Buddy Buddy (1981) User Reviews

The Hit-man And The Schnook

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 30 December 2006]

For what turned out to be his final film, Billy Wilder decided to adapt the French black comedy L'Emmerdeur to America and he and his writing partner I.A.L. Diamond came up with Buddy Buddy.

As it turned out I saw this film back to back with Wilder's Kiss Me Stupid. In that one, a whole lot of talented actors couldn't raise it above mediocrity. But in watching Buddy Buddy I failed to see why this one was slammed as bad as it was. It's not anything close to what Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau did in The Fortune Cookie or even in the remake of The Front Page. Still Buddy Buddy does have its moments.

Of course the film does hinge on the incomparable chemistry between Lemmon and Matthau and they save the film essentially for Wilder. They are two total strangers whom chance throws together at a most inopportune moment.

Matthau is a professional hit-man who's been given the job of killing three stoolies who are to testify at a mob trial. He's got the first two and has a plan set for number three.

Then of course he meets Lemmon who is despondent over his wife leaving him for a fake sex therapist. He checks into the same hotel in the room next to Matthau who is readying his hit and tries to commit suicide.

For the rest of the film Matthau is forced to take an interest in this schnook's marital problems to keep from committing suicide and bringing a swarm of police to the hotel. Matthau and Lemmon get into some pretty funny situation as there seems to be no end in sight to what can go wrong with a well thought out plan.

Lemmon's wife is played by Paula Prentiss and their marriage seems very much modeled on the one Lemmon had in The Fortune Cookie. Things work out just about the same way for the unhappy couple.

Things kind of work out for Matthau too in a rather unbelievable way for which you will have to see Buddy Buddy. And while it's not like some of the great Wilder classics of the Fifties when Billy was at his creative best, it's far from the worst film he could have gone out on.

Not as bad as you've heard

[jc1305us · 7/10 · 27 October 2014]

I was lucky enough to find this movie posted on that famous video site, and sat down for what I thought was going to be a disaster. Billy Wilder's final film, as I've read and heard, was a disaster. Awful, a terrible end to the most brilliant of film careers. Well, after watching "Buddy Buddy" I find that I don't agree with that harsh assessment.

Jack Lemmon plays his usual role, the put on Everyman. But to say that in a negative light is wrong. He played that character so well, that it is a pleasure to see him do it again. This time, he is trying to win back his estranged wife of 12 years, who has left him for a sex clinic doctor.

Playing against type, is Walter Matthau playing a hit-man who has one last job to complete before retirement and a life of leisure on an island near Tahiti. As fate would have it, both men find themselves in the same hotel with much different objectives. Lemmon to end his life, and Matthau to end a mob snitches life, before he's able to testify in a big trial.

Needless to say, hijinks ensue, and in my opinion, some really funny scenes. I won't spoil it, but give Buddy Buddy a chance. Is it "The Odd Couple"? No. Is it worth a watch for some harmless entertainment? Absolutely.

Odd Couple 2.0

[view_and_review · 7/10 · 19 December 2019]

Jack Lemmon has a penchant for playing the suicidal guy after a bad break up. He did that in The Odd Couple as Felix Ungar and he's at it again here in Buddy Buddy.

Walter Matthau, on the other hand, is not a slob in this film, he's quite the opposite. Matthau plays Trabucco, an all business, very skilled hitman working for the mob. He's targeting his last hit from a hotel room across the street from the courthouse when his work is interrupted by the suicidal and neurotic Victor Clooney (Lemmon).

Buddy Buddy provided a few chuckles, mostly from Matthau. Lemmon is more of a ham but I'm not a big fan of the Abbott and Costello type comedy. You probably know the type:

"Why are my pants down?"

"For your shot."

"What shot?"

"The one the doctor gave you."

"What doctor?" and so on.

So, the laughs were light, but it was a delightful movie anyway.

An often over-looked classic.

[CABruno · 5 April 1999]

"Buddy Buddy," although not the best film ever, is definitely a comedy classic. It took me a while to find it, which surprised once I had finished watching. The chemistry between Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau is amazing and it is as strong as ever in this film.

