Arthur

Arthur Bach is the drunk son of a wealthy family. To inherit, he must marry the woman his family has chosen. Meanwhile he meets Linda, who lives in Queens. There is also Hobson, his valet: the man who looks after him, mocks him, and is in fact the only person fathering him. The subject is not the romantic triangle but the relationship between Hobson and Arthur. The best scenes are not the romantic ones but the moments when the valet tells him the truth as nobody else does, which is why the hospital section at the end is the film's centre of gravity. The form is classical drawing-room comedy: the timing of lines, drunk business, the decor of wealth. Dudley Moore carries almost all of the physical side of the role through voice and laughter. It is Steve Gordon's only feature as a director; the writer died of a heart attack a year later. John Gielgud won the Oscar for best supporting actor as Hobson and later said he had not thought much of the part at first. Arthur's Theme, sung by Christopher Cross, also took the Oscar for best original song. Liza Minnelli plays Linda. Who it is for: viewers who like eighties American comedy and Gielgud's dry humour. Who it is not for: anyone who will not find a permanently drunk protagonist funny; the film uses alcoholism as comic material from beginning to end.