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 | green pantyhose | prostitute | female stockinged feet | female stockinged legs | 

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Taglines:

YOU COULDN'T ASK FOR FRIENDLIER FEMALES OR A FUNNIER PICTURE! (original print ad - all caps)

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jack Lemmon married Felicia Farr in Paris during this movie's shoot. Billy Wilder and regular Jack Lemmon director Richard Quine were joint "Best Men ".

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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: Shows you the kind of world we live in. Love is illegal - but not hate. That you can do anywhere, anytime, to anybody. But if you want a little warmth, a little tenderness, a shoulder to cry on, a smile to cuddle up with, you have to hide in dark corners, like a criminal. Pfui.

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Connections

Featured in V.I.P.-Schaukel: Episode #5.1 (1975)

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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

Entertaining lightweight piece.

Although "Irma la Douce" can't quite compare to Wilder's greatest works, it's nonetheless an entertaining lightweight piece with ravishing photography, delightful performances, gorgeous set design, and a top-notch musical score. As a whole the film just isn't remarkable enough to reach the level of "Some Like It Hot" and "The Apartment", and it suffers from being needlessly drawn out. Lou Jacobi almost steals the show from Lemmon and MacLaine.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 August 1963 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Irma la Douce

Filming Locations:

Pont Royal Bridge Paris, France

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

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