Review of The Apartment (1960) by Compi24 — 06 Oct 2020

One of the tighter, snappier and more memorable screenplays you'll encounter in the pantheon of Best Picture winners, "The Apartment" is as much an enticing exercise in dramatic irony and intrigue as it is a tender portrait of humanity and love.

With all of this coming from the late, great Billy Wilder, you'll find I'm not the least bit surprised. I could watch Jack Lemmon in anything, and for days, to boot. With every performance the guy gives, in everything I've ever seen him in, he builds an express lane straight to your heart, immediately endearing himself to you and making you laugh.

Shirley MacLaine is equally winsome, with the chemistry between her and Lemmon really comprising most of the film's appeal. What's most surprising about the film is its deft ability to juggle totally disparate tonalities.

It's definitely a comedy in that it's "comedic" (in the Greek sense of the word), but "The Apartment" also takes great risks in its second and third acts, introducing certain thematic elements I didn't expect, but ultimately welcomed with open arms.

It's brave, arresting and terrific in its execution. Again, I'm not at all shocked this won as many Oscars as it did.