The Fortune Cookie
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
Brand: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT
EAN: 9780792849162
Format: Anamorphic, Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
ISBN: 0792849167
Label: MGM (Video & DVD)
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
Number Of Items: 1
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen
Publisher: MGM (Video & DVD)
Region Code: 1
Release Date: March 06, 2001
Running Time: 125 minutes
Sales Rank: 35016
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
Theatrical Release Date: October 19, 1966
Related Items:
- The Odd Couple
- How to Murder Your Wife
- The Front Page
- A Guide for the Married Man
- The Out-of-Towners
- see more
Editorial Review:
Description:
Powered by Walter Matthau's OscarÂ(r)-winning* performance as the quintessential all-American chiseler, The Fortune Cookie is a hysterically funny comedy that showcases filmmaker BillyWilder at his uproarious best. Harry Hinkle (Jack Lemmon) is one lucky guy! When he's accidentally clobbered by a 220-pound halfback, all Harry suffers is a slight concussion. All, that is, until Whiplash Willie (Matthau)a legal scoundrel of the first orderarrives on the scene! For if Harry follows shyster Willie's advice and feigns a crippling injury, the two charlatans can split a cool million in phony insurance claims. But can Willie's world-class finagling dispel those ominous words that lie within the fortune cookie on Harry's hospital plate: You can't fool all of the people all of the time? *1966: Supporting Actor
Amazon.com essential video:
Billy Wilder's insurance-scam comedy, written with partner I.A.L. Diamond, is one of the legendary filmmaker's surlier efforts. Were it not for the star-making performance of Walter Matthau (which won him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor), it might not have registered so strongly with audiences. Shot in a grimy black and white, the story begins as CBS cameraman Harry Hinkle (Jack Lemmon) is injured on the sidelines of a football game when Cleveland Browns star Boom Boom Jackson (Ron Rich) accidentally barrels into him. Hinkle's all right, but his ambulance-chasing brother-in-law William Gingrich (Matthau), also known as 'Whiplash Willie,' has a lawsuit filed before Hinkle even wakes up at the hospital. Hinkle is reluctant to join in on the scheme, which involves staying in a wheelchair, until he realizes it may bring his ex-wife (Judi West) back, even though her eyes practically flash dollar signs at the thought of his case's settlement potential. Working on Hinkle's conscience, however, is a burgeoning friendship with Jackson, who feels horrible about the incident. Not as sure-footed or as brazenly funny as many other Wilder efforts, the film nevertheless boasts a comic turn by Matthau that is deliciously conniving and endlessly inventive. Wilder, Hollywood's most caustically funny blend of pessimist and optimist, doesn't even aim for balance here. He clearly loves Matthau's character above all others and lets him run the show. The Lemmon and Matthau franchise began here and would go on to include their reteaming for Wilder's films The Front Page and Buddy Buddy. --Robert Abele
Average Rating: 
Rating:
- Beginning of a Beautiful RelationshipThis is average endeavor for director Billy Wilder and his co-scenarist I.A.L. Diamond. That is to ... Read More
Rating:
- Lemmon and Mattheu - who needs more?Walter Matthew and Jack Lemmon can't have made many bad movies - at least, not until the end of their ... Read More
Rating:
- Excellent Acting Jack Lemmon & Walter Matthau, Below Average ComedyExcellent Acting Jack Lemmon & Walter Matthau, also a superb directing by Billy Wylder.
It ... Read More
Rating:
- Under appreciated This is one of the best small comedies ever made and one that never has never gotten the standing it should ... Read More
Rating:
- A Movie to Remember Walter by.If I had to buy a single movie showing Walter Matthau's genius as an actor, this may be the one, for as good ... Read More
Browse for similar items by category:
- Comedy - Genres - DVD - Video - General
- By Theme - Comedy - Genres - DVD - Video - Buddy Films
- By Theme - Comedy - Genres - DVD - Video - Cons & Scams
- By Theme - Comedy - Genres - DVD - Video - Underdogs
- By Theme - Comedy - Genres - DVD - Video - Comedy of Manners
Copyright ©2003, Mark Carey.