''Parting Shots'' is a 1999 British

dark comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...

film starring

Chris Rea Christopher Anton Rea ( ; born 4 March 1951) is an English rock and blues singer and guitarist from Middlesbrough. A "gravel-voiced guitar stalwart" known for his slide guitar playing, Rea has recorded twenty five solo albums, two of which t ...

Felicity Kendal Felicity Ann Kendal (born 25 September 1946) is an English actress, working principally in television and theatre. She has appeared in numerous stage and screen roles over a more than 70-year career, but the role that brought attention to her ...

Oliver Reed Robert Oliver Reed (13 February 1938 – 2 May 1999) was an English actor known for his well-to-do, macho image and "hellraiser" lifestyle. After making his first significant screen appearances in Hammer Horror films in the early 1960s, his ...

, Bob Hoskins,

Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 193810 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series '' The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in ''On H ...

Ben Kingsley Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning five decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, and tw ...

, John Cleese and

Joanna Lumley Dame Joanna Lamond Lumley (born 1 May 1946) is an English actress, presenter, former model, author, television producer, and activist. She has won two BAFTA TV Awards for her role as Patsy Stone in the BBC sitcom ''Absolutely Fabulous'' (1992 ...

. It was the final film directed by

Michael Winner Robert Michael Winner (30 October 1935 – 21 January 2013) was a British filmmaker, writer, and media personality. He is known for directing numerous action, thriller, and black comedy films in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, including several c ...

. Upon release in the UK, the film gained controversy over its plot, and was widely criticised in the national press. It has since been evaluated as one of the worst films ever made.

Plot

After learning he is dying of cancer, failed wedding photographer Harry Sterndale (

) illegally buys a gun and goes off to get revenge by killing all those who have made his life miserable.

Cast

as Harry Sterndale *

as Jill Saunders *

as Jamie Campbell-Stewart * Bob Hoskins as Gerd Layton *

as Lisa Sterndale *

as Renzo Locatelli * John Cleese as Maurice Walpole *

as Freda Armstrong *

Gareth Hunt Alan Leonard Hunt (7 February 1942 – 14 March 2007), known as Gareth Hunt, was a British actor best remembered for playing footman Frederick Norton in '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' and Mike Gambit in '' The New Avengers''. Early life Alan Leon ...

as Inspector Charles Bass * Nicholas Gecks as Detective Constable Ray *

Patrick Ryecart Patrick Geoffrey Ryecart (born 9 May 1952) is an English actor. Early life and career Ryecart was born in Warwick, Warwickshire. His first West End appearance was in Bernard Shaw's ''Candida (play), Candida'' at the Albery Theatre, playing t ...

as Graham Cleverley * Peter Davison as John Fraser * Nicky Henson as Askew *

Caroline Langrishe Caroline Langrishe (born 10 January 1958) is an English actress. Early life Born in London, Langrishe is the elder daughter of Patrick Nicholas Langrishe (1932–2022), of The Manor House, Sellindge, Kent, a Lieutenant in the 11th Hussars, late ...

as Vanessa * Edward Hardwicke as Dr. Phil Joseph *

Nicola Bryant Nicola Jane Bryant (born 11 October 1960)England & Wales Birth ...

as Beverley * Brian Poyser as President Zlomov *

Sheila Steafel Sheila Frances Steafel (26 May 1935 – 23 August 2019) was a British actress, who was born in Johannesburg, but lived all her adult life in the United Kingdom. Life and career Steafel, who was born in Johannesburg, trained at the Webber Dougla ...

as President's Wife *

Timothy Carlton Timothy Carlton Congdon Cumberbatch (born 4 October 1939) is an English actor. Early years Carlton was born in Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, the son of Pauline Ellen Laing (née Congdon), who died on 11 October 2007, and Henry Carlton Cumberb ...

as Commissioner Grosvenor * Roland Curram as Lord Selwyn *

Jenny Logan Jenny Logan (born 1942) is an English actress, trained dancer and singer. Though she played WPC Sally Reed in the television series ''Dixon of Dock Green'' between 1968 and 1969, she is most familiar from her appearances in the TV commercial fo ...

as Lady Selwyn *

Sarah Parish Sarah Parish (born 7 June 1968) is an English actress. She is known for her work on television series including: ''The Pillars of the Earth'', ''Peak Practice'', '' Hearts and Bones'', ''Cutting It'', ''Doctor Who'', '' Mistresses'', ''Merlin'', ...

as Ad Agency Receptionist *

Mildred Shay Mildred Helen Shay (September 26, 1911 – October 15, 2005) was an American film actress of the 1930s whose affairs, marriages and glamorous social life became a popular subject for gossip columnists. At five-feet tall, Shay was dubbed the "Pocke ...

