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The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover

Crime · Drama · 1989

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.

Movie details

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover

“Lust...Murder...Dessert. Bon Appetit!”

1989 Crime · Drama 2h 4m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.3 / 10

Community rating

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.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Peter Greenaway

Written by

Peter Greenaway

Michael Gambon

Michael Gambon

Albert Spica

Richard Bohringer

Richard Bohringer

Richard Boarst

Helen Mirren

Helen Mirren

Georgina Spica

Alan Howard

Alan Howard

Michael

Tim Roth

Tim Roth

Mitchel

Ciarán Hinds

Ciarán Hinds

Cory

Liz Smith

Liz Smith

Grace

Court is in session

Put The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.