What's New Pussycat?


1h 48m 1965
What's New Pussycat?

Brief Synopsis

A fashion editor seeks psychiatric help when he can't stop beautiful women from pursuing him.

Film Details

Also Known As
Quoi de neuf, Pussycat?
Genre
Comedy
Release Date
Jan 1965
Premiere Information
New York opening: 22 Jun 1965
Production Company
Famartists Productions; Famous Artists Productions
Distribution Company
United Artists
Country
United States

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 48m
Sound
Mono (Westrex Recording System)
Color
Color (Technicolor)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.66 : 1

Synopsis

Paris fashion magazine editor Michael James is involved in a relationship with Carole Werner, but the beautiful women he encounters in his work continually distract him. He consults psychiatrist Fritz Fassbender about his problem, but the doctor's own unfulfilled desires are compounded when he hears of Michael's conquests. Fassbender's overpowering wife, Anna, intends to keep him from extramarital lapses, however. Michael's friend Victor, who is also attracted to Carole, is concerned because he can't attract women, even though he is an "undresser" at a striptease club. When Carole learns that her parents are about to arrive for a visit, she tells Michael that they will either have to get married or break off the romance. Determined to have a final fling, Michael visits Victor at the club and falls for Liz, a beautiful stripper given to casual suicide attempts, but she is only interested in reading her poetry to him. Meanwhile, through Fassbender, Michael becomes involved with Renée, whose cold exterior conceals her passionate disposition. At the same time, Carole attempts to make Michael jealous by captivating Victor. Furthermore, Michael tries to entangle Renée with the adoring Fassbender in order to get rid of her. Michael then begins a third involvement with a mad parachutist, Rita. Declaring a temporary truce, Michael and Carole spend an enjoyable evening with Carole's parents, and he decides at last to marry and settle down. In a discreet country hotel, however, everyone takes part in a climactic chase in and out of the bedrooms before the marriage question is affirmatively resolved.

Film Details

Also Known As
Quoi de neuf, Pussycat?
Genre
Comedy
Release Date
Jan 1965
Premiere Information
New York opening: 22 Jun 1965
Production Company
Famartists Productions; Famous Artists Productions
Distribution Company
United Artists
Country
United States

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 48m
Sound
Mono (Westrex Recording System)
Color
Color (Technicolor)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.66 : 1

Award Nominations

Best Song

1965

Articles

What's New, Pussycat?


The swinging '60s got a new catchphrase and Woody Allen got a box-office hit that put him on the road to directing his own films when What's New, Pussycat? hit the screen in 1965. With an all-star international cast including Allen, Peter O'Toole, Peter Sellers, Romy Schneider, Paula Prentiss and Ursula Andress - highlighted with the tag line "Together Again (For the First Time)," and a hit title song recorded by Tom Jones - it seemed like a surefire hit. But if a film's success was measured by what went on behind the scenes during production, this frenetic sex farce would have been one of the biggest flops of all time.

At first, it was a dream come true for Allen. He was making a name for himself as a stand-up comic and dreaming of writing for the theater when he was approached about writing a screenplay. His agents were urging him to get into film work, so Allen tackled the assignment, producing a witty tale of a fashion magazine editor (O'Toole) who can't resist good-looking women - nor can most of them resist him. His search for love in a world of rampant sexuality parallels the fate of Allen's character, a dresser in a strip club who can't get into the ballpark, much less to first base. Allen wrote good roles for the women in their lives and a nice cameo for O'Toole's psychiatrist. And they hired hot young British director Clive Donner, fresh off his critical successes with the Harold Pinter adaptation The Caretaker (1964) and the black comedy Nothing but the Best (1964).

Then the improvements started. Peter Sellers, who was recovering from a heart attack, agreed to play the psychiatrist, a small role that would help him get back into the swing of filmmaking. But once he got on the set, he started improvising his own lines and suggesting added scenes. Even more damaging, he and Allen developed a rivalry that wasn't helped by their resemblance to each other. Sellers resented people's mistaking him for the neophyte actor-writer. And it got worse when an executive producer on the film, thinking he was Allen, reassured him that he wouldn't let Sellers damage his picture. Sellers began improvising more and even got the producer to give him lines and scenes Allen had written for himself. Suddenly Sellers was the film's star, and Allen was reduced to a supporting role.