as Old Lady at Wedding *

Andrew Neil Andrew Ferguson Neil (born 21 May 1949) is a Scottish former journalist and broadcaster who is chairman of ''The Spectator'' and presenter of '' The Andrew Neil Show'' on Channel 4. He was editor of ''The Sunday Times'' from 1983 to 1994. He f ...

as TV Newsreader *Taryn Kay as Ruth Layton *Michael Ayers as Young Harry Sterndale

Background

Winner came up with the basic storyline after a relationship of his had ended. Speaking to

Tim Sebastian Tim Sebastian (born 13 March 1952) is a television journalist and novelist. He is the moderator of ''Conflict Zone'' and ''The New Arab Debates'', broadcast on Deutsche Welle. He previously worked for the BBC, where he hosted '' The Doha Deba ...

of the BBC in June 1999, Winner revealed: "We all have people we'd like to kill. Sometimes we want to kill them for a long time and sometimes it just lasts the few seconds that they're cutting you up, or being a nuisance. A girlfriend parted very nastily, and I thought 'I really wouldn't mind killing you' and five or six years later I thought, 'I still wouldn't mind.'" The majority of the cast was chosen personally by Winner, and included friends, those he had worked with professionally before, or other actors/actresses he wished to work with. Early discussions for the lead role suggested Neil Morrissey or

Martin Clunes Alexander Martin Clunes Order of the British Empire, OBE Deputy Lieutenant, DL (born 28 November 1961) is an English actor, comedian, director and television presenter. He is best known for portraying Martin Ellingham in the ITV (TV network), IT ...

; however, when Winner met Chris Rea on a beach at Sandy Lane, Barbados, he was chosen instead. After filming had come to an end, Winner had told his personal assistant, Dinah May, that ''Parting Shots'' was likely to be his last film. Regardless, he had said working with Rea was "a real pleasure" and that he had enjoyed making the film more than any of his past ones. According to Peter Davison,

John Alderton John Alderton (born 27 November 1940) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles in '' Upstairs, Downstairs'', '' Thomas & Sarah'', '' Wodehouse Playhouse'', ''Little Miss'' (original television series), '' Please Sir!'', '' No, Hones ...

was offered the role of John Fraser. Alderton turned it down because of the violence, and the part went to Davison instead.

Reception

''Parting Shots'' was not well received by critics, with

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

giving the film an 11% of freshness while ''

Total Film ''Total Film'' is a British film magazine published 13 times a year (published monthly and a summer issue is added every year since issue 91, 2004, which is published between July and August issue) by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched ...

'' describes Winner's work as "offensive", "incompetent" and "bad in every possible way". Andrew Collins gave a strongly negative review of the film: "''Parting Shots''... is going to set the course of British film-making back 20 years. It is not only the worst British film produced in this country since ''

Carry On Emmannuelle ''Carry On Emmannuelle'' is a 1978 British comedy film, the 30th release in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). The film was to be the final ''Carry On'' for many regulars, including Kenneth Williams (in his 26th ''Carry On''), ...

'' (quite a feat in itself), it is a thoroughbred contender for the crown of Worst Film Ever Made". In a hostile overview of Winner's films, Christopher Tookey claimed "''Parting Shots'' is not only the most horrible torture for audiences that Winner has ever devised. It is also profoundly offensive, even by Winner's standards". Interviewed about ''Parting Shots'', Charlotte O'Sullivan, '' The Independent's'' film editor, claimed ''Parting Shots'' was "the worst film I've ever seen". O'Sullivan also took issue with the film for glorifying vigilantism: "It's Michael Winner and you know, he doesn't have any sense of irony. He seems to be saying it is okay to go and kill people". The journalist

Miles Kington Miles Beresford Kington (13 May 1941 – 30 January 2008) was a British journalist, musician (a double bass player for Instant Sunshine and other groups) and broadcaster. He is also credited with the invention of Franglais, a fictional language, ...

later claimed "''Parting Shots''...was directed by Michael Winner and despite the glittering cast, was possibly the worst film ever made". In its entry on Michael Winner, the book ''Contemporary British and Irish Film Directors'' claimed ''Parting Shots'' "makes a bold challenge for the hotly contested mantle of worst British film ever made." British film historian I.Q. Hunter, discussing the question "What is the worst British film ever made?", listed ''Parting Shots'' as one of the candidates for that title.I.Q. Hunter, "From Window Cleaner to Potato Man" in ''British Comedy Cinema'', edited by I.Q. Hunter and Laraine Porter. Routledge, 2012. . (p.154)

References

External links