7.6
Viewer Rating
Combines user and critic ratings from four sources
Comedy • 1966 • 125 min
The Fortune Cookie (1966)
The Fortune Cookie (1966)
Overview
A Billy Wilder comedy from 1966, The Fortune Cookie follows a TV cameraman who fakes an injury after getting knocked down during a football game, coached by his scheming brother-in-law to milk an insurance settlement. The scheme grows more complicated when his opportunistic ex-wife resurfaces hoping to benefit. The Neutral label fits a film that is genuinely hard to pin down politically. It skewers American legal and insurance culture with equal-opportunity cynicism, champions personal honesty over greed, and features a Black supporting character whose integrity outshines the white leads. Marriage is treated as worth saving, which leans traditional, but the satire cuts across class and ethics rather than ideology. The signals roughly cancel out.
Starring Cast
Jack Lemmon • Walter Matthau • Ron Rich
Where to watch
Rating & Dimensions
Bias Rating
Analyzing...
Center
Political: Center
Diversity: Moderate
Family Values: Leans Traditional
Christianity: Positive
Viewer Rating
7.6
Overview
A Billy Wilder comedy from 1966, The Fortune Cookie follows a TV cameraman who fakes an injury after getting knocked down during a football game, coached by his scheming brother-in-law to milk an insurance settlement. The scheme grows more complicated when his opportunistic ex-wife resurfaces hoping to benefit. The Neutral label fits a film that is genuinely hard to pin down politically. It skewers American legal and insurance culture with equal-opportunity cynicism, champions personal honesty over greed, and features a Black supporting character whose integrity outshines the white leads. Marriage is treated as worth saving, which leans traditional, but the satire cuts across class and ethics rather than ideology. The signals roughly cancel out.
Starring Cast
Jack Lemmon • Walter Matthau • Ron Rich
Where to watch
Detailed Bias Analysis
Analyzing...
Center
Primary
Political: Center
Confidence: Medium
The film critiques human greed and the exploitation of systems through individual actions, ultimately championing personal integrity and honesty without promoting a specific political ideology.
Diversity: Moderate
Confidence: Medium
The movie features a prominent Black supporting character whose honesty contrasts with the deceit of the white protagonists. The narrative focuses on critiquing individual greed and the legal system rather than explicitly challenging traditional identities or centering strong DEI themes.
Secondary
Family Values: Leans Traditional
Confidence: Medium
The film's central plot revolves around a man's elaborate scheme to win back his estranged wife, framing the reconciliation of a heterosexual marriage as a primary and desirable narrative goal, despite the initial marital troubles.
Christianity: Positive
Confidence: High
Father O'Shea, a Catholic priest, is depicted as a genuinely compassionate and morally upright character who encourages Harry to confess and seek spiritual peace, contrasting with the pervasive greed and deception in the film.
LGBTQ: N/A
Confidence: High
The film "The Fortune Cookie" does not feature any identifiable LGBTQ+ characters or themes. The narrative focuses on a man faking an injury for an insurance settlement, involving his lawyer brother-in-law and estranged wife. There are no subplots or characterizations that touch upon queer identity or experiences.
Trans: N/A
Confidence: High
The film "The Fortune Cookie" does not feature any identifiable transsexual characters or themes. The narrative focuses on an insurance fraud scheme involving a television cameraman faking an injury and his conniving lawyer brother-in-law. The plot and character arcs are entirely centered on this premise, with no elements related to transgender identity or experiences.
Female Combat: N/R
The movie does not contain any action or adventure elements.
Gender Swap: No
Confidence: High
The Fortune Cookie is an original screenplay, not an adaptation of prior source material or a biopic. All characters were created for this film, thus none had a pre-established gender that could be swapped.
Race Swap: No
Confidence: High
The Fortune Cookie is an original screenplay, not an adaptation of existing material or a biopic. All characters were created for this film, meaning none had a pre-established race in prior canon or history. Therefore, no race swaps occurred.
Hinduism: N/A
Confidence: High
Not depicted in the film.
Viewer Rating Breakdown
User Ratings
7.2
7.2
Critic Ratings
9.6
6.3
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