This is the film for everyone who has that one person in their lives that somehow manages to appear at all the wrong times and become more and more annoying with each visit. It's been said that we laugh because things are true, not because they're funny, and this film proves that. Sure, we've probably never met a suicidal television censor while trying to kill someone, but we can most likely all relate to how Walter Matthau feels always running into Jack Lemmon.

I tell everyone I know to watch this movie, and I've yet to hear anything bad about it. If you're in the mood for some good laughs and a classic comedy duo, then you must give "Buddy Buddy" a watching.

Buddy, Buddy - Though it packs some laughs and is enjoyable, Billy Wilder's last film will likely leave fans unsatisfied because of what could have been.

[BuddyBoy60 · 6/10 · 24 October 2016]

Now, I'm a big fan of Billy Wilder's films. Sunset Boulevard and The Apartment are 2 of my most favorite films. His movies have such completeness in them. They make you laugh a lot and cry a little and at the end you feel a unique sense of satisfaction that will make you say "They don't make 'em like they used to!" because no matter how many times you have watched his films you would still plan on watching them again someday; at least that is how I feel about Billy Wilder's films. They don't get old. They are classics.

However, with "Buddy Buddy", although I did enjoy it, I find that it doesn't compete with the other films of Billy Wilder and I would personally say it's his weakest. Having watched all of Billy Wilder's films (with the exception of Mauvais graine and The Emperor Waltz) and developed a profound appreciation and understanding of his works, I was disappointed after I watched this one. The feeling was very unusual, like a feeling I never had after watching a Billy Wilder movie. I was used to being really satisfied after viewing but with this Billy Wilder feature, I was disappointed.

In retrospect, I can see the main thing that hurt the film is in the writing of the film. It is very unusual for the writer pairing of Wilder and Diamond to strike out given that in all of their films that I have watched, I have observed that the strongest aspect in them is how well they were written. Wilder's films are not mainly known for their and visuals but it is with their screenplays, that they became great and beloved movies. But unfortunately in this outing, it is the writing that's become the main flaw of the movie. The screenplay by Wilder and Diamond seemed very raw and incomplete. It doesn't have the usual amount of laughs and/or cynicism (usually plentiful). The movie's length is also shorter than the usual Billy Wilder film and even with that fact, the film still feels dragging because there isn't enough striking and memorable moments in it and the few that it has are too far apart to make a really engaging film as expected by a fan like me. They are mostly placed in the beginning and last part of the film, the middle part of the movie I thought was very forgettable. In contrast, other outputs from the director never seemed to run out fuel. They may have a few lapses but they keep you entertained until the end. This unfortunately is not the case for Billy Wilder's "Buddy Buddy" which is the least I liked among his films.

While I was disappointed with the film more so because I'm a big Billy Wilder fan and I had a high expectation with the film, I believe that the film still has merits and is still very watchable. You can still enjoy the performance of the two leads, Matthau and Lemmon whose comedic pairing is one of best in movie history. Although this was a weak outing for the creators, just to see the two in the same movie is worthwhile and the story is actually good. Plus it is still a film directed by Wilder, though a very flawed one, it still contains glimpses of comedy genius fans are used to. A moment in "Buddy Buddy" that perhaps redeemed the film for me is the end scene. It reminded me of the great end scene from Some Like It Hot which is greatly satisfying. With this film, the end scene was sort of a revelation for me, of the level it could have achieved hadn't it been half baked and incomplete. There were a lot of potentials for this project if probably Wilder and Diamond did have more time to polish the script and pace it even better. But even if they never came to fruition and the movie leaves so much more to be desired, if I were to choose the least of Wilder or none of Wilder, I would not hesitate to choose to watch this movie. This movie is still enjoyable and is good for some laughs.

FINAL WORD: If you have not seen a movie by Billy Wilder or you are just starting to get through his filmography, watch "Buddy Buddy", you are more likely to enjoy the film than those who are Wilder aficionados. If you are a Billy Wilder fan with high expectations, do not be surprised, chances are you will be disappointed because it is unlike his other films. You may not be fully satisfied with this cup of coffee. Perhaps considering it as an encore for the great films Billy Wilder has given us can make the viewing more satisfying.

