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Poster for Drowning by Numbers

Drowning by Numbers

1988 · 119 min

A wry, meticulously structured puzzle that invites you to spot patterns and numbers while savouring its dark, eccentric humour.

Directed by
Peter Greenaway
Genres
Comedy, Crime, Drama
Starring
Joan Plowright, Juliet Stevenson, Joely Richardson
Tagline
Three Women And A Coroner.
Overview
Cissie Colpitts drowns her cheating husband and, in the ensuing cover-up, enlists the help of lonely coroner Henry Madgett, an old friend with a longstanding weakness for her charms. But when Cissie's daughter and granddaughter—both also named Cissie Colpitts—decide to resort to the same methods for solving conflicts with their own frustrating husbands, the women and their repeated appeals for help begin to wear on Madgett's conscience.

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In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.
Directed by
Peter Greenaway
Genres
Comedy, Crime, Drama
Starring
Joan Plowright, Juliet Stevenson, Joely Richardson
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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 2 of 3
  • absurdstrength 2 of 3
  • satiricalstrength 2 of 3
  • cynicalstrength 2 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
demanding, 4 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • death
  • deception
  • betrayal
  • family
  • obsession
Places
  • countryside
  • small town
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
  • nonlinear
  • ensemble
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language mild
  • Violence mild
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action2
Horror2
Humour6
Realism6
Romance3
Tension4
Darkness7
Complexity8
Emotional weight5

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Where to watch in the UK

No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
comedy, crime, drama
Directed by
Peter Greenaway
Written by
Peter Greenaway
Starring
Joan Plowright, Juliet Stevenson, Joely Richardson, Bernard Hill, Jason Edwards, Bryan Pringle, Trevor Cooper, David Morrissey
Music
Michael Nyman
Cinematography
Sacha Vierny
Runtime
119 min
Country
Netherlands, United Kingdom
Languages
English

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