precarious, Sexy, Disconnected and Chaotic (you can probably match them up if you've never seen this film before). The fact that two are American and two are English gives the film a clashing, tasty quality that I can't remember seeing anywhere else. Though never all in the same room at the same time, they all rub up against each other at some point in brilliantly positioned scenes that frequently have me in stitches. The roots of this film come from the old English comedies of the 1950's but this is firmly set in the 1980's within the very ordinary and everyday. This all adds to the charm beneath the madness. Gone in 60 Seconds this is not - more bumbling motorbikes than shiny super cars and it is all the better for it. Standouts are too many to mention but I would have to say that Kevin Kline's Otto steals just about every scene he bursts into. He adds more than a bit to the out-of-control element throughout what feels like a series of set-pieces. All useful set-pieces though which flow together as one shimmering crime caper. Not a second is ever wasted. It has been said that someone died of laughter while watching this. If I was to die while watching anything, A Fish Called Wanda would be perfect. Classic English humor with an American twist, this continues to be my favorite comedy of all time.… Full Review »
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