The Nutty Professor (1963) (1963)
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86% of critics liked it
(22 reviews) -
64% of users liked it
(32,635 ratings)
Professor Julius F. Kelp (Jerry Lewis) is an addle-brained, absent-minded chemistry instructor always incurring the wrath of the university administration by continually blowing up the classroom laboratory. The shy guy has his eyes on the student body of Stella (Stella Stevens). When a… More Professor Julius F. Kelp (Jerry Lewis) is an addle-brained, absent-minded chemistry instructor always incurring the wrath of the university administration by continually blowing up the classroom laboratory. The shy guy has his eyes on the student body of Stella (Stella Stevens). When a football-playing bully humiliates him, Kelp tries to concoct a chemical to help him gain physical strength and stature. The potion turns him into the handsome, hard-edged nightclub singer named Buddy Love. The mild-mannered professor's alter ego becomes a self-absorbed campus favorite at the Purple Pit, a hangout for hip cats and kittens. Stella falls for the enigmatic entertainer who wows the crowd with his jazzy, breezy delivery and cool demeanor. Buddy mixes it up with the bartender (Buddy Lester), who is instructed on how to mix the latest drinks by the professor-turned-party animal. The drawback of the potion is that it wears off at the most embarrassing an inopportune times for Buddy, turning him back into the helpless Kelp. Buddy performs at the annual student dance, and while on the dais, the elixir starts to wear off. The students and staff watch in amazement as he changes back into the professor. He gives an impassioned plea that people must learn to like themselves before others can like them in return. Stella still wants to be the teacher's pet, and the two make future plans together. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Directed By
- Jerry Lewis
- Written By
- Jerry Lewis, Bill Richmond
- Genres
- Classics, Comedy
- In Theaters
- Jun 4, 1963 Wide
- Studio
- Paramount Home Video
Critic Reviews
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Charles Cassady, Common Sense Media
Jerry Lewis' Jekyll-Hyde spoof is dated but great.
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Stefan Birgir Stefansson, sbs.is
a quite funny romp
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Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan
Certainly Jerry Lewis at his best.
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Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid
It's a brilliant job of direction, but the film couldn't have worked without Lewis' performance in both roles.
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Eric Henderson, Slant Magazine
Contains some of Lewis's most outré directorial flourishes.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Jerry Lewis
as Buddy Love, Prof. Julius Ferris Kelp
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Stella Stevens
as Stella Purdy
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Del Moore
as Dr. Hamius R. Warfield
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Kathleen Freeman
as Millie Lemmon
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Med Flory
as Football Player
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Howard Morris
as Father Kelp
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Norman Alden
as Football Player
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Milton Frome
as Dr. Leevee
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Buddy Lester
as Bartender
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Marvin Kaplan
as English Boy
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David Landfield
as College Student
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Skip Ward
as Football Player
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Julie Parrish
as Student
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Henry Gibson
as Student
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Elvia Allman
as Mother Kelp
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Murray Alper
as Judo Instructor
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Les Brown
as Himself
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Mushy Callahan
as Cab Driver
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Joe Forte
as Faculty Member
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Gavin Gordon
as Salesman Clothier
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Doodles Weaver
as Rube
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Dave Willock
as Bartender
- Celeste Yarnall
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Francine York
as Student
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Gary Lewis
as Boy

