What's New Pussycat
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Movie Reviews of What's New Pussycat
Movie Review: Slapstick 60's Genre
Summary: 4 Stars
A film starring a few of my favorite cast members; Woody Allen, Peter Sellers, Peter O'Toole. It's great for the time period that it was filmed and this should be the prospective with which to watch the movie. Having said that...I'm not certain if any editing was done from the version originally released 40yrs ago. I've heard that this is done when older films are released on DVD, which is a disappointment. The original should be left untouched. Since I have no comparison, the rating I gave it is based on my viewing this movie for the 1st time.Movie Review: Paula Prentiss Steals The Show
Summary: 3 Stars
WHAT'S NEW, PUSSYCAT? was a popular ticket in 1965--but when seen outside the context of its era it emerges as a slightly choppy, slightly slapdash film long on froth and short on actual amusement.
Originally written by Woody Allen as a vehicle for Warren Beatty, both script and cast underwent a mighty change before it reached the screen, so much so that the experience prompted Allen to swear he'd never allow any one but himself to direct one of his scripts in the future. The story revolves around Michael James (Peter O'Toole), a handsome man who wants to marry Carol (Romy Schneider) but can't stop sleeping around long enough to make a commitment. He accordingly goes to psychiatrist Dr. Fritz Fassbender (Peter Sellers)--who is a sex-crazed nut in pursuit of patient Renee (Capucine.) Before the dust settles Woody Allen, Paula Prentiss, Ursla Andress, and Edra Gale are added to the mix.
O'Toole and Sellers are hardly challenged by the material and Allen introduces his "I'm a New York neurotic" screen persona for the first time--but it is really the abundance of supporting actresses that give the film what little zing it still retains. Romy Schnieder was among Europe's greatest stars and finest actresses of her era; although the script offers her little, she is charming indeed. Much the same can be said of the legendary Capucine in the role of a world-weary nymphomaniac; Ursula Andress, who arrives in the film via parachute, and bovine Edra Gale, who runs riot in Wagnerian attire. But the real scene stealer is Paula Prentiss.
Although extremely attractive, Prentiss was originally typed as a "second lead" of the Eve Arden type--but she quickly graduated to neurotic comedy roles for which she had a truly unique flair. WHAT'S NEW, PUSSYCAT? finds her at the top of her form as the interestingly-named Liz Bien, who writes bad poetry, has a tendency to overdose on pills everytime she goes to the bathroom, and who attaches herself to the much-harrassed Peter O'Toole. It really is a performance that transcends the material and which lingers in the mind long after the credits roll.
The DVD release is third rate, with mediocre visual elements and sound so uneven that I constantly adjusted the volume as I watched. When all is said and done, this is really a film for hardcore fans of its various stars--and especially for Paula Prentiss. If for no other reason, the film is worth watching for her alone.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Movie Review: Peter O'Toole,Sex Symbol
Summary: 3 Stars
"What's new,Pussycat?" is from back in the day when sex comedies had some brains to them, relying more on double entendres than anything graphic. Forget the crudeness of the American Pie&head to France in the '60s instead! This movie is indeed trippin'. You'll have to suspend your disbelief. It was the '60s.
From its opening,"What's new Pussycat?" has a very psychedelic sense. Peter Sellers stars as a German psychiatrist who's a proto-Austin Powers. Somehow he manages to be a womanizer,dress in maroon velvet like Prince,and wear a wig that's--impressive. Peter O'Toole stars as Michael James,an astoundingly heterosexual editor of a women's fashion magazine&exudes an aura of such sex appeal that women pursue him relentlessly. After the success of "Lawrence of Arabia",O'Toole was almost a sex symbol. This movie attempted to capitalize on it. A tall,nervous,frequently drunk Irishman as a sex god-well,it was the '60s. His frequent shirtlessness gives this movie three stars rather than two. Finally,Woody Allen stars as a nebbish man working in a strip club.
The plot to "What's new Pussycat?" can be described as trippin' at best. Peter Sellers is a psychiatrist cheating on his wife. Michael James has a fiancee,but wants to "experiment" and frequents strip clubs to find love (Richard Burton also makes a cameo appearance) James recounts his amorous conquests from the age of 12 onward. Sellers tries to seduce a lady (only to be chased by gendarmes) James finds himself with a virginal stripper who reads poetry. And so on..... The plot (along with the scenery&costumes) is psychedelic&meant to be that way.
"What's up Pussycat?" is a sex comedy that's actually quite funny,in its own bizarre way. It's deemed politically incorrect now,and back when it first opened American movie critics lambasted it as immoral&decadent. Not much has changed. Still,it's an opportunity to see Lawrence of Arabia,Ladies' Man! Enjoy! It was the '60s.
Movie Review: Woody Allen in a go-cart chase?
Summary: 3 Stars
Every year I try to have a bit of fun and give myself a DVD viewing project. This year I decided to work my way through all of Woody Allen's movies, from earliest to latest. And, as "What's New, Pussycat?" seems to be the first of the Allen-driven movies (Allen didn't direct it, but he wrote it and is one of its stars), here's where I began! It's the fault of Leonard Maltin's movie guide if I should have started somewhere else. Anyway, onward...
This is a fun little movie, though it's strange seeing Woody in what is essentially a goofy British comedy-- complete with Peter Sellers, no less! Alas, the movie is about twenty minutes too long and a little choppy in its story-telling. But there are some genuine laughs, though they're more along the lines of an occasional chuckle than the frequent guffaws variety.
In the end, though I had some fun discovering this movie (this is one of the few Woody Allen films I had never seen) I have to say that my initial impression during the closing credits was that Woody's better days were definitely ahead of him. Of course, I'm sure the movie's shortcomings weren't totally his fault, as at that point in his career Woody likely didn't have total control of the final product.
I'd say that "What's New, Pussycat" is worth viewing half for its inherent merits and half for the historic curiosity of its being Woody's first feature-film appearance. An amusing postscript: Woody's recent "Match Point" was also filmed in England, making that country the host of both an early, somewhat floundering work of an emerging talent and the mature, accomplished work of a master director.
Movie Review: What's New Pussycat, What's new?
Summary: 3 Stars
I love Woody Allen. While I am currently in my mid-20s, I often say I grew up on Woody Allen films, often renting old ones on VHS and always seeing new ones in the theaters. However, the bottom line is that I was not particularly happy with this one.
This is Woody's film debut and he is not the director, however he is the writer and there is no doubt of that as this movie feels like a something only the mind of Woody Allen can conjure up. In this sense, Woody Allen fans should enjoy it, I did in this respect. I also enjoyed the fact that Sellers and O'Toole were in this film, however I did not think much of Sellers' performance. I was also surprised to see how young and handsome O'Toole was. I hate to say it (and this has nothing to do with the film itself) but as I saw O'Toole in his recent film, "Venus", I thought he must of been in his 80's. It seems he is actually 75, only three years older than Allen, who by the way looks great.
This film feels more like a play at times, which is actually quite endearing. I do admit I wholeheartedly enjoyed Sellers and O'Toole's as drunkards, Woody Allen fighting off a giant, the psychoanalysis get-togethers, Burt Bacharach's score...boy, it seems the more I discuss the film the more I realize how much I actually liked it.
Well, perhaps one more sour note to even things out. "What's New Pussycat?" is choppy in its cuts creating an all together skittish film experience...so I do not know who to thank for that: the director? editor?