The Odd Couple: Centennial Collection contains not only the classic feature film, but also a number of hefty special features chronicling the film, its writer, Neil Simon, and the stars who would forever be known as "The Odd Couple," Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon. Best friends, but polar opposites, Oscar Madison (Walter Matthau) and Felix Unger (Jack Lemmon) are thrown together in Oscar's New York apartment when Felix's wife asks for a divorce and Felix decides to end his life, albeit in a very tidy way, mind you. Felix can't go through with it (naturally because of his recurrent back problems) and winds up at Oscar's apartment during the weekly poker night, where Oscar and the gang try to talk him out of suicide, in a pretty funny string of events. Oscar insists that Felix can move in with him and all seems fine, until Felix's fastidious behavior starts to get on Oscar's nerves. Oscar is the consummate sloppy divorced guy, throwing his clothes on the floor and leaving dishes piled up in the sink. Since Felix is a total neat freak, he immediately sets about turning Oscar's home into a cover shot for House Beautiful. At first, it's cool, but soon Felix is driving Oscar mad. Whether it's Felix's incessant nose-honking or his insistence that Oscar eat over a plate, soon Oscar is at his wit's end. The final straw comes when Oscar sets up a juicy date with a pair of British twins who live in the apartment building. The racy Pigeon sisters, Cecily (Monica Evans) and Gwendolyn (Carole Shelley), are ready to party when they arrive at the bachelor pad, but because Oscar came home late and Felix is upset that his homemade meatloaf is drying out, tension is high when the girls arrive. Oscar makes the mistake of leaving Felix with the lovely ladies while mixing the drinks, and soon, Felix is talking about his ex-wife and bawling. Instead of thinking him a fool, the girls pity poor, sweet Felix and end up crying as well. Although the evening doesn't turn out quite like Oscar had hoped, when he finally throws Felix out, the sisters take him in. After a final blowout that is absolutely hysterical, Oscar and Felix agree to disagree, history is made and The Odd Couple is cemented as classic comedy cinema.
Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon are truly brilliant in their roles, but then so is absolutely everyone in this film. From the collection of poker buddies at Oscar's house, to the lovely Pigeon sisters, to the stars themselves, this movie is just magic. My absolutely favorite scene is the linguini scene, where Oscar and Felix are at odds and Oscar tells Felix to remove the spaghetti from his poker table. Felix mockingly tells Oscar that its not spaghetti, but linguini. Oscar throws the plate of pasta at the wall and says, "Now its garbage." Classic! Even if you aren't a fan of comedy from this era, The Odd Couple is perfect comedy. The special features included in The Odd Couple: Centennial Collection are not many in number, but what's there is excellent and fairly lengthy. There are featurettes that talk about how the stars were chosen and about the stars themselves, from their sons, actors of today and also those who worked with them in The Odd Couple. I loved hearing their respective sons talk about them, plus Walter Matthau's son looks eerily like him.
If you are a fan of The Odd Couple, Neil Simon or just good comedy in general, you owe it to yourself to see this movie. Lemmon and Matthau are comedy geniuses and this is the ideal release of this film. Pick up The Odd Couple: Centennial Collection today!
