SPLITTING HEIRS
UK, 1993, 96 minutes, Colour.
Eric Idle, Rick Moranis, Barbara Hershey, Catherine Zeta Jones, John Cleese, Sadie Frost, Stratford Johns, Brenda Bruce, Eric Sykes.
Directed by Robert Young.
Splitting Heirs was written by Eric Idle who had made an impact on British television along with his fellow Monty Python group. Idle was also the composer of many of the popular Monty Python songs.
Here he portrays Tommy Patel who is, in fact, a duke who was lost, rather overlooked and misplaced at birth. Rick Moranis plays the young man who thinks he is the duke. Barbara Hershey is the American bleached blonde rather nymphomaniac mother. Catherine Zeta-Jones? in an early role is a gold-digger. Fellow Python, John Cleese, appears as a manic lawyer. In support are Sadie Frost as the secretary at the finance company and Eric Sykes as a doorman.
The film is not particularly hilarious but generally provides a lot of smiles. Eric Idle is much the same in every role but he carries it off well. He is a master of double-takes. Rick Moranis enjoys himself as a rollerblading childlike young duke. John Cleese really gives his all to the role – and over the top as well.
The film spoofs a lot of English customs, manners. It was directed by Robert Young, Robert William Young, who made films like Vampire Circus and the award-winning short Romance of a Double Bass and is not to be confused with Robert S. Young, director of more specialist art-house films.
1.Eric Idle and his brand of comedy, the Python tradition? English humour? Verbal humour, spoof, the songs?
2.The title, the pun, themes? Inheritance?
3.The humorous tone, the voice-over, the attitude towards the English aristocracy, peers and their behaviour, wealth? The judgments on various characters?
4.The introduction to the dukes and their curse, the re-enactment of historical disasters, the portraits of the ancestors, all with Eric Idle in them?
5.The 60s, the duke and his wife, hippie style, the American wife, at the restaurant, enjoying themselves, forgetting the baby, going dancing, the search for the baby, the advertisements, the answer, the duke and duchess bringing up the adoptee? The duke’s death in the 1990s?
6.Tommy, living with the Patels, the jokes about his place in a Hindu Indian family, going to Temple, the corner shop, the customs? His work at the duke’s company, Angela and her clashes with him? The boss, his dislike of Tommy, getting him to accompany Henry?
7.Henry, the skating, the hotel, his attitudes, childlike, getting as much petty cash as he wanted, the drinks and the songs at the hotel?
8.The duke’s sudden death, Henry taking over, firing the boss, retaining Tommy? Going to the funeral, the duchess and her seductive behaviour? The spoof of the 60s, mother, the blonde hair, nymphomania, with men, her later discovering the truth, doting on her son?
9.The gift of the spoon, the Patels and their recognising it, telling Tommy about his adoption, his searching for the documents, the newspapers, going to Shadgrind, Shadgrind and his suggestions of murder? The perspective? Tommy and the various murder attempts, the bombs, the cars? Henry always escaping?
10.Kitty, the gold-digger, her eye on Henry, the sexual encounter with Tommy, covering up, pregnant, the birth of the baby, the information about Tommy being the father? Her overhearing the truth with Henry and his reaction?
11.Shadgrind and his various attempts to kill the duke? The murder of the nanny, Mrs Bullock? The attempts on the baby?
12.The nanny and her place in the family, Mrs Bullock, her doting on Henry, the fact that she had substituted him? Her death in the freezer?
13.Tommy, his change of heart, the explanations to the duchess, Henry overhearing?
14.The confrontation with Shadgrind, the chase, the spoof and farce of the chase and escape?
15.The happy ending, Henry and his previous taking people around the mansion and finding his mother in compromising position? His becoming the tour guide on rollerblades? Tommy, Kitty and everybody settling down?
16.The lightness of touch, spoof and farce?