Billy Wilder's last movie with his usual couple : Lemmon and Matthaw giving nice interpretation

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 1 April 2021]

Jack Lemmon and and Walter Matthaw directed by Billy Wilder and teaming up again as a deranged husband and a professional hitman . As Lemmon is a clumsy would-be suicide who decides to end it all in a hotel due to his separated wife : Paula Prentiss . While Walter Matthaw is a hit man who rents the room next door and whose mission goes wrong . As this professional murderer has a well ordered-arrangement to knock off a state's witness , but Lemmon filling of his contract difficult , being interrupted by his suicide attempts.

A failed attempt at re-run The Odd Couple by coupling Walter Matthaw and Jack Lemmon as , respectively, a hired killer man and a jilted husband unluckly enough to have an adjoining hotel room . The results are less than comical but do provoke a few smiles and brief hilarious stuations . The great starring duo being well accompanied by a decent support cast , such as Paula Prentiss , Klaus Kinski , and Dana Elcar . Adding an atmospheric cinematography by Harry Stradling Jr , as well as a thrilling musical score by Lalo Schifrin in his usual of the Seventies .

Here Billy Wilder teams up again with his usual screenwriter , regular collaborator I A L Diamond who got dizzy heights from Sabrina and The Apartment to this inferior film compared to their masterpieces . Being Billy Wilder's last film feature , throughout a long career getting a lot of successes both , as writer and director , as he made the following prestigious flicks : "Double indemnity" , "Fortune Cookie" , "Lost Weekend" , "Spirit of St Louis" , "Love in the Afternoon" , "Some like hot" , "Sunset Boulevard" , "Witness for prosecution" , "Stalag 17" , "Seven Year Itch" , "One Two Three" , "Irma La Douce" , "Apartment" , "Fedora" , "The Private life of Sherlock Holmes" , among others. The yarn will appeal to Walter Matthaw and Jack Lemmon fans .

what a waste

[kyle_furr · 6/10 · 14 February 2004]

This was Billy Wilder's last film. The movie stars Walter Matthau as a hit man who quickly gets p***ed with Jack Lemmon who keeps bothering him with his problems. Matthau just wants to finish his job and Lemmon won't let him. There is hardly anything funny in here expect for a couple of small laughs. You should watch The Fortune Cookie instead.

It's no SOME LIKE IT HOT, but what is?

[JasparLamarCrabb · 6/10 · 4 December 2012]

Billy Wilder's last film is not a classic, but it's still highly enjoyable. Is it as funny as SOME LIKE IT HOT or as wicked as THE APARTMENT? No, but what is? A remake of the French film A PAIN IN THE A..., Walter Matthau is a hit man who has the misfortune of checking into a hotel room next to wacky suicidal Jack Lemmon. Lemmon goes from trying to kill himself to driving Matthau absolutely crazy. There no laugh out loud sequences, but Matthau & Lemmon are priceless. Matthau, with his affected Brooklynese, is hilarious. And who can beat any film that features not only Matthau & Lemmon, but Klaus Kinski and Paula Prentiss as well?!? A wonderfully entertaining film and a real bounce back for Wilder after his inert version of THE FRONT PAGE and his cryptic SUNSET BLVD-like FEDORA.

Wilder's last laugh

[EdgarST · 8/10 · 5 April 2008]

We all watch films for different reasons. In 1981, it was a new film by film great Billy Wilder with Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau after 1974's "The Front Page". But for me it was a new occasion to see the elusive Paula Prentiss on the big screen. She returned to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the studio where she made her first motion pictures, under different conditions, for the studio had been sold in the 1970s. An adaptation of Francis Veber's play "L'emmerdeur", previously made in France by Edouard Molinaro, the resulting screenplay by Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond is as offensive as a sexist joke, but that's no news in Wilder's movies. The film has a fast pace and funny moments, mostly sustained on the verbal interplay between Lemmon and Matthau as two misogynists typical of Wilder's cinema. Prentiss plays Celia Clooney, a TV reporter who has abandoned husband Lemmon for Klaus Kinski, a sexologist who runs a clinic to improve people's sexual life. Lemmon goes after Celia, but he gets into trouble and gun-play when he meets Trabucco, a hit man (Matthau). All men in this film are so dumb that it seems almost logical that by the film's end Celia has run away with another woman (the receptionist at Kinski's clinic, played by Wilder regular Joan Shawlee). After the indifferent reception to what was to be Wilder's last film and joke on male sexual fantasies, Prentiss retired from films.