Producer Charles K. Feldman didn't help, offering his own suggestions for the script and forcing them to cast his protegee, former model Capucine, for a minor role that then had to be expanded to fit her supposed star status. This made problems for the other women in the cast, besides adding more scenes that Allen hadn't written. Allen's only defender on the film was Donner, who fought to keep their original vision, with little success. Ultimately, this strengthened Allen's resolve to control his own work in the future. After co-starring in Casino Royale (1967), he would mostly work for himself, directing, writing and starring in such acclaimed films as Bananas (1971), Annie Hall (1977) and Hannah and Her Sisters (1986).

The critics were not kind to What's New, Pussycat?. Writing in the New York Times, Bosley Crowther said, "Woody Allen, the nightclub comedian, is formally charged with the minor offense of having written what is alleged to be the screenplay of What's New, Pussycat? But Mr. Allen can deny it, if he wants to, and he is bound to be believed. He can simply state that no one in his right mind could have written this excuse for a script." But that wasn't enough to keep audiences away. Drawn by the then-hot O'Toole (this was his second film after Lawrence of Arabia, 1962) and the promise of unfettered sexuality, they made What's New, Pussycat? a hit. The title song scored an Oscar nomination and spent ten weeks on the charts, topping at number two. The film's title even became a popular catchphrase, which drew more people into theaters. As miserable as the experience had made him, the success of What's New, Pussycat? helped put Allen in a position to start directing his own films five years later with Take the Money and Run.

Producer: Charles K. Feldman
Director: Clive Donner
Screenplay: Woody Allen
Cinematography: Jean Badal
Art Direction: Jacques Saulnier
Music: Burt Bacharach
Cast: Peter Sellers (Dr. Fritz Fassbender), Peter O'Toole (Michael James), Romy Schneider (Carole Werner), Capucine (Renee Lefebvre), Paula Prentiss (Liz), Woody Allen (Victor Shakapopulis), Ursula Andress (Rita), Eddra Gale (Anna Fassbender), Jess Hahn (Mr. Werner), Howard Vernon (Doctor), Richard Burton (Man in Bar), Louise Lasser (The Nutcracker).
C-109m. Letterboxed.

by Frank Miller

What's New, Pussycat?

What's New, Pussycat?

