The Annihilation of Fish (1999)

4 Stars (out of 4)

Demon Freed

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Charles Burnett may be the greatest American filmmaker whose films are the least-known and the hardest to see. But even those of us who have managed to find and see a few of his films — which are generally realistic, compassionate looks at tight-knit Black communities and histories — would never expect, coming from him, The Annihilation of Fish. This lightweight charmer was completed in 1999 and then somehow never released, despite the presence of three well-known stars. Now the UCLA Film Archive and The Film Foundation have restored it from the original negative and Milestone and Kino Lorber have given it an essential Blu-ray release for 2025.

James Earl Jones stars as "Fish," a Jamaican immigrant who has just been booted out of a mental health hospital. Fish is plagued by a demon named Hank, who launches sneak attacks and prompts "rasslin'" matches. (Jones convincingly makes it look like he's really struggling with an invisible opponent.) Meanwhile, "Poinsettia" (Lynn Redgrave) has been having an affair with the ghost of the composer Puccini. When they are unable to marry — due to the groom not being visible — Poinsettia tearfully breaks it off. Fish and Poinsettia both move into an L.A. apartment building run by the equally kooky Mrs. Muldroone (Margot Kidder) — who absolutely insists that her tenants pronounce the last "e" in her name — and become neighbors.

The neighbors first attract each other's attention with noise, Fish's thumping and thrashing during demon attacks, and Poinsettia's warbling along to opera records at top volume. A heartbroken Poinsettia begins going out to bars, coming home, and collapsing in the hallway, where Fish finds her and drags her into his apartment for her safety and comfort. At first she's outraged, but soon, they find common ground playing rummy. (She beats him every time and he racks up a whopping debt from their fictional bets.) This leads to conversations that are full of wisdom and humor, and to a sex scene that is genuinely brave and affectionate. Poinsettia also becomes the "referee" to Fish's rasslin' matches.

The movie is about finding one's purpose, and the title comes in when Poinsettia decides to do something about Fish's demon. But purpose need not be anything lofty, and it can be as simple as the weed that Mrs. Muldroone tends to every day to spite her late husband. There's a lot of quiet humor in The Annihilation of Fish, the kind that may slip right by and might, upon further consideration, make you smile. But there's also a lot of wisdom and a lot of joy. It's an absolutely pleasure to finally have this movie in the world. (Tommy Redmond Hicks, who played Jamie Overstreet in Spike Lee's She's Gotta Have It, appears as a minister in an opening scene.)

Milestone and Kino Lorber's Blu-ray release comes with a trove of treasures, starting with a new audio commentary track by Burnett, moderated by film scholar Maya Cade. We also get a 30-minute Q&A Burnett moderated by film scholar Racquel Gates, and a re-release trailer. Best of all is yet another Burnett film, the 55-minute The Final Insult (1997), an intriguing mix of fact and fiction that examines the unhoused community in Los Angeles, and focusing on the character of "Box Brown" (Ayuko Babu), who works as a bank auditor and is himself unable to make ends meet. This disc is Highly Recommended.