Cactus_Flower_(film)

Cactus Flower (film)

Cactus Flower is a 1969 comedic film directed by Gene Saks and starring Walter Matthau, Ingrid Bergman, and Goldie Hawn. The film is adapted from an earlier Broadway stage play, written by Abe Burrows, which in turn was based upon the French play Fleur de cactus. The film was the seventh highest grossing film of 1970.

Synopsis

The film begins with 21-year-old Toni Simmons trudging across the road at night to post a letter. Subsequently, she returns to her apartment and attempts to gas herself using a "second-hand" stove. Fortunately for her, her neighbor, Igor Sullivan, smells the gas and rescues her from imminent death using rescue breathing, which evolves into a French kiss after Toni regains consciousness.

The movie then moves to the cause of the suicide attempt. Toni's lover Julian, a dentist and philanderer, had previously told Toni that he has a wife and three kids, in order to avoid commitment issues. However, upon learning of the suicide attempt, he decides to rethink his bachelor status and to marry Toni, resulting in him needing a wife to divorce.

In order to resolve his dilemma, Julian decides to ask Miss Stephanie Dickinson, his spinsterish Swedish assistant of ten years, to pose as his wife. At first unwilling, she ultimately accepts the role, since she has secretly developed a crush on Julian. However, upon meeting Miss Dickinson, Toni intuitively senses Miss Dickinson's love for Julian. This causes her to ask Julian to help Miss Dickinson find another man, in order for everyone to be happy. In order to resolve the situation, Julian involves several other characters, including Julian's friend Harvey, Señor Arturo Sánchez, and Igor. Ultimately, Toni finds out about the lie and leaves Julian for Igor, while Julian falls in love with Miss Dickinson.

The namesake of the film is a prickly cactus that Miss Dickinson keeps on her desk at the dentist's office. Similar to Miss Dickinson, the cactus is cold and inhospitable. However, by the end, both the cactus and Miss Dickinson have bloomed.

Cast

Actor	Role	Other notes
Walter Matthau	Dr. Julian Winston	a dentist
Ingrid Bergman	Stephanie Dickinson	Dr. Winston's assistant
Goldie Hawn	Toni Simmons	Dr. Winston's girlfriend
Jack Weston	Harvey Greenfield	a friend and patient of Dr. Winston
Rick Lenz	Igor Sullivan	a writer and Toni's neighbor
Vito Scotti	Señor Arturo Sánchez	a diplomat and patient of Dr. Winston
Irene Hervey	Mrs. Durant	a patient of Dr. Winston
Eve Bruce	Georgia	a date of Harvey Greenfield's
Irwin Charone	Record Store Manager	Toni's employer
Matthew Saks	nephew	one of Mrs. Dickinson's nephews

Reception

On release, the film received considerable acclaim from both the critics and the general public, becoming one of the highest grossing films of 1970. Howard Thompson of The New York Times stated that "both the expansive scenario of I. A. L. Diamond and the flexible direction of Gene Saks open up and even ventilate the story.. Roger Ebert declared that "the chemistry works" and "the movie is better than the play.

In her first major film role, Goldie Hawn, who had earlier been described as the "dizzy cream puff who is constantly blowing her lines [on Laugh-In], was especially commended for being "a natural reactress; her timing is so canny that even her tears run amusingly. In fact, her performance in Cactus Flower led to her only Academy Award win to date.