"Shut up and deal."

[benwhowell]

The sub-heading for this forum is "Isn't Romantic Comedy Redundant?"
It's Valentine's Day and the movie I chose to watch is one that fills that prescription...with a terrific dose of bitter cynicism.
Billy Wilder's "The Apartment."
I haven't met a Wilder movie that isn't in my fave top fifty.
I'm not a big Jack Lemmon fan, but his pairing with Wilder makes me forget that. His performance as C.C. Baxter is a treat to observe- with all it's "theatrical trickery."
As a matter of fact, the whole movie has a slightly surreal "staged" look to it...with the MGM backlot/soundstages transforming us to the fabulous '50's in NYC. Imagine meeting someone in that cozy booth in a chinese restaurant with the piano man playing "your" song as "you" arrive and depart. Talk about romantic...
What a reunion for Wilder and Fred MacMurray! I'm so glad he took the part of such a cold, calculating jerk. Was this before or after "The Absent Minded Professor?" Major bonus-hearing MacMurray utter the line, "Can you dig?"
To see Wilder, you'd never imagine him to be such a "hip" guy. Put him and I.A.L. Diamond together and the poison pen shoots daggers to beat the band.
Despite the Christmas/New Year's Eve settings, I found this to be an excellent pick for Valentine's Day...a "sweet and sour" sentimental love story.
And that's how it crumbles...cookie-wise.

[Lzcutter]

Ben,

Can you hear me and SueSue squeeing with delight at seeing you here?

Thought you could.

Hope all is well!

[MikeBSG]

I've mentioned this story elsewhere, but I'll say it again because I like it so much.

Fred MacMurray was doing a personal appearance at Disneyland, when this woman comes up to him and tells him how she had taken her daughter to all the Disney comedies MacMurray had been in, like "Absent Minded Professor."

Next she says, "And then I took my daughter to see 'The Apartment,'" and she slugs MacMurray.

[Ann Harding]

he should have told her to go to see Double Indemnity!

[benwhowell]

I love that story, Mike!
All is well, Lynn. Did SueSue tell you about my new job? There's a great documentary just waiting to be captured on film...a la John Ford. Anxious to pitch it to you. Call me.
BTW-What do you think of "The Apartment?"

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Dear Ben,

Great to read your post. The Apartment is poignant, and endearing,
and could have been much darker, but Wilder kind of gives it a Lubitsch
touch here and there, if I remember correctly.

I really enjoy a good, quirky Shirley and a manic Lemmon.

Glad to see you've been able to post lately.

[Moraldo Rubini]

Add me to the list of those squealing with delight, Ben.

The Apartment is one of my favorites too. I watch it every year at Christmas. In fact, this past December I dragged a visiting NYer to the Castro theatre to see it on the Big Screen. I love the score to this movie and it was my holy grail for years -- trying to find it. Some years ago I finally got a scratchy LP of it at [the now defunct] A-1 Records near Paramount studios in Hollywood. Begging Rhino Records and the studios to transfer it to cd came to no avail. I recently bought a turntable that connects to my computer, so now I can listen to The Apartment theme in my IPod.

There used to be a Chinese restaurant in San Francisco with booths separated by bamboo "cages" and I always expected a piano player to break into the song whenever I entered. Alas, no piano; no piano player.

[charliechaplinfan]

I love The Apartment. Jack Lemmon is in my top ten actors from the talkies. Out of his serious roles I've only seen GlenGary Glen Ross which was so sad. I love The Apartment, Some Like it Hot, Mr Roberts, Avanti and my newest discovery It Could Happen To You.

There are so many things that make The Apartment special. I always think of him rinsing his spaghetti with a tennis racket. Forward a few years to The Odd Couple, Felix would never behave that way