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Released
1989 · FILM

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover

A disillusioned wife of a violent mob boss secretly pursues a forbidden romance with a charismatic patron, hoping to reclaim her dignity and freedom. When the ruthless gangster discovers their affair, she must outwit his deadly vengeance before love turns into lethal retribution.

Lust...Murder...Dessert. Bon Appetit!

Directed by
Written by
Rated
MPA · NC-17
Runtime
124 min
CrimeDrama

Synopsis

Albert Spica, a rude mobster who acquires an upscale French restaurant in London, begins dining there each night, his discourteous behavior driving away patrons. His wife Georgina is particularly displeased with him and starts an affair with regular guest Michael. Although they attempt to keep the relationship hidden, Spica discovers their meetings and plans retaliation.

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How many hands made this film

The scale of the collaboration

A crew of 54+ credited

Why a floor?

This is a minimum, not a total. We only count the credits we’ve captured so far, and coverage is uneven — a blockbuster might show a few hundred names while another of the same size shows a couple dozen. The real crews all ran into the thousands. The number here only grows as full credits are enriched — so we frame it as a floor, never a headcount.

Craft leads on file

Edited by John WilsonShot by Sacha ViernyScored by Michael NymanDesigned by Ben Van Os

Box Office

1989 · Box office

Made its money back — grossed 3.4× its budget

Why 2.5×?

Cinemas keep roughly half of every ticket sold, and a wide release’s marketing often costs about as much again as the film — so a movie needs to gross around 2.5× its production budget just to break even theatrically. It’s a rule of thumb, not the studio’s ledger (home video and streaming come later).

Worldwide gross

$7.7M

Budget$2.3M
Worldwide gross$7.7M
break-even (2.5×)

Also known as

  • Der Koch, der Dieb, seine Frau und ihr Liebhaberde
  • The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Loveren
  • El cocinero, el ladrón, su mujer y su amantees
  • Le Cuisinier, le voleur, sa femme et son amantfr
  • Il cuoco, il ladro, sua moglie e l'amanteit

Community tags

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