British Comedy Guide

What's New Pussycat? (1965)

The "predecessor" of "Casino Royale" that I watched last month, with a similar crew, but this time written entirely by Woody Allen, so it wasn't such a mess, and again, what the hell did I see in it in the first place when I went to the cinema on its release.

Basically, you have Peter O'Toole who has women throwing themselves at him (he calls them all Pussycat), who goes to see a psychoanalyst played by Peter Sellers who can't get enough of "it", which makes the Sellers character even more sexually frustrated at how easy O'Toole gets the opposite sex in bed without even trying, so he decides to stick by O'Toole and makes him a special client/case to see how he does it.

Woody Allen works as a dresser in a hot strip club where he is surrounded by a bevy of near naked ladies - he says he gets paid 20 francs a night (did I mention it was all set in France) to which O'Toole says "Only 20 francs!?" "Yes" says Allen, "that's all I can afford"

Throw in masses of scantily clad gorgeous young women ,with famous faces of the time such as a near naked Ursula Undress and you have a comedy sex romp.

Not bad and slightly better than "Casino Royale" imo.

Oh and blink, and you will miss the very fleeting cameo of an uncredited Richard Burton, who has one very short line.

What's it got to do with Casino Royale? That was a Bond film wasn't it?

Quote: Chappers @ 16th October 2023, 5:53 PM

What's it got to do with Casino Royale? That was a Bond film wasn't it?

Yes and No - not the 1967 spoof one, which had a number of James Bonds in it, the main one being David Niven, along with Peter Sellers and Woody Allen.

https://www.comedy.co.uk/forums/thread/37013/

Quote: Hercules Grytpype Thynne @ 17th October 2023, 12:05 AM

Yes and No - not the 1967 spoof one, which had a number of James Bonds in it, the main one being David Niven, along with Peter Sellers and Woody Allen.

https://www.comedy.co.uk/forums/thread/37013/

If the 1967 one had a number of James Bonds then surely it was a Bond film.

It bore absolutely no relationship to the Bond films, and there was only one comic scene that referenced the original story, otherwise they might as well have called it "Carry On Casino - A Right Royale Romp", it being a right mess written by 5 different people

But it it makes you happier to call it a Bond film, then so be it. 😁

I watched What's New Pussycat in lockdown when I went through a phase of trying to watch everything Peter Sellers ever did, having seen 1967's Casino Royale I knew that Pussycat was viewed as nearly the same, it was an interesting look at the swinging sixties the french setting changes things a little.

Overall, I do tend to forgot What's New Pussycat as being a Bond fan Casino Royale takes centrefold in terms of Sellers' period of doing these big budget mid-late sixties comedy extravanganza type films.

Share this page