Cindy and Marty look at a swinging-’60s dark comedy mixing bachelor-fantasy satire, comic-strip meta-storytelling, and commentary on marriage expectation, How to Murder Your Wife.

Basic Film Facts

• Release Year: 1965

• Director: Richard Quine

• Screenwriter: George Axelrod

• Stars: Jack Lemmon, Virna Lisi, Terry-Thomas, Eddie Mayehoff

• Studio: United Artists

• Genre: Black comedy, farce, satirical romance

• Runtime: 118 minutes

Production Trivia

• George Axelrod, known for satirical works like The Seven Year Itch, wrote the screenplay.

• Jack Lemmon was one of Hollywood’s biggest comedy stars at the time.

• Virna Lisi’s breakout U.S. exposure occurred through this film.

• Terry-Thomas’s performance as Charles the butler is often considered iconic.

• The townhouse set emphasized bachelor luxury and precision.

Story & Character Trivia

• Stanley’s comic strip 'Bash Brannigan' mirrors his real-life frustrations.

• The murder-fantasy device becomes central to the courtroom climax.

• The cake-bride sequence is now seen as controversial in modern gender analysis.

• Lisi's character’s silence creates comedic miscommunication.

• Charles the butler champions bachelorhood with humorous zeal.

Cultural & Critical Context

• The film reflects 1960s male anxieties about domesticity.

• Modern critics debate whether it critiques or reinforces misogynistic norms.

• It appears in lists of both cult classics and problematic favorites.

• Its comedic style shows a transition between classic and modern romantic comedies.

Fun Trivia

• Jack Lemmon improvised several reactions and gestures.

• The courtroom monologue is widely cited in discussions of outdated gender humor.

• The tagline 'Honeymoon murder — in Technicolor!' highlighted its dark comedic tone.

• Virna Lisi later went on to win major film awards including a Golden Globe and Cannes Best Actress.

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