Arthur (1981)

Arthur is a 1981 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Steve Gordon. It stars Dudley Moore as Arthur Bach, a drunken New York City millionaire who is on the brink of an arranged marriage to wealthy heiress Susan Johnson but ends up falling for Linda Marolla, a common working-class young woman from Queens. It was the sole film directed by Gordon, who died in 1982 of a heart attack at age 44.

The film received critical acclaim and earned $95.5 million domestically, making it the fourth highest-grossing film of 1981. Its title song, "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)", won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Co-written by Christopher Cross, Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, and Peter Allen, it was performed by Cross. Sir John Gielgud also won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. It was nominated for two other Academy Awards for Best Actor for Moore and Best Original Screenplay for Gordon. The film's success led to a sequel in 1988 and a remake in 2011, neither of which replicated the success of the original film.