P. S. I just saw it again today (wow, 41 years since its release), and I found it very funny. And looney too! With many dialogues, characters and situations that I missed the first time.

Epitaph for a genius.

[ulicknormanowen · 6/10 · 19 May 2022]

A French remake of "l'emmerdeur" (=the pain in the a....) , from a good screenplay by Francis Weber and directed by Edouard Molinaro,an OK craftsman who would sometimes come up with a more ambitious effort ,but whose filmography ,by and large ,is average,to put it mildly. Billy Wilder , on the other hand, was a genuine genius of the seventh art ,with classics by the dozen under his belt when he tackled "buddy buddy ",which is not up to his usual standard :excellence .

Weber's screenplay has undergone some changes ;generally, the part of the killer is the most successful : Matthau taking on Lino Ventura's role, is sullen, sulky ,and there are good elements added by Diamond /Wilder : Matthau as a mailman ,as a milkman ("feel better ,live longer") , and ,to crown it all ,as a priest who gives absolution to the victim ("it's latin ,you know") before the police .

On the other hand , his co-star in other Wilder's movies,Jack Lemmon ,has a badly written part ; as a suicidal man,he is not as convincing as the whining,self-pitying miserable hubby whose wife ran away with a doctor , played by singer turned actor Jacques Brel; this time ,it's not good news : the gag of Lemmon tied and gagged on his chair whilst the cleaning lady is working ,paying no attention to him,is heavy-handed and drags on;substituting a sex clinic for an insane asylum ,though it spawns the good gag about the woman about to deliver ("we don't deal with finish products "),is too a la mode and Klaus Kinski 's ageing hippie doctor 's lecture is stodgy ,but fortunately short.

In the grand tradition of Wilder ,the ending is immoral : in the original screenplay,both wound up in jail ,but to console the killer ,the survivor had good news for him :pretty soon, they would share the same cell!

A depressing end to a great career

[davidmvining · 3/10 · 12 December 2019]

This is such a sad way for the great Billy Wilder to end his career. After everything he made, he'd never made a bad film until this. He'd had less than successful ones, but never one that was actually outright bad. Until this, his final film. Some filmmakers goes out with one last great stroke, like Kurosawa making Ran or Bergman making Saraband. Billy Wilder went out with a bad film because he wanted to work with Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon one last time and he hadn't properly considered their appropriateness for the script.

There's a tiredness to the entire film from the very beginning to the end. From the opening that sees Matthau's Trabucco carry out a series of assassination of witnesses to Jack Lemmon's attempted suicides to the trip to the sex clinic to the film's resolution, the movie feels like it's just going through the motions. Matthau seems bored. Lemmon seems unengaged. The only real bright spot is Klaus Kinski as the sex clinic's owner and operator, Dr. Zuckerbrot. He's bizarre, mostly because he's played by Klaus Kinski, and it's different from the blandness that is the rest of the film.

The story is about Matthau trying to take out three witnesses against the mob before they testify to the grand jury. The first gets murdered with a mail bomb, and the second through poisoned milk delivered to his doorstep. The third will get a traditional bullet to the head when he shows up at the courthouse, and in order to make that happen, Trabucco rents a hotel room across the street and simply waits. Next door, though, is Victor Clooney who is dealing with his wife's abandonment of him for Dr. Zuckerbrot at his sex clinic. In retaliation for her leaving him and refusing to make up, he's going to kill himself. His first attempt is to hang himself from a pipe in his room which floods the place, causing attention to come to the hotel in ways that Trabucco doesn't want. So, he tries to talk Clooney out of it and even to simply go away.

Through desperation, Trabucco ends up driving Clooney to the sex clinic, hoping to kill him along the way, but he gets interrupted by some police officers who need to use his car to get a pregnant woman to the closest clinic which, coincidentally, is the sex clinic. Oh, hilarious...

