Irma La Douce reunited The Apartment team of Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine with director Billy Wilder in an adaptation of the stage musical of the same name which had been a hit in Paris, London and New York. The screen transfer by Wilder and his colleague--writer IAL Diamond--however, omits the show's songs, relegating them to a background score refashioned by Andre Previn with some additional themes of his own. Background here is a complimentary term, for whatever qualms one might entertain as to this move, the two sets of themes are skilfully woven together by... Previn and emerge as a witty and lyrical aural delight in their own right which is given due prominence on the soundtrack. Wilder is no rush to tell prostitute Irma's story: her affair with Lemmon being the pivot of the tale as he takes on the disguise of an English Lord. Lemmon and MacLaine beautifully play their mutual attraction under Wilder's deft direction with the slapstick never allowed to get out of hand. Many will recognise Wilder's touch in his handling of the scene where Lemmon as a policeman is carted off in a van full of voracious prostitutes from the bunks-in-the-train sequence in Some Like It Hot. The handsome production, designed by Alexander Tranner--with the occasional view of the Seine thrown in for good measure--and the Panavision photography by Joseph La Shelle are further assets. On the DVD: The DVD contains a longer than usual theatrical trailer, half shot as a cartoon with characters closely resembling those Pink Panther figures who emerged at the same time from the Mirisch Brothers, a pair prominent in sustaining the unique success of United Artists, whose name was deleted, in favour of the MGM logo, in the early 1960s. It's too bad that the music on this DVD transfer sometimes strikes a coarse note particularly over the extended opening credits. --Adrian Edwards [show more]
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Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 (Europe) or region Free DVD Player in order to play Meet Nestor (Jack Lemmon) a young man with a very complicated love-life Employed as a business manager to Irma La Douce (Shirley MacLaine) a proud and profitable lady of the streets the poor guy has gone and fallen in love with her! So how do you keep a popular Parisienne like Irma faithful? Simple Disguise yourself as an elderly English Lord who immediately becomes Irma&39;s sole client and means of support! But what&39;s a jealous manager to do when the illustrious Irma claims that the man she&39;s really in love with is not the smitten Nestor but the dotty old lord? Actors Jack Lemmon Shirley MacLaine Lou Jacobi Bruce Yarnell & Herschel Bernardi Director Billy Wilder Certificate 15 years and over Year 1963 Screen Widescreen 2351 Languages English ; French ; German ; Italian ; Spanish Subtitles Danish ; Dutch ; English for the hearing impaired ; French ; German for the hearing impaired ; Italian ; Norwegian ; Spanish ; Swedish Duration 2 hours and 23 minutes (approx) Region Region 2 - Will only play on European Region 2 or multi-region DVD players
Nestor (Jack Lemmon) is a bumbling Parisian policeman who manages to get the sack after raiding a house of ill repute at which his boss is in attendance. Looking for work, he is taken on by streetwalker Irma La Douce (Shirley Maclaine) as her business manager, and soon finds himself falling in love with her. Determined to keep Irma faithful, Nestor disguises himself as an elderly English lord and becomes her sole client. All goes well, until Irma confesses her love to Nestor - not for him, but for his aged alter ego!
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