How to Murder Your Wife

1965 "Bring The Little Woman...Maybe She'll Die Laughing!"
6.5| 1h58m| NR| en| More Info
Released: 26 January 1965 Released
Producted By: United Artists
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

Stanley Ford leads an idyllic bachelor life. He is a nationally syndicated cartoonist whose Bash Brannigan series provides him with a luxury townhouse and a full-time valet, Charles. When he wakes up the morning after the night before - he had attended a friend's stag party - he finds that he is married to the very beautiful woman who popped out of the cake - and who doesn't speak a word of English. Despite his initial protestations, he comes to like married life and even changes his cartoon character from a super spy to a somewhat harried husband.

Genre

Comedy

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Director

Richard Quine

Production Companies

United Artists

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How to Murder Your Wife Audience Reviews

GamerTab That was an excellent one.
Micitype Pretty Good
Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.
davidjanuzbrown How To Murder Your Wife ( HTMYW) is not a movie to be taken seriously. It is a spoof of spy movies and sex comedies. . I can imagine there would be a lot of women who would not care for this movie ( and a lot of guys who do ( myself included)). It's about a cartoonist named Stanley Ford (Jack Lemmon) who gets drunk and marries the girl who comes out of the cake ( the luscious Virna Lisi). Here is the thing: Lisi ( who as an Italian speaks no English) actually takes good care of Stanley ( if the writers wanted to be nasty, they could have made her a shrew ( like his lawyer's wife played by Claire Trevor)). Spoilers ahead: What it is about is killing his wife in a comic strip so the character can go back to being a spy. For that reason Stanley gets indicted for killing his wife ( she actually ran away because she ( like everyone else) thinks he will kill her). He admits to killing her, but gets acquitted ( to send a message to the jurors wives). What is important is Stanley really loves his wife which he admitted to his nasty woman hating butler ( Terry-Thomas) who along with Lisi ( for different reasons of course) steals the movie. Lisi's character who is called "Mrs. Ford ( you never learn her first name), eventually wins the battle of the sexes because even Terry-Thomas says "If he ( Stanley) can stand her, so can I." He then meets her mom and falls for her. What is important is almost any guy would love to be with Virna Lisa ( think Marilyn Monroe meets Sophia Loren), but she is actually decent ( she will not sleep with him at the end without the ring on her finger ( which he has)), and actually makes his life better ( even though she gets him kicked out of his men's only club by showing up there), and has him gain weight. What you see throughout the movie is a lot of unhappy men who picked the wrong woman ( since all are successful ( except the jurors), it makes you think they married not out of love but for social status) so they are miserable ( that is why they join clubs to get away from them). Stanley ends up with an entirely different kind of woman and learns to love her because of who she is. Besides if the choice is getting drunk with the guys or spending the night with Virna Lisi, the choice is very easy. 10/10 stars.
gavin6942 A man who has set up the perfect lifestyle for himself (Jack Lemmon) makes the mistake of marrying while drunk... and his fantasies of murder are used against him.Jack Lemmon in a leading role without a co-lead? I think it certainly works in this particular film, where he plays a popular cartoonist with a big of an imagination. And with his sinister, cynical butler (Terry-Thomas) encouraging his worst whims? Even better! The movie is fun, funny and interesting. It takes some odd turns and relies on legal nonsense for the plot to function. Apparently, he cannot get divorced without grounds... but somehow they overlook that he was drunk when the marriage license was signed, which should invalidate it. And the trial scene later on... wow.A lot could also be said about male and female interaction, and how women are portrayed here. It is not often in the most positive light. How seriously do we take that message?
TheLittleSongbird I personally enjoyed this film. It is overlong I agree and one or two scenes in the final act are a little tedious, however I love how brilliantly politically incorrect it is. It is also very funny, with some great dialogue that really sparkles and some truly funny scenes such as the galopita-galopita machine and the courtroom pressing of an imaginary button. The direction is fun as is the well-written story, and the cinematography, costumes and scenery are top notch. And the music is a fun and quirky touch, while the acting adds a lot to the fun. Jack Lemmon is believable in the lead, while Virna Lisi is very luscious as his wife. Terry-Thomas adeptly displays his dismay as the faithful butler after Lemmon's character who was a confirmed bachelor wakes up married after a night on the town, and Eddie Mayhoff and Claire Trevor show how far the battle of the sexes can go and still make us laugh(and keep it that way). Overall, it is a very good film. 8/10 Bethany Cox
bkoganbing One fine day Jack Lemmon, an American Bertie Wooster who earns a living as a cartoonist finds himself married to the gorgeous Virna Lisi. It's such a shock that his Jeeves played by Terry-Thomas walks out on him. But that's only the beginning of Lemmon's troubles.As P.G. Wodehouse was still alive when this film came it would be interesting to speculate what he thought of it. Probably not all that much. Certainly he never considered a libel suit for ripping off his famous fictional pair, he probably though that a suit would give the film unwanted publicity.It's not that How To Murder Your Wife is a horrible film, but a great cast was assembled and it laid an ostrich size omelet in an attempt to be satirical.Lemmon goes to a bachelor party in which the gorgeous Lisi pops out of a cake and dances. The next day he wakes up with her, but unlike in the past, there's a little gold band on his finger. Terry-Thomas has been used to Lemmon's women, but he's got a firm rule against working for married people. Jeeves I'm sure would concur.If you're going to be married why not enjoy it if it's to Virna Lisi. But she's cramping his style and he takes his frustration out in his cartoon strip. Later when Lisi discovers she's his literary inspiration for fictional homicide, she walks out and Lemmon's accused of her real murder.Eddie Mayehoff and Claire Trevor play Lemmon's married friends and Trevor tries to help Lisi with her English. She in turn helps Trevor loosen up. That particular scene is the best in the film.Lemmon wasn't particularly crazy about this film and I can see why. Still for Jack Lemmon fans it shouldn't be missed. The film could have used a lot more of Terry-Thomas.