A Fish Called Wanda
Nesko and I watched “A Fish Called Wanda” the other day. I haven’t seen it in years, so I wondered how it held up. It was actually funnier than I remembered, in part I think because I’m older and get things more. However, my heart dropped a little when Ken (Michael Palin) is introduced, with his stammer. You know how sometimes you remember a thing as being hilarious, and then you watch it later and it’s just painful? I was afraid that I simply didn’t remember a bunch of “he talks funny, lol” jokes.
But no, Ken’s the crime leader’s most trusted accomplice. He’s determined and smart and brave, withstanding torture. The other characters treat him with the same respect they show others (which means that Otto (Kevin Kline) is a rampaging ass who mocks him, but that’s on Otto’s head. Ken obviously doesn’t deserve it.). There are jokes about people being frustrated with Ken’s stammer, including Ken, but again the laughs are generated by the situation in general and not Ken’s lack of communication specifically.
It’s a good movie that’s held up well and isn’t terribly dated, and it was nice to see character with a speech impediment who wasn’t a walking joke because of that speech impediment.
Blog post copyright Brigid Keely Barjaktarevic. Originally posted at Words Words Words Art. If you enjoy this blog, check out my parenting blog at Now Showing!.
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