Principal cast
Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Melvyn Douglas, Jack Warden and Richard Dysart
Film 407 of 498 on the Screen Path
Being There
Getting there is half the fun; being there is all of it!
About the film
Being There at a glance.
Screen Path places this 1979 film at stop 407 in one curated journey through cinema. The learning experience adds context before you watch and deeper analysis after.
A simple-minded gardener named Chance has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television.
Key craft credits
Caleb Deschanel (director of photography), Don Zimmerman (editor), Johnny Mandel (original music composer), Jerzy Kosiński (screenplay) and Michael D. Haller (production design)
- Director
- Hal Ashby
- Release
- 1979-12-19
- Runtime
- 130 minutes
- Genres
- Comedy and Drama
- Country
- United States
- Quiz
- 50 questions
The Screen Path journey
Before. After. Remember.
The featured film is watched outside Screen Path. The app provides the learning experience around it: a guide, an analysis, and a quiz with explanations.
01
Before you watch
Start with a spoiler-free video guide to the context and filmmaking choices worth noticing.
Spoiler-free02
After the film
Return after watching for a deeper video analysis of craft, meaning, and legacy.
Contains spoilers03
Quiz yourself
Answer 50 questions with clear rationales designed to make the ideas stick.
50 questions in this journeyCitizen Kane is the complete public example: both learning videos and a five-question sample quiz are available below.
Start the example →Full cast
Full cast
- Peter SellersCharacter: Chance
- Shirley MacLaineCharacter: Eve Rand
- Melvyn DouglasCharacter: Benjamin Rand
- Jack WardenCharacter: President 'Bobby'
- Richard DysartCharacter: Dr. Robert Allenby
- Richard BasehartCharacter: Vladimir Skrapinov
- Ruth AttawayCharacter: Louise
- David ClennonCharacter: Thomas Franklin
- Fran BrillCharacter: Sally Hayes
- Denise DuBarryCharacter: Johanna Franklin
- Alice HirsonCharacter: First Lady
- Jerome HellmanCharacter: Gary Burns
Full crew
Full crew
- Hal AshbyCredits: Director
- Charles MulvehillCredits: Producer, Associate Producer
- Johnny MandelCredits: Original Music Composer
- Jerzy KosińskiCredits: Screenplay, Novel
- Jack SchwartzmanCredits: Executive Producer
- Don ZimmermanCredits: Editor
- Caleb DeschanelCredits: Director of Photography
- Andrew BraunsbergCredits: Producer
- Michael D. HallerCredits: Production Design
- Lynn StalmasterCredits: Casting
- Jeff WexlerCredits: Sound Mixer
- Frank WestmoreCredits: Makeup Artist
- Frank E. WarnerCredits: Supervising Sound Effects Editor
- Charles H. SchramCredits: Makeup Artist
- Donald O. MitchellCredits: Sound Re-Recording Mixer
- Gary H. HoltCredits: Gaffer
- David HamburgerCredits: First Assistant Director
- Toby LovalloCredits: Second Assistant Director
- Pablo FerroCredits: Title Designer
- Nick McLeanCredits: Camera Operator
- May RouthCredits: Costume Designer
- Robert R. BentonCredits: Set Decoration
- James L. SchoppeCredits: Art Direction
Film data and images provided by TMDB. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.