The swinging '60s got a new catchphrase and Woody Allen got a box-office hit that put him on the road to directing his own films when What's New, Pussycat? hit the screen in 1965. With an all-star international cast including Allen, Peter O'Toole, Peter Sellers, Romy Schneider, Paula Prentiss and Ursula Andress - highlighted with the tag line "Together Again (For the First Time)," and a hit title song recorded by Tom Jones - it seemed like a surefire hit. But if a film's success was measured by what went on behind the scenes during production, this frenetic sex farce would have been one of the biggest flops of all time. At first, it was a dream come true for Allen. He was making a name for himself as a stand-up comic and dreaming of writing for the theater when he was approached about writing a screenplay. His agents were urging him to get into film work, so Allen tackled the assignment, producing a witty tale of a fashion magazine editor (O'Toole) who can't resist good-looking women - nor can most of them resist him. His search for love in a world of rampant sexuality parallels the fate of Allen's character, a dresser in a strip club who can't get into the ballpark, much less to first base. Allen wrote good roles for the women in their lives and a nice cameo for O'Toole's psychiatrist. And they hired hot young British director Clive Donner, fresh off his critical successes with the Harold Pinter adaptation The Caretaker (1964) and the black comedy Nothing but the Best (1964). Then the improvements started. Peter Sellers, who was recovering from a heart attack, agreed to play the psychiatrist, a small role that would help him get back into the swing of filmmaking. But once he got on the set, he started improvising his own lines and suggesting added scenes. Even more damaging, he and Allen developed a rivalry that wasn't helped by their resemblance to each other. Sellers resented people's mistaking him for the neophyte actor-writer. And it got worse when an executive producer on the film, thinking he was Allen, reassured him that he wouldn't let Sellers damage his picture. Sellers began improvising more and even got the producer to give him lines and scenes Allen had written for himself. Suddenly Sellers was the film's star, and Allen was reduced to a supporting role. Producer Charles K. Feldman didn't help, offering his own suggestions for the script and forcing them to cast his protegee, former model Capucine, for a minor role that then had to be expanded to fit her supposed star status. This made problems for the other women in the cast, besides adding more scenes that Allen hadn't written. Allen's only defender on the film was Donner, who fought to keep their original vision, with little success. Ultimately, this strengthened Allen's resolve to control his own work in the future. After co-starring in Casino Royale (1967), he would mostly work for himself, directing, writing and starring in such acclaimed films as Bananas (1971), Annie Hall (1977) and Hannah and Her Sisters (1986). The critics were not kind to What's New, Pussycat?. Writing in the New York Times, Bosley Crowther said, "Woody Allen, the nightclub comedian, is formally charged with the minor offense of having written what is alleged to be the screenplay of What's New, Pussycat? But Mr. Allen can deny it, if he wants to, and he is bound to be believed. He can simply state that no one in his right mind could have written this excuse for a script." But that wasn't enough to keep audiences away. Drawn by the then-hot O'Toole (this was his second film after Lawrence of Arabia, 1962) and the promise of unfettered sexuality, they made What's New, Pussycat? a hit. The title song scored an Oscar nomination and spent ten weeks on the charts, topping at number two. The film's title even became a popular catchphrase, which drew more people into theaters. As miserable as the experience had made him, the success of What's New, Pussycat? helped put Allen in a position to start directing his own films five years later with Take the Money and Run. Producer: Charles K. Feldman Director: Clive Donner Screenplay: Woody Allen Cinematography: Jean Badal Art Direction: Jacques Saulnier Music: Burt Bacharach Cast: Peter Sellers (Dr. Fritz Fassbender), Peter O'Toole (Michael James), Romy Schneider (Carole Werner), Capucine (Renee Lefebvre), Paula Prentiss (Liz), Woody Allen (Victor Shakapopulis), Ursula Andress (Rita), Eddra Gale (Anna Fassbender), Jess Hahn (Mr. Werner), Howard Vernon (Doctor), Richard Burton (Man in Bar), Louise Lasser (The Nutcracker). C-109m. Letterboxed. by Frank Miller

Quotes

My father, the most beloved gynecologist in Vienna, before they took him away on a morals charge for indecent exposure at the State Opera House, said, and I quote: "Please do not take me away, I will not do it again."
- Dr. Fritz Fassbender
Brilliant quote.
- Victor Skakapopulis
He was a brilliant pervert.
- Dr. Fritz Fassbender
Did you find a job?
- Michael James
Yeah, I got something at the striptease. I help the girls dress and undress.
- Victor Skakapopulis
Nice job.
- Michael James
Twenty francs a week.
- Victor Skakapopulis
Not very much.
- Michael James
It's all I can afford.
- Victor Skakapopulis
Would you excuse me for a minute? I'm going into the bathroom to take an overdose of sleeping pills.
- Liz Bien
I like you. You're a nice stable girl.
- Michael James
I am a doctor of the mind.
- Dr. Fritz Fassbender
Really?
- Victor Skakapopulis
Yes!
- Dr. Fritz Fassbender
I have terrible emotional problems. Could you help me?
- Victor Skakapopulis
You certainly picked a very odd time to ask me, just in the middle of a suicide.
- Dr. Fritz Fassbender
Who is that thing?
- Rita
That is no thing, it's my wife!
- Dr. Fritz Fassbender

Trivia

Capucine's character's last name is Lefevbre, which is her real last name.

The scene where Woody Allen's character celebrates his birthday on the wharf was filmed on December 1, 1964 - Woody's 29th birthday.

Banned in Norway because of a scene where Peter Sellers tries to commit suicide by burning himself wrapped in a Norwegian flag.

The movie began as a semi-autobiographical project for Warren Beatty. Woody Allen was hired to write the screenplay, but he eventually made the Beatty character so small that Beatty himself was no longer interested and, 'Peter O'Toole' hired to play it.

The title is a line Warren Beatty used on his girlfriends at the time.

Notes

Filmed in and around Paris. Opened in Paris in January 1966 as Quoi de neuf, Pussycat?; running time: 105 min. French coproduction status unconfirmed.

Miscellaneous Notes

Released in United States June 1965

Released in United States Summer June 22, 1965

Re-released in Paris June 13, 1990.

Scope

Released in United States June 1965

Released in United States Summer June 22, 1965