The Fortune Cookie (1966 Billy Wilder)

This is a real treat, great lines and jokes abound ("You'll have the money on a silver platter" assures Matthau, holding a silver bed pan - which he later flicks his ash into), the story bites (Wilder and Diamond were Oscar nominated) and it's beautifully directed and composed. Oh yeah, the acting's pretty damn wonderful too, with Matthau winning Oscar in first appearance with Lemmon (some of their scenes e.g. in hospital are uninterrupted long takes - and why would you want to interrupt them?) It's very underrated - hasn't even been remastered and Blu-Rayed - our MGM DVD has lots of screen blemishes and reels where the sound is dodgy. Some sequences are just so cleverly set up (that Whistler's mother on the apartment wall). It's a joy. Chapter headings also funny and ironic, to accompaniment of mournful André Previn score.

Love the scene with Matthau trying to stuff everything into his roll-down front desk - then the front falls off.

Beautiful lighting / composition - Joe LaShelle received Oscar nomination, as did designer Robert Luthardt

Note cigar-smoking twins in background.

With Ron Rich, Judi West (her only film of note), Cliff Osmond (above left).

According to Matthau's biog (Edelman and Kupperberg) he won the part after Wilder saw him on stage in 'The Odd Couple', though the director had wanted him before for The Seven Year Itch (Fox thought it safer to cast Tom Ewell, who'd played it on stage). When shooting of The Fortune Cookie was halted following Matthau's serious heart attack, Wilder refused to replace him and it was held up for five months. 

Lemmon in the wheelchair is both poetry in motion and enormously funny at the same time.