A Very Special Favor (1965)

Michel Boullard (Charles Boyer) meets Paul Chadwick (Rock Hudson) while going against him in a court case in France... See full synopsis »

Director:

Michael Gordon

Writers:

Stanley Shapiro, Nate Monaster

Stars:

Rock Hudson, Leslie Caron, Charles Boyer

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Rock Hudson	...	Paul Chadwick
Leslie Caron	...	Dr. Lauren Boullard
Charles Boyer	...	Michel Boullard
Walter Slezak	...	Etienne, Restaurant Proprietor
Dick Shawn	...	Arnold Plum
Larry Storch	...	Harry the Taxi Driver
Nita Talbot	...	Mickey the Switchboard Operator
Norma Varden	...	Mother Plum
George Furth	...	Pete
Marcel Hillaire	...	Claude - French Barrister
Jay Novello	...	Rene, French Barrister
Stafford Repp	...	Bartender
Danica D'Hondt	...	Jacqueline
Frank De Vol	...	Desk Clerk (as Frank DeVol)
John Harding	...	Dr. Lambert

Storyline

Michel Boullard (Charles Boyer) meets Paul Chadwick (Rock Hudson) while going against him in a court case in France... See full synopsis »

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Plot Keywords:

psychiatrist | paris france | farce

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 August 1965 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ein Appartement für drei

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Lankershim Company, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Co-star Walter Slezak, who played a French restaurateur in the film, was a gourmet cook and often treated the cast and crew to French cuisine.

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Quotes

Paul Chadwick: Dorothy, if a man ever asks you to romance his daughter, promise me you'll turn him down.
Dorothy: You have my word.

User Reviews

An inside joke

Charles Boyer asks Rock Hudson for "A Very Special Favor," a 1965 film starring Leslie Caron, Walter Slezak, Dick Shawn, Nita Talbot and Larry Storch. Boyer is Michel Boullard, a man estranged from his cold, rigid daughter, a psychiatrist, Lauren Boullard (Caron) engaged to a wimp (Shawn). Impressed by his colleague Paul Chadwick's (Hudson) success with women, he asks Paul to seduce his daughter. However, Michel then reconnects with his daughter and, becoming angry with Paul, turns against him and works with Lauren to extract revenge on his mistreatment of her. This involves inventing a lover for Lauren, a bullfighter named El Magnifico and convincing Paul he's lost it in the sack.

Paul finally catches on and enlists a female friend who isn't getting any at the moment (Nita Talbot) and has her impersonate a man so that Lauren will think he's now gay.

I notice people on the board have all kinds of theories why this film isn't on DVD except that now, of course, it is. It also isn't the only time this inside joke was used in a Rock Hudson film, if anyone recalls his description to Doris Day about her boyfriend in "Pillow Talk." "Well, there are some men...who live with their mothers..." etc. I'm sure that in those days (unlike today) Hudson's private life was safe enough that no one thought twice about using something like this in a script. Everyone probably thought it was pretty funny.

These sex comedies were all the rage in the '60s, and this one has its moments, with Hudson and Caron very good in their roles and surrounded by excellent people. In one of the first scenes, Boyer and Slezak, two suicides in real life, embrace - it really didn't get the comedy off to a good start for me. But they're both delightful, Boyer moving from romantic leads to the father roles still possessing that wonderful, easy charm he had. Slezak was a very versatile actor who could go from playing an invincible Nazi in "Lifeboat" to a role like this. Nita Talbot is one of my favorite actresses of all time - seeing her made me nostalgic for the old days.

If you like this type of comedy, at which Hudson really excelled, you'll enjoy this one. This is on a DVD set of some of the more obscure Hudson films such as "Has Anybody Seen My Gal," and the collection shows the trajectory of his career from young supporting player to lead. The fact that Hudson has since been "outed" shouldn't make his work any less enjoyable. He was, after all, doing what he was hired to do - act.