Just so many of the jokes fall flat, and Wilder himself seemed to know. There's word that about two weeks into filming he realized that Matthau was miscast as Trabucco. The character didn't need to be funny but menacing. He envisioned Clint Eastwood in the role, but it was too late. They had to finish up. I do think that Eastwood, or someone of his ilk, would have improved the film. The contrast between Trabucco and Clooney would have been heightened which would have helped allow for more actual comedy. I could imagine Eastwood listening with that half-grimace of his as Lemmon explained why he wanted to kill himself, and it seems like it would have been funnier than Matthau looking bored.

It's a depressing last gasp of a movie, and even the final twist, Clooney, feeling like he has nothing left to lose and wanting to save his new friend Trabucco from retaliation for not taking out his target, takes the gun himself and accidentally kills the last witness, just doesn't land.

It's a project Wilder should never have taken on. He had said everything he needed to say in film, and one final Jack Lemmon/Walter Matthau comedy about a hit man and suicidal neighbor wasn't going to add significantly to his oeuvre. Fedora, far from his greatest achievement, would have been a better way to go out.

Very, very dark...but also very funny.

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 23 May 2022]

In his later years as a director, Billy Wilder made a lot of very adult films...filled with cursing and nudity. Part of this might have been because films in the 1970s and 80s were much more adult than the movies Wilder had been making in his heydays. Part of it, more likely, was that the aging Wilder felt that to be relavant he needed to be much more adult. All I know is that often the films he made during this era seemed very gratuitous...and even by today's standards, the language in "Buddy Buddy" is pretty adult. Now this is NOT to say I disliked the film...in fact, I think it's one of the best from this phase of Wilder's career.

Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon star in this film and, surprisingly, Matthau plays a hitman! As for Lemmon, he plays a guy who is rather reminiscent of Felix Unger from "The Odd Couple"!

A mob trial is about to begin...and two of the three mob witnesses have been killed by a top assassin (Matthau). However, problems occur when he tries to off number three...as the neurotic Victor comes into his life. And, again and again, Victor accidentally ruins the killer's chances at making the hit.

As I mention above, the film is very adult at times...with some rough language and a subplot involving a weird sex clinic. But the weirdness of the film really appealed to me...it certainly WAS creative and original! And, fortunately, it's also darkly comical.

Not the greatest Matthau/Lemmon buddy up. (spoilers)

[vertigo_14 · 5/10 · 4 October 2004]

Of the extensive list of team-ups that actors Walter Matthau and comedy pal, Jack Lemmon have done, this is not one of the best. It certainly isn't great material from the divine works of director Billy Wilder. But, it does have those off-beat misadventures moments that can make you laugh every now and again.

Buddy, Buddy is the story of a mismatched duo, Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon in their usual form with Matthau as the serious cynic, and Lemmon as the worrisome moralist. Lemmon plays Victor Clooney, a man depressed by the fact that his wife of twelve years wants to divorce him and instead, carry on the rest of her years with a deranged German sex-therapist doctor (complete with nutty German scientist garb including bleach blonde hair and pink lens glasses). Clooney takes a room in the hotel where he proposed to his wife, and happens to be staying next door to hit-man Trabucco (Walter Matthau), who can't seem to believe his luck. He's been hired to kill a Mafia witness, but in trying to complete the contract, he keeps getting involved with all of the idiocies of Clooney and his wife and the crazy sex clinic.

For me, Matthau as the unshakable serious hit-man is what makes this movie so funny. It is as though he can't believe what he's gotten involved in and how idiotic the other characters are--Clooney, his wife, and yes, the sex therapist. What's more, is he can't seem to liberate himself from the likes of the incessant Mr. Clooney. The things that Trabucco does to (what he thinks) get himself away from Clooney and get his job over with are quite amusing. But only in slight.

But, as I said before, this certainly isn't the best of the Matthau/Lemmon duos (the greatest probably being the classic, 'The Odd Couple,' and 'Front Page'; and of course, this movie pales in comparison to many of the great films in Billy Wilder's catalogue--some of which even include Jack Lemmon in starring roles). Moreover, given that it was released in 1981, this movie seems much older, like it was made in the late 60s or early 70s.

