The Owl and the Pussycat (1970)

Director: Herbert Ross

Cast: Barbra Streisand, George Segal, Robert Klein

Synopsis:

Back in the late 1960s/early 70s there seemed to be a rash of these mismatched couple movies (The Odd Couple, Cactus Flower, etc), and The Owl and the Pussycat probably rates as one of the best. The movie’s only real drawback is that its stage origins are too much in evidence, and on occasion the humour is not strong enough to overcome the dullness of its static locations (especially during the long sequence at Felix’s friend Barney’s apartment); in fact the movie only really opens up in the last third. However there are a lot of laugh-out-loud lines, and Barbra Streisand delivers a top-rate performance as the reluctant down-to-earth hooker. While her strident accent may irritate on occasion, the camera manages to capture the beauty in her distinctive features, and she plays the feisty role of Doris Wilgis with vigour. George Segal (Who’s Afriad of Virginia Woolf), while perfectly acceptable (even with that nerdy moustache) performs in Streisand’s shadow throughout.

(Reviewed 8th February 2002)