The Annihilation of Fish
Directed by Charles Burnett
New restoration! Winner of an Honorary Academy Award® for lifetime achievement, Charles Burnett remains one of our country’s most celebrated independent filmmakers. In his charming The Annihilation of Fish, Lynn Redgrave plays Poinsettia, a former housewife with an imagined lover in the form of 19th-century composer Giacomo Puccini. She moves into a Los Angeles boarding house with an energetic landlady (Margot Kidder) where she meets a Jamaican widower, Fish (James Earl Jones), who has recently been released from a mental institution despite his continued battles against unseen demons. In the face of personal challenges and differences, the couple grows together and begins to discover new things about themselves and the nuances of love and happiness.
Released in partnership with Milestone Films, restoration by UCLA Film & Television Archive and The Film Foundation with funding provided by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation.
Reviews More Reviews
“Genuine independent filmmaking, the kind that transcends formula and expectations... While love stories are often irresistible, what distinguishes this one is the tenderness of Burnett’s touch and the generosity of his worldview."
“Burnett has made a simple yet beguiling film about how two imperfect people can find a kind of perfection in each other's company — and how sometimes in life, and in the movies, good things do come to those who wait.”
“It’s also obvious this film is the essence of what makes Burnett’s hold on the American mythos peerless and exceptional. At every turn, 'The Annihilation of Fish' is wonderfully surprising.”
“A complete charmer: a masterwork of tonal control that deserves to be reckoned with as much more than an archival curiosity.”
"A gently comic, humanist tale."
“The most romantic film of the year…a tender, eccentric love story”
“An unashamedly weird film, and its weirdness is an invitation to faith.”
"Burnett creates a dreamily solid world where in Jones' heroic sweetness can flourish, and Redgrave and Kidder can disappear into their roles with a dazzling, playful intensity."
“A human and thought-provoking comedy-drama.”
Awards & Festivals



Press & Exhibitors
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Technical Info
Press & Promotion:
playdates
Venue | City | State | Date |
---|---|---|---|
AFI Silver | Silver Spring | MD | 1740891600March 2 - March 6, 2025 |
American Cinematheque | Los Angeles | CA | 1740027600February 20 - February 22, 2025 |
Amherst Cinema | Amherst | MA | 1743912000April 6 - April 9, 2025 |
Apollo Theatre | Oberlin | OH | 1740459600February 25 - March 26, 2025 |
Austin Film Society | Austin | TX | 1739595600February 15 - February 17, 2025 |
BAM Rose Cinemas | Brooklyn | NY | 1739509200February 14 - February 27, 2025 |
Broadway Center Cinemas by Salt Lake Film City | Salt Lake City | UT | 1739682000February 16 - February 20, 2025 |
Cleveland Cinematheque | Cleveland | OH | 1743825600April 5 - April 6, 2025 |
Colonial Theatre | Phoenixville | PA | 1744516800April 13, 2025 |
Coral Gables Art Cinema | Coral Gables | FL | 1740027600February 20, 2025 |
Cornell Cinema | Ithaca | NY | 1739422800February 13 - February 28, 2025 |
Digital Gym Cinema | San Diego | CA | 1741323600March 7 - March 13, 2025 |
Esquire Theater | Cincinnati | OH | 1743739200April 4 - April 10, 2025 |
Gateway Film Center | Columbus | OH | 1740718800February 28 - March 6, 2025 |
Gene Siskel Film Center | Chicago | IL | 1742529600March 21 - March 27, 2025 |
Grand Illusion Cinema | Seattle | WA | 1742788800March 24, 2025 |
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston | Houston | TX | 1744430400April 12 - April 13, 2025 |
Paradise on Bloor | Toronto | ON | 1739595600February 15, 2025 |
Roxie Theater | San Francisco | CA | 1741150800March 5 - March 11, 2025 |
SNF Parkway Theatre | Baltimore | MD | 1740027600February 20 - February 23, 2025 |
The Independent Picture House (Charlotte Film Society) | Charlotte | NC | 1740114000February 21, 2025 |
Time & Space Limited | Hudson | NY | 1740114000February 21 - February 27, 2025 |
Webster University Film Series | St. Louis | MO | 1740114000February 21 - February 23, 2025 |