Review of The Apartment (1960) by Matthew C — 26 Jan 2014
Billy Wilder gets it right in this classic romantic dramedy of 1960. Not that Wilder usually misses the mark, but there's a reason that this movie and his life and style of film making are so inseparably linked.
Jack Lemmon is skittish and funny without being overbearing and yet pulls off the every man. Shirley MacLaine fully embodies the dream girl. The girl that nobody can get but everyone wants. Both are broken people with secrets they'd rather not share.
Hanging over them is Sheldrake, the boss played wonderfully by MacMurray. MacMurray brings a regal and charming disgusting bravado to the role. He has and gets everything and so far has gotten away with it.
Lemmon needs to grow a spine and MacLaine has to demand better of herself. What Wilder does so well is make us a close friend of these characters quickly and establishes the rules of a culture in desperate need of repair without making us, the audience, feel like we're in the wrong.
Wilder doesn't hold back and gives ample opportunity for the story to run away, as if each character were going off script constantly. It's a brilliant lovesick real human drama with all the wit and spice of real New York life.
Worthy of its awards and still relevant today.
This review of The Apartment (1960) was written by Matthew C on 26 Jan 2014.
The Apartment has generally received very positive reviews.
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