This is a brilliantly made film. With a legendary cast list and one of the greatest directors of all time, Billy Wilder, at the helm this movie goes the gamut of emotions. This is truly a film that grabs hold of you and you hold back. There is a lot going on through various levels of the film which enable one to see it over and over and always find a little something you didn't see before. Jack Lemmon has so many memorable roles that his role in The Apartment is sometimes over looked. Lemmon was nominated for an Oscar for lead actor in 1961 for this film and did win several awards including a Golden Globe. Lemmon is funny, handles a little slapstick, he awkward and even suave. He pulls them all off with ease. He plays an everyman character stuck in a strange situation, a type of character that he absolutely perfected through his career.
The Apartment takes place in Manhattan. C.C. Baxter, played by Jack Lemmon, is a clerk working at a large company and working for many bosses. In fact, he comments that his company has 31,259 employees at the home office alone. He's single and lends his one bedroom apartment to one of the executives for an evening. Word gets around and before you know it Baxter is lending his key to more than a few executives. The borrowed evenings are for rendezvous with mistresses and suddenly he is caught between company, bosses, landlord and neighbors. His evenings without his apartment get strained when Bud catches a cold. Shirley MacLaine is the lovely Fran Kubelik, the elevator girl that Bud has a crush on. A triangle of trouble develops when Bud discovers his boss Mr Sheldrake, played by an equally brilliant Fred MacMurray, has a thing with the lovely Fran Kubelik.
This movie is in black and white. The art direction is amazing. The scenes of Baxter's office and the Orwellian space of people with adding machines as well as the apartment itself are spot on. When you see the apartment for the first time, you know you're in New York and you know just who lives there and if there is any doubt Baxter's character mentions that he pays $94 per month for the apartment. Wilder's story and direction are compelling and hysterical at the same time. There is no doubt this is best picture material. I think MacLaine was probably overlooked for a supporting actress award, her performance is that good.
For me this film falls in the top 100 films ever made. I love that you can watch it many times and continue to walk away with something new. The black and while filming gives the movie a time reference and set of values frozen in that moment. The cast of Lemmon, MacLaine and MacMurray are amazing with the supporting cast playing an A game in their own roles. This film is a film-making lesson for anyone that studies film. 10/10*
The Apartment takes place in Manhattan. C.C. Baxter, played by Jack Lemmon, is a clerk working at a large company and working for many bosses. In fact, he comments that his company has 31,259 employees at the home office alone. He's single and lends his one bedroom apartment to one of the executives for an evening. Word gets around and before you know it Baxter is lending his key to more than a few executives. The borrowed evenings are for rendezvous with mistresses and suddenly he is caught between company, bosses, landlord and neighbors. His evenings without his apartment get strained when Bud catches a cold. Shirley MacLaine is the lovely Fran Kubelik, the elevator girl that Bud has a crush on. A triangle of trouble develops when Bud discovers his boss Mr Sheldrake, played by an equally brilliant Fred MacMurray, has a thing with the lovely Fran Kubelik.
This movie is in black and white. The art direction is amazing. The scenes of Baxter's office and the Orwellian space of people with adding machines as well as the apartment itself are spot on. When you see the apartment for the first time, you know you're in New York and you know just who lives there and if there is any doubt Baxter's character mentions that he pays $94 per month for the apartment. Wilder's story and direction are compelling and hysterical at the same time. There is no doubt this is best picture material. I think MacLaine was probably overlooked for a supporting actress award, her performance is that good.
For me this film falls in the top 100 films ever made. I love that you can watch it many times and continue to walk away with something new. The black and while filming gives the movie a time reference and set of values frozen in that moment. The cast of Lemmon, MacLaine and MacMurray are amazing with the supporting cast playing an A game in their own roles. This film is a film-making lesson for anyone that studies film. 10/10*