Special Features:
Original Theatrical Trailer  �  French and Spanish Soundtracks

Irma La Douce is a rare Billy Wilder film that I don't particularly like. I spotted the budget DVD ($9.99 at Fry's Electronics) and I figured it would be a good purchase. Amazingly this movie never grabbed me at all. The performances from Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine are fine, so I would have to say the failure here is with Wilder's writing and direction. This movie was adapted from a stage musical so the original writer is partially to blame, but Wilder and co-writer IAL Diamond should have known better. Rarely do I complain about the length of film but at two hours and twenty-three minutes this comedy is at least 30-40 to long. At least three times I was left staring at the screen wondering why we weren't moving on. I wasn't laughing and I wasn't learning anything important about the characters. Ruthless is the only way to describe how a comedy should be edited. If it isn't funny and doesn't add to some character element that will be funny later on in the film it should be cut. The discipline that Wilder showed so often in previous films is missing here.

The film wasn't a complete waste of my time and it has more than a few examples of Wilder's razor sharp wit. My favorite example is when Irma (Shirley MacLaine), who plays a prostitute, is telling about one John she had that paid her so much for his two visits a week that he was her only customer. Another character asks what happened to him and she says, "His wife died so he didn't have to come to me anymore." Ouch.

Picture and sound quality were both average. Both colors and blacks were nicely reproduced, but the picture was a little soft and did have some noticeable artifacts in a few scenes. The sound is mono so you can't expect a whole lot.

The original theatrical trailer is the sole extra.