Lemmon and Matthau were the greatest

[Petey-10 · 5 July 2001]

Jack Lemmon is Victor Clooney, a man who wants to commit a suicide and Walter Matthau is a hitman called Trabucco.When these two run into each other in the same hotel it can only mean lots of funny moments.Buddy Buddy from 1981 is an excellent Billy Wilder comedy.Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau are amazing together and they always were.Unfortunately Mr Lemmon passed away last week on June 27 on cancer.He was 76 years old.That made me and many other Jack Lemmon fans very sad.Walter Matthau died last year.We never get to see this great comedy couple together again. But you can always watch their great movies on TV.This movie is a must see for every Matthau and Lemmon fan.There isn't a dull moment in this movie.Don't miss it.

Premature ejaculation means always having to say you're sorry

[Karl Self · 9/10 · 20 October 2009]

This is an unduly ignored comedic masterpiece. In his last movie, Billy Wilder went all out and showed that he still had it in him. Not that I'd had any doubts beforehand. I usually don't obsess about the cast, but in this case I'll make an exception: Walter Matthau, Jack Lemmon, Paula Prentiss and Klaus Kinski make a memorable (and unlikely) lineup of some of my favourite actors (with the comedic couple Lemmon-Matthau adding up to much more than the sum of its parts). I wonder how Wilder and Kinski got along on the set.

This is the English-language adaptation of French comedy L'emmerdeur (The Bullshitter), which I'm now really looking forward to see.

The only thing I didn't like about this movie was the title.

"You know what your problem is, Victor? You should've been born a man!"

[moonspinner55 · 2/10 · 7 July 2014]

Jack Lemmon does some funny overplaying as a suicidal man in a Southern California hotel who makes friends with his neighbor, a grouchy hitman on the verge of retiring after one last job. Unfortunately, this US remake of the 1973 French-Italian black comedy "L'emmerdeu" is a botch. Lemmon is reteamed with Walter Matthau and their "Fortune Cookie"/"Front Page" director Billy Wilder, yet the results are strenuous right from the start. Wilder's witless script (penned with writing pal I. A. L. Diamond) is a wet noodle; there's no snap, just caustic flapping and nagging. "Buddy Buddy" is also one of worst-looking major studio films of the 1980s, with lemon meringue color and cheap process shots. Matthau, constantly opening-closing-and-reopening his suitcase, looks terrible throughout; with his hair dyed shoe-polish black and the color of his skin a sickly white pallor, he resembles a waxworks figure. Jack sticks to his proven formula--those nervous/neurotic Lemmon-isms--and survives the morass, but everyone else has been prodded to play these gross jokes to the hilt. * from ****

Truly, a classic Entertaining throughout ( A+ Movie) My Ratings 10/10

[THE-BEACON-OF-MOVIES-RAFA · 10/10 · 7 February 2020]

A forgotten comedy gem from Billy Wilder. There was something just so hypnotic about this movie...

Thank God They Made "Grumpy Old Men"!

[pizzathom · 2/10 · 15 September 2008]

This is a classic example of a film being produced simply because of the names involved. The plot is a weak attempt to make a Billy Wilder comedy in the eighties. I can almost hear how this was pitched to studio executives; "It's the Odd Couple meets Porky's"! Look, anytime the script invokes the clichéd name of Kowalski (always a cop, soldier, or construction worker)for a subplot character, you know the film is in trouble. This thing proves that without an original and inspired story, it's just a waste of truly great talent. This is the only film by Lemmon, Matthau, and/or Wilder that I cannot recommend. The only reason is gets more than a vote of "1" is that I reserve that number for the truly complete pieces of garbage, such as "Battlefield: Earth", "Ishtar", and "Can't Stop The Music".

In memory of two classic comedians

[arildness · 12 July 2002]

Although "Buddy Buddy" is yet to be regarded as a modern movie classic, no other films have made me realize the art of comedy such as this one. Walther Matthau is hillarious in his portrayal of Trabucco the assassin who is constantly being interrupted from doing his dirty deeds, by an even more astonishing and suicidal! Jack Lemmon. Director Billy Wilder has captured moments on tape that we all seem to relate to one way or another. Together with german actor Klaus Kinski, who more often played deeper roles than this, Lemmon and Matthau gives a performance one would normally find on a broadway theatre.

