Goldie Hawn's depiction of a simple young lady caught up in a love triangle with an older man, a dentist, played with such relish by Walter Matthau, that she won the best supporting actress Oscar for 1969.

The film, however, is another tribute to Ingrid Bergman. Rarely, did we ever see her in a comedy and she literally kicks up her heels here as a dedicated dental nurse who is thrust into a scheme for Matthau to tell Hawn that they're married.

It is such a joy to watch Matthau and Bergman fall for each other here. Theirs is an accidental love affair in the making.

As Matthau's friend, Jack Weston is fabulous as his partner in the scheme as well. Rick Lenz gives ample support as Hawn's newly-found boyfriend as well.

"Cactus Flower" has the distinction of being the film that earned Goldie Hawn an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. While it could easily be argued that she should have been nominated instead for Best Actress for this film, it's hard to argue that she wasn't good. Good enough to earn the Oscar? Maybe..maybe not. But I think one thing really helped her. Up until this movie, Hawn was known for playing a super-ditzy blonde who frequently flubbed her lines on "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In"...and in the film people could see she was capable of so much more. For this reason alone, it's worth seeing the film.

Julian Winston (Walter Matthau) is a dentist with a strange secret....he's convinced his girlfriend (Hawn) that he is married and they are having an affair. The problem is that he is not married nor has ever been! So why did he lie to her about such an odd thing? Well, at first, Dr. Winston had no interest in becoming serious about the lady...so he lied in order to keep her at a distance....but not too far, as he still wanted to have the affair. But after he realizes he loves her, instead of telling her the truth, he decides to create a fake wife...a fake wife who is eager to grant him a divorce. But after he convinces his receptionist (Ingrid Bergman) to pose as the wife, things start getting very, very complicated...and a bit funny.

This film is very much a product of its times. The music and restaurant they often go to in the film is a hip hippie-chic restaurant and the morality is a new and very odd morality in the story! But it still holds up today and Matthau is very enjoyable as the weird, lying boyfriend.

My only complaint, and it's a minor one, is you can't help but wonder why the receptionist would help the dentist in the first place. This was a bit confusing...especially since she was so adamant initially to help.

Cactus Flower finds Walter Matthau as successful Park Avenue dentist and part time roue who loves chasing the young women. One has to remember this was 1969 the height of the era of free love and many a middle aged man was going into a second bout of puberty. With Matthau though he never left the first one.

If people get too interested in a permanent relationship he's invented a fictional wife and 3 kids who just won't let him go. Right now he's seeing Goldie Hawn who is your typical 60s product who works in a record store back when people bought those vinyl 45s and long playing albums.

But right in his own office there's loyal and efficient Ingrid Bergman who is his dental assistant. One of those people who just blend into the wallpaper, you just assume their presence.

My biggest problem with Cactus Flower is that Bergman seeing what a complete rat Matthau is in his personal life why she wants him is beyond me. But the heart always has its own reasons.

In any event when Hawn starts pressing him Matthau has Bergman pretend to be his wife. After that everyone starts making assumptions about everyone else.

This was Ingrid Bergman's first film in Hollywood since the notorious scandal with Roberto Rosellini back in 1949. She takes over from fellow movie icon Lauren Bacall who did the Broadway play from 1965 to 1968 with Barry Nelson and Brenda Vaccaro. She turns out to have quite the flair for comedy which was rarely used.

Matthau is Matthau. Imagine Whiplash Willie Gingrich in a white dental outfit and you have Walter's character.

The real surprise here is Goldie Hawn who certainly did have a flair for comedy as shown by her time on Rowan&Martin's Laugh-In during that period. Her stint there won her the part of the record store clerk and she got an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress and the start of a successful big screen career.

The acting is great of course. For me I think the story would have worked better if Matthau got some comeuppance.

He sure didn't deserve Ingrid and Ingrid deserved better.