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Director: Billy Wilder
There is nothing better than when a film lives up to every bit of your expectations. The Apartment certainly did for me instantly becoming not only one of my favorite classic films but one of my favorite films period. First off the premise of the film is brilliant and Wilder lays it out perfectly. Baxter (Lemmon) lends out his apartment to his superiors at the insurance company he works for so they have a place to bring their mistresses. I was especially fond of how Baxter's neighbors believe that he is the one who is carousing at all hours of the night. By doing this Wilder gives us all the exposition we need of the character of C.C. Baxter. We quickly learn in a very entertaining way that Baxter has not only a difficult situation on his hands but also longs to have a life quite different than the one he is leading.
Once Fran Kubelik (Maclaine) is introduced we have a good idea of where the story is heading but Wilder throws us a couple of nice curve balls along the way. Baxter and Kubelik are our protagonists and certainly who we are rooting for all the way. However what I love about The Apartment compared to most classics is that they are not one dimensional and Wilder does not let them off the hook easily. Both are complex, flawed characters, so despite our hope that thing turn out for the best for them we do have points where we are let down by their actions. In my opinion this make us love them all the more. Characters that we can empathize with are always superior to those who seem above us.
There are points of this film that I could nit-pic but frankly I don't want to I loved it so much. Lemmon and Maclaine are fantastic, Maclaine is way cuter than I ever realized. The supporting players are all well done and well acted. Lemmon's neighbor the doctor especially stands out in his scenes. This was only my third Wilder film and certainly has me excited to see more as they just keep getting better and better for me. The Apartment is a perfect film.
Director: Billy Wilder
There is nothing better than when a film lives up to every bit of your expectations. The Apartment certainly did for me instantly becoming not only one of my favorite classic films but one of my favorite films period. First off the premise of the film is brilliant and Wilder lays it out perfectly. Baxter (Lemmon) lends out his apartment to his superiors at the insurance company he works for so they have a place to bring their mistresses. I was especially fond of how Baxter's neighbors believe that he is the one who is carousing at all hours of the night. By doing this Wilder gives us all the exposition we need of the character of C.C. Baxter. We quickly learn in a very entertaining way that Baxter has not only a difficult situation on his hands but also longs to have a life quite different than the one he is leading.
Once Fran Kubelik (Maclaine) is introduced we have a good idea of where the story is heading but Wilder throws us a couple of nice curve balls along the way. Baxter and Kubelik are our protagonists and certainly who we are rooting for all the way. However what I love about The Apartment compared to most classics is that they are not one dimensional and Wilder does not let them off the hook easily. Both are complex, flawed characters, so despite our hope that thing turn out for the best for them we do have points where we are let down by their actions. In my opinion this make us love them all the more. Characters that we can empathize with are always superior to those who seem above us.
There are points of this film that I could nit-pic but frankly I don't want to I loved it so much. Lemmon and Maclaine are fantastic, Maclaine is way cuter than I ever realized. The supporting players are all well done and well acted. Lemmon's neighbor the doctor especially stands out in his scenes. This was only my third Wilder film and certainly has me excited to see more as they just keep getting better and better for me. The Apartment is a perfect film.