Believe it or not the holiday movie season is upon us. It's time to take out the seasonal favorites and get into a merry holiday mood.
First up