The Greatest Movie Buddies Indeed

[fatcat-73450 · 9/10 · 26 April 2023]

Both Lemmon and Matthau play their signature characters to an extreme here.

In Lemmon's character, we see the classic cuckold husband with an extremely miniscule ability to deal with emotional pain desperately try to reclaim his dissatisfied wife, who's brazenly run away to have a mostly sexual relationship with another man. He is so distraught he goes to the lengths of attempting suicide and other crimes in order to mollify his distress.

As he hilariously begs his wife not to humiliate him with the other man on the phone, we see why the character became so iconic that he was immortalised in the Simpsons as semi-regular character "Old Gil."

Of course, that's not all he is. He's also indefatigable and devious as he's willing to do anything, from breaking in to a hospital to blowing stuff up, in order to try to palliate his distress (ostensibly it's to recover his wife, but at some point it just becomes petty revenge as he understands that whatever they had is never coming back). So, on the one hand seemingly a detestable cuckold, but on the other hand a cagey fellow, admireable on some level.

And then we have straight man of the duo Matthau, who wants nothing more than to get along with his business as quickly as possible and go home. Short-tempered, laconic, and stone-faced, Matthau also plays his signature character to an extreme. I think this is one of the most extreme portrayals of the straight man he'd ever played, matched only when he was perfectly cast as the irascible Mr. Wilson in Dennis the Mennis. He's even willing to murder Lemmon in the desert to get rid of him - solely because he's annoying - but destiny keeps getting in the way.

Hard to replace these two personalities. A unique classic of comedy.

Honourable Mentions: Pinky and the Brain (1995) - A similar concept with another great comedy duo, except Pinky tends to foil Brain's plots by being idiotic. I find it funnier how Lemmon keeps inadvertently foiling plots in this movie just by being annoying and spasmodic.

Buddy Buddy is kinda cruddy

[jrs-8 · 4/10 · 17 July 2001]

"Buddy Buddy" is one of the biggest disappointments in film. How could they go wrong? Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, two of our best actors re-teaming with Billy Wilder, one of greatest directors. The result is a sloppy mess.

Jack plays a man who loses his wife and decides to kill himself so he checks into a hotel. So far this is a complete copy from the classic "Odd Couple." Sadly that is where the comparison ends. Walter plays a hit man who happens to be in the same hotel preparing his next hit. Naturally he runs into the hapless Lemmon and can't shake him.

Even with the familiar story you'd think there would be plenty of laughs. Sadly this is not the case. Major opportunities are blown as the film descends into a series of tired clichés and predictable bits. There are a few laughs (there would have to be with these two great leads) but they come too little and spread out.

By far this is the worst film these two appeared in (though "Odd Couple 2" comes a close second). Happily we have many other of their works to view and enjoy.

Billy Wilder's Last Film with Lemmon-Matthau and Prentiss

[adventure-21903 · 9/10 · 28 November 2020]

Billy Wilder my candidate for Hollywood's greatest Director: Dpouble Indemnity, Sunset Blvd,, The Apartment and most notably Some Like It Hot made this film at MGM. Billy Wilder cast his favorite actors Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau with a small part for one of my all time favorite leading ladies Paula Prentiss.

Paula Prentiss had a 7 year contract with MGM and left after 5 years: Paula made those great comedies with Jim Hutton at MGM but then made all her big b Hedda wrote: "Why Can't Paula Get a Job At Her Own Studio?" Paula asked for her release and MGM agreed with a 3 picture deal. "Buddy Budd"y is one of those contracted firms. PS I remember reading that MGM was searching for a film for Prentiss and its No. 1 Contract Star Richard Chamberlain. It would have done both stars good!

I have researched Lemmon, Matthau, Wilder and none have been quoted on working with Ms. Prentiss. Nor are there any quotes from Paula on working with the great Wilder and the two Oscar winning actors Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon.

This movie is disappointing there is no zing no flash and it is difficult to understand how great talents like Wilder Lemmon Matthau and beautiful Prentiss could have failed so obviously.

The Movie was a flop, a big flop for MGM.

