Title of 80s/90s film with "disinterested" vs. "uninterested" argument

September 1, 2014 5:26 PM

I'm looking for a film that I saw in the 80s or 90s in which two of the characters argued throughout about the proper definitions of "disinterested" and "uninterested." Both characters were male and were, I believe, the main characters. I'm fairly certain that the film was British.
posted by danslos to Media & Arts (5 answers total)

Bugsy?
posted by Sys Rq at 5:44 PM on September 1, 2014

Response by poster: I don't think that's the one I'm looking for. I'm pretty certain that it took place somewhere in Britain. Do they argue about disinterested vs. uninterested in "Bugsy"?
posted by danslos at 6:15 PM on September 1, 2014

They do, you have to read the link.

Anyway, here's another, from Would I Lie To You which is positively British (but also too recent).
posted by Tobu at 3:33 AM on September 2, 2014

Response by poster: Yes, definitely too recent, but that's the idea. In the film I'm looking for, it may have been an ongoing debate.
posted by danslos at 6:31 AM on September 2, 2014

This comes up in David Fincher's The Game:

FEINGOLD: It's never happened. We've never had an unsatisfied customer.

NICHOLAS: You mean, dissatisfied.

FEINGOLD: (glances at form) That's right -- you're a left-brain word fetishist.
posted by Rangeboy at 2:06 PM on September 5, 2014