Irma la Douce (1963)

In Paris, a former policeman falls in love with a prostitute, and tries to get her out of that life by paying for all of her time.

Director:

Billy Wilder

Writers:

Alexandre Breffort (play), Billy Wilder

Stars:

Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Lou Jacobi

Won 1 Oscar. Another 5 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Lemmon	...	Nestor Patou / Lord X
Shirley MacLaine	...	Irma La Douce
Lou Jacobi	...	Moustache
Bruce Yarnell	...	Hippolyte
Herschel Bernardi	...	Inspector Lefevre
Hope Holiday	...	Lolita
Joan Shawlee	...	Amazon Annie
Grace Lee Whitney	...	Kiki - the Cossack
Paul Dubov	...	Andre
Howard McNear	...	Concierge
Cliff Osmond	...	Police Sergeant
Diki Lerner	...	Jojo
Herb Jones	...	Casablanca Charlie
Ruth Earl	...	One of the Zebra Twins
Jane Earl	...	One of the Zebra Twins

Storyline

Naive, by the book French police officer Nester Patou, is transferred to the Red Light district. Upon witnessing what must be a brothel, he calls the station and organizes a raid, transporting all the 'ladies' to the jail. This unfortunately disrupts the well organized system of the police and the Pimps union. Not to mention inadvertently netting his station superior at the brothel. Fired, he goes to a bar to drink, is befriended by Irma, beats up her pimp, and finds he is now Irma's new pimp. Nester's doesn't like the thought of his girl seeing other men, so comes up with a plan.

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Plot Keywords:

pantyhose | prostitute | female stockinged feet | female stockinged legs | foreign language adaptation | 

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Taglines:

3 Lemmons hit the Jackpot

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 June 1963 (USA)

Also Known As:

Irma la dulce

Filming Locations:

Samuel Goldwyn Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$25,246,588

Company Credits

Production Co:

Phalanx Productions, The Mirisch Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

147 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Charles Laughton was writer/director Billy Wilder's first choice to play Moustache. Laughton, who had given an Oscar-nominated lead performance under Wilder's direction in Witness for the Prosecution (1957), agreed to play the role, but died before principal photography commenced.

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Goofs

The shadow of the "boom" can be seen on the brown wall, at the right of the screen, just after Lemmon shows up in MacLaine's apartment, following his jailbreak. It shows up behind Bernardi, just after MacLaine's sarcasm that Lemmon could be found in jail.

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Quotes

Moustache: Life is total war my friend... nobody has a right to be a conscientious objector.

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Connections

Remade as Manoranjan (1974)

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Soundtracks

Our Language of Love
Music by Marguerite Monnot
French lyrics by Alexandre Breffort
English lyrics by Julian More, David Heneker and Monty Norman

User Reviews

Forgotten Wilder treasure

Billy Wilder is remembered for "Some Like It Hot" but not this great Jack Lemmon/Shirley MacLaine comedy of a Paris cop falling in love with a prostitute. In many ways, it's funnier, and certainly risque. But tasteful and delightful overall.

Until recently, I had never seen this film in widescreen. But I loved this movie since I was 11 years old. It celebrates love and jealousy in ways that tickle. Moustache is the best reason to watch the film for his witty dialogue and comedic timing.

Fans of cameos should spot Bill Bixby and Grace Lee Whitney (Yeoman Janice Rand of Star Trek: TOS). I remember a time when I could tell you other things about this film, but that's another story!