Able to endure this rotten egg solely for the cast

[SimonJack · 4/10 · 19 April 2016]

Obviously, tastes differ on films like this. A few reviewers like "Buddy Buddy," but others don't think much of it. Even those who enjoyed it didn't score it very high. The fact that so few people have commented out of the number who have rated it probably says as much. I think it's a dud for several reasons. First, it's not very funny. A couple of chuckles are the most I could manage. The plot idea is OK, but the screenplay with so many goofy aspects (the psycho-love palace, etc.) is way overboard. There is very little witty or clever writing for a Billy Wilder vehicle.

Then there's the complaining persona of Jack Lemmon's character, Victor. I know there's a movie following that thinks "The Out of Towners" of 1970 was a very good movie. I can't seem to appreciate movies like that and this one that have nagging, whining characters who carry on throughout much of the film. I just don't see the humor in that. If it were a single short scene or two, perhaps. But that type of film soon wears very thin on me.

I wonder if Wilder and/or MGM had their heads on, if not their hearts in this film. The stereotyped stupid cops and murderous use of clichés make it seem like they just wanted to toss something together and get done with it. Another reviewer noted the tedious repeats of Walter Matthau's Trabucco. He opens his suitcase, takes out and sets up his assassin's rifle, scope and tripod, and then takes them apart and puts them back in the case. Not once, but several times. Who, unaffected by mind-altering substances, would think that was funny, or interesting? Someone obviously thought it must be good, because it repeats so often. Well, that must answer my question, indirectly.

On top of all this, the screenplay is quite crude and crass. I wanted to laugh, because the idea for the story had real possibilities. It just falls flat. My four stars are solely for a fine cast of wonderful entertainers who probably gave it a good shot, considering the rotten egg they were handed. That includes Paula Prentiss, Klaus Kinski, and others besides the leads.

I'm a viewer who thinks this film is as bad as one may have heard.

Wilder-wise, a non-Wilder: amusement-wise, barely adequate

[Brevity · 3 April 2005]

"Buddy Buddy", the final film of the genius that was Billy Wilder, is a decent comedy but not a worthy ending to his career. It's a remake of the French film "L'Emmerdeur", but I haven't seen it and am therefore incapable of comparison.

Someone pointed out that the movie looks a lot older than it is. I very much agree.

It is sad to see geniuses like Wilder and Diamond putting something as awkward as genital jokes into their script. Surprisingly, there is one clumsy slapstick moment. There are genuinely funny scenes and lines, too ("Father, you said the F word"), but they are a minority. Some attempts at creating humour fail terribly, as if made by amateurs (Lemmon chair-bound); most merely produce nods of acceptance.

Matthau is good and Lemmon is amusing as expected. However, Paula Prentiss's performance is really disturbing, intentionally or not, and Kinski's character is just annoying - and I mean written that way.

Overall the film, entitled here "Varsinaiset kumppanukset" ("Some Buddies"), isn't nearly as embarrassing as I'd expected; a mere shadow, nevertheless, it is of its director's previous masterpieces - if even that. But be not fooled: Wilder can't go bad (granted, I still have a lot to see). A few, pardon my French, comedy nuggets make this decent as an entertainment, and its two stars are okay. "Buddy Buddy", then, as a title... Meh.

Another "Odd Couple" Teaming -- Billy Wilder's Swan Song

[mdm-11 · 4/10 · 20 May 2005]

Walter Matthau as a resourceful mob hit-man who is hounded by a suicidal Jack Lemmon who is desperate to win back his sex-cult-obsessed wife. Their paths cross constantly, culminating in the final scene's extremely far-fetched reunion. Billy Wilder's final film as director shows the master pushing the envelope, including gratuitous foul language and brief nudity, along with matter-of-fact handling of murder, vandalism and ridiculing the effectiveness of law enforcement.

The scene where a hotel maid ignores the plight of a bound and gagged Lemmon is painful to watch. The woman "chats" with the victim without once considering that he needs help, bidding him good day as she eventually exits. This could be seen as an insult to Hispanic Americans, portraying the maid as a bubble-headed idiot.

The way Matthau and Lemmon play-off each other is fun to watch. The many reckless ways of making fun of life were not always humorous to watch, but at times disturbing. This is not the kind of fun I expected from the "dream team" of veteran film makers. This is no "Seven Year Itch". With low expectations you may find a little joy in this rather desperate attempt to deliver laughter.