The Owl and the Pussycat (1970)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Herbert Ross

Writers:

Buck Henry (writer)
Bill Manhoff (play)

Release Date:

3 November 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

it's no longer a story for children.

Plot:

Can a bickering odd couple in Manhattan become friends and maybe more? Owlish Felix is an unpublished...

Plot Keywords:

Hooker | Animal In Title | Prostitution | Independent Film | Based On Play

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Barbra Streisand	...	Doris
George Segal	...	Felix
Robert Klein	...	Barney
Allen Garfield	...	Dress Shop Proprietor
Roz Kelly	...	Eleanor
Jacques Sandulescu	...	Rapzinsky
Jack Manning	...	Mr. Weyderhaus
Grace Carney	...	Mrs. Weyderhaus
Bárbara Ansón	...	Miss Weyderhaus
Kim Chan	...	Theatre Cashier
Stan Gottlieb	...	Coatcheck Man
Joe Madden	...	Old Man Neighbor
Fay Sappington	...	Old Woman Neighbor
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Marilyn Chambers	...	Barney's Girl (as Evelyn Lang)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:PG (edited for re-rating) (1972) | Australia:M | Iceland:12 | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-16 (uncut) (1989) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1971) | Argentina:16 | Chile:18 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R (original rating)

Company:

Rastar Pictures

Trivia:

Producer Ray Stark was hoping to cast Elizabeth Taylor for the part of Doris.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the very beginning, Doris huddles in a doorway to get out of the rain. As a bus pulls up to the kerb, she starts to walk towards it, but in the next tighter shot Doris still in the doorway. The next shot, back on the street, Doris is already on her way towards the bus.

Quotes:

Felix: I'm extremely sorry but I don't know the story to "The Sound Of Music".
Doris: Oh no, that's terrible.
Felix: You thought "The Sound Of Music" was terrible?
Doris: Four times I saw that terrible movie.
Felix: You must have really hated it.
Doris: I saw it with my friend Eleanor at the Loew's King now torn down. It was playing continuous, no intermission. Get it?
Felix: I don't think so.
Doris: Her bladder burst.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Indie Sex: Censored (2007) (TV)

Loud, abrasive, crude and edited but still funny

Comedy/drama taking place in NYC about meek, mild Felix (George Segal) ending up stuck with loud, obnoxious prostitute Doris (Barbra Streisand). Naturally they hate each other and naturally fall in love.

This movie is VERY loud (basically because Streisand yells nonstop), the humor is pretty caustic (Streisand thinks Segal is gay and throws quite a few homophobic jokes at him) and is pretty risqué--it was edited from an R rating but there's still plenty of swearing and sexual sequences. Still it is fun. Segal and Streisand work well together--the script is full of one liners that they throw at each other full tilt. And it might seem strange that Streisand could convincingly play a prostitute--but she actually looks very attractive here and pulls it off (she played another one in "Nuts" in 1987).

This isn't perfect however. It seems a little bit too long and some of their arguing gets repetitive. Also there is annoying edit when Streisand says the word "f***". I'm guessing it was cut to get a PG rating but it renders one scene incomprehensible and I DID hear it in the video version released in the 1980s. What's the story? Also there's a very ugly scene at the end where Segal humiliates Streisand in Central Park. Segal also shot some nude scenes which never made it into the final print.

Still this is worth catching. I wouldn't let the kids see it though. This is pretty strong for a PG film.