TownRootGuy Luckily she's much younger here.This show is not bad, not bad at all. It has some eye candy AND while it's no French tickler, it's more fun than getting the pimp-hand.Irma is worth seeing but I can't watch this more frequently than every 7 - 10 years.

SnoopyStyle Nestor Patou (Jack Lemmon) is a by-the-book cop. He used to police a children's park. After rescuing a child, he's transferred to the prostitute-filled Paris streets. He is taken with Irma La Douce (Shirley MacLaine) but is shocked to realize she's a prostitute. He calls in a raid on Hotel Casanova. It pulls in the wrong man and he is kicked off the force. He finds solace with Moustache (Lou Jacobi) who owns Chez Moustache. He wins in a fight against Irma's crude boyfriend Hippolyte. She takes him as her new boyfriend/pimp but he has a crazy plan to monopolize her time as new client British Lord X. He wears himself out earning enough money to pay her and keep up the pretense.The trio of Billy Wilder, Jack Lemmon, and Shirley MacLaine delivers a fun loopy love story. MacLaine is a real wildcat. Lemmon has the humanity and the madcap insanity. Two and a half hours is a long running time for a comedy. The second half feels a little long. I would have preferred Wilder figure a way to end this sooner.

wes-connors Parisian prostitute Shirley MacLaine (as Irma La Douce) does a brisk business. She acts demure, wears sexy green outfits and carries a little pooch named "Coquette". After her clients pay, Ms. MacLaine specializes in sob stories that elicit a tip. Handy hotels, a friendly barroom and "on the take" police make it a happy situation for the streetwalkers and their partners. Suddenly, the successful sex trade is dealt an arresting blow. Honest policeman Jack Lemmon (as Nestor "Tiger" Patou) is put on patrol. Initially unaware of the sex action, Mr. Lemmon informs MacLaine her dress in unbuttoned. When he sees all the women in provocatively slit dresses and low-cut tops, Lemmon realizes they are hookers...Attracted to MacLaine, Lemmon gets into a fight with her pimp, brawny Bruce Yarnell (as Hippolyte), and gets lucky. Lemmon surprisingly inheriting Mr. Yarnell's position. Since he really loves MacLaine, Lemmon invents the British secret identity "Lord X" and proceeds to buy up all MacLaine's bedtime. The madcap situation leads to fun and tragedy...From director-writer-producer Billy Wilder, this story is derived from a French musical, with the songs dropped. It's obviously not as good as Mr. Wilder's other works, being too slow and lacking in laughs. Lemmon undressing for MacLaine and later donning her ex's jacket and brown derby are comic highlights. The original idea to cast Marilyn Monroe might have produced something more interesting, had the recently deceased actress overcome her addictions (the songs would have been included for Ms. Monroe, of course). MacLaine is sexy, smart and chain-smokes. The photography by Joseph La Shelle and art direction by Alexander Trauner are strengths. Casual sex is celebrated and paid for, but never shown.***** Irma la Douce (6/5/63) Billy Wilder ~ Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Bruce Yarnell, Lou Jacobi

valadas A sweet street soliciting girl of the Red Light District in Paris (the delightful Shirley MacLaine) meets a young and naive police officer (Jack Lemmon) who becomes her new pimp after a big turmoil in which he arrested all the "girls" thus spoiling the understanding in force between the police and the pimps union. Because of that he is expelled from the police on a false accusation of bribery, returns to the Red Light District, has a comic fight with Irma's current pimp, defeats him with much luck and replaces him. But since he has fallen in love with Irma he's not happy seeing her going with other men all the time while practicing her "profession". Therefore he concocts a plan with the help of a friendly bar owner (Lou Jacobi) to take her off the street and disguises himself as an English lord who as a "client" keeps Irma busy for hours playing cards with him under a generous payment with money he earns by hard work in a market at night while her is asleep to prevent her of becoming aware of the whole situation. But from then on the story gets complicated and unfolds itself in a series of funny episodes and varied gags to which we cannot demand logic or likelihood since we are in the presence of a comedy. The performance of both main protagonists is brilliant and the movie is quite enjoyable.