Turns out today is the late director Billy Wilder’s birthday so in honour of the great man I’m taking part in a Billy Wilder Blogathon! Its created and hosted by Aurora (@CitizenScreen) of Once Upon A Screen… and Kellee (@Irishjayhawk66) of Outspoken & Freckled. Follow them for the best insights into both classic and modern cinema. My choice of Wilder film is The Apartment, a movie I loved when I first saw it, and my favourite romantic-comedy ever. I’ll shut up now and let you read the review.
Hey, who here likes a nice romantic comedy? How about one that features attempted suicide, marital affairs, abortion, and goodold fashioned sexism? Wait! Come back! I’m talking of course about Billy Wilder’s masterpiece The Apartment. And if you haven’t seen it then you need to correct this right away. The Apartment was actually the last black and white best picture winner at the Oscars until The Artist in 2011 and it deserved all of the plaudits as you’ll see below.
As I’ve hinted at, this isn’t your typical rom-com. It tells the story of C.C ‘Bud’ Baxter (an excellent Jack Lemmon) who to make his life easier at his job allows his married boss to use his apartment to bang the girl that he is in love with. Yes, that does sound extremely grim and not at all romantic but it couldn’t be further from the truth.
If you’re a fan of Wilder you’ll know that he’s the master of the funny script and finding humour in the strangest of places (look at Some Like It Hot’s (1959) massacre or One, Two, Three (1961) set in post-war Berlin and deals with communism). What could be a dark topic, Wilder provides the funny without being crass or insensitive. And when Wilder teams up with Lemmon you know that magic will take place.
Lemmon’s performance as a down-trodden office drone who abandons his morals just to be close to the woman he loves is perfect. Shirley MacLaine is wonderful as the dream girl Fran Kubelik leaving you in no doubt as to how someone could fall for her. Together they have brilliant chemistry sucking you into the lives of these lowly company employees who are being played by manipulative management types.
The Apartment is a one of a kind comedy that never descends into schmaltz or any sentimental manipulation. You’ll be rooting for Baxter to get the girl all the way to a classic ending that feels real and is pitched perfectly by a writer/director at the top of his game. If you’re sick of clichéd love stories then this the perfect tonic for you. Watch it!
Check out the rest of the Billy Wilder Blogathon entries here.
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[…] By Screenkicker! – The Apartment […]
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Good review, The Apartment, is 1960 Best Film in my book. It’s perfect in every way–Lemmon, MacMurray and Maclaine are magnificient. The script, the cinematography, the production design. 🙂
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I adore this film!
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You have good taste Roy!
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Thank you!!
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I love The Apartment! It proves that romantic comedies don’t always have to be stupid and shallow; The Apartment has as much depth as any drama. Lemmon shows off his comedic genius once again, and I love the reference to The Crowd in the beginning. Nice review!
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Thank you Hunter! Yes its a truly wonderful film
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Really do love this film, and the film that helped inspire it, Brief Encounter. I need to quote them both. Thanks for the reminder. Great review dude and I’ll toast with you to his birthday too 🙂
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Oh wow, i didn’t know it was inspired by Brief Encounter. Great bit of trivia
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[…] By Screenkicker! – The Apartment […]
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I agree with every word you include in this post. “Not your typical” should have been Wilder’s middle name and with regards to THE APARTMENT, I’m always blown away by how he takes such a simple premise and takes it eons into a film that moves on so many levels.
We couldn’t have done without a write-up on this beloved Wilder classic and you do it great justice. Thanks for participating in the blogathon!
Aurora
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Thanks for letting me take part Aurora. If there’s a person that deserves their own blogathon its Billy Wilder 🙂
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Great review, Mike! This is an awesome film. You have such good taste lately! WTF?! : )
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I’ve always had good taste! But i fell in with a bad crowd on twitter 😉
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This flick is definitely one of a kind. Great review.
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Thanks Josh!
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One of my favorite films ever made, and, for my money, one of the best full stop. A great film. Billy Wilder is a genius and Jack Lemmon has rarely been better (apart from perhaps Some Like It Hot).
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Love this movie! And yes gosh isn’t the idea your boss using your apartment to bring girls over such a weird idea and who would say yes to that nowadays!
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