IMDb RATING
6.8/10
6.4K
YOUR RATING
A day in the life of a self-destructive British consul in Mexico on the eve of World War II.A day in the life of a self-destructive British consul in Mexico on the eve of World War II.A day in the life of a self-destructive British consul in Mexico on the eve of World War II.
- Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 3 wins & 7 nominations total
Ignacio López Tarso
- Dr. Vigil
- (as Ignacio Lopez Tarzo)
José René Ruiz
- Dwarf
- (as Rene Ruiz 'Tun-Tun')
Eleazar Garcia Jr.
- Chief of Gardens
- (as Eliazar García Jr.)
Salvador Sánchez
- Chief of Stockyards
- (as Salvador Sanchez)
Sergio Calderón
- Chief of Municipality
- (as Sergio Calderon)
Emilio Fernández
- Diosdado
- (as Emilio Fernandez)
Roberto Sosa
- Few Fleas
- (as Roberto Martinez Sosa)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaOn Albert Finney, director John Huston said, "I think it's the finest performance I have ever witnessed, let alone directed".
- GoofsThe story takes place in 1938, but the car driven by James Villiers that almost hits Albert Finney as he is lying in the road is an MG-TF, which was manufactured between 1953 and 1956.
- Quotes
Geoffrey Firmin: How, unless you drink as I do, can you hope to understand the beauty of an old indian woman playing dominoes with a chicken?
- ConnectionsFeatured in At the Movies: Conan the Destroyer/Top Secret!/Under the Volcano (1984)
Featured review
This is one of those movies that is always in the discount pile, "Any Rental--99cents'. You find it at garage sales and the like, although I never know why. Perhaps it's the atrocious artwork. Seems a lot of video store patrons base their entire rental decisions on the cover art-I've never heard so many uninformed and ludicrous remarks as have been made in the `User Comments' column for the movie `What Happened Was'-a very smart adult drama. Seems the provocative pose of star Karen Sillas on the cover suggested some sort of couples-therapy Skinamax special. Ooh the disappointment of it all.
Anyway, Under the Volcano is also a very smart adult drama. To begin with, Albert Finney's Oscar nominated performance (he did garner an LA Film Critics award), is superb (1985 was the year Amadeus swept). As the terminally alcoholic Geoffrey Fermin, Finney plays quite a different sort of beast than those played famously by Ray Milland (Lost Weekend), Jack Lemmon (Days of Wine and Roses), and Nick Cage (Leaving Las Vegas).
Fermin is adrift in his alcoholism-an educated man, an English Consul, no less, whose losing battle with booze has cost him his job (Consul to Mexico), and his wife. He is at that stage when the bottle is his last and only compadre as it may. He has succumbed to it, long before this drama begins. His resignation is complete, any pretense of normalcy is only a whisper. He is waiting for it to take his life.
Under John Huston's direction, Under the Volcano is basically a one-man show. In support, as Fermin's wife Yvonne, Jacqueline Bisset gives for me the strongest performance of her career.
Highly recommend, but don't expect to come away with sunshine on your shoulders.
Anyway, Under the Volcano is also a very smart adult drama. To begin with, Albert Finney's Oscar nominated performance (he did garner an LA Film Critics award), is superb (1985 was the year Amadeus swept). As the terminally alcoholic Geoffrey Fermin, Finney plays quite a different sort of beast than those played famously by Ray Milland (Lost Weekend), Jack Lemmon (Days of Wine and Roses), and Nick Cage (Leaving Las Vegas).
Fermin is adrift in his alcoholism-an educated man, an English Consul, no less, whose losing battle with booze has cost him his job (Consul to Mexico), and his wife. He is at that stage when the bottle is his last and only compadre as it may. He has succumbed to it, long before this drama begins. His resignation is complete, any pretense of normalcy is only a whisper. He is waiting for it to take his life.
Under John Huston's direction, Under the Volcano is basically a one-man show. In support, as Fermin's wife Yvonne, Jacqueline Bisset gives for me the strongest performance of her career.
Highly recommend, but don't expect to come away with sunshine on your shoulders.
- Doctor_Bombay
- Mar 4, 1999
- Permalink
- How long is Under the Volcano?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Unter dem Vulkan
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $2,556,800
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $31,000
- Jun 17, 1984
- Gross worldwide
- $2,556,800
- Runtime1 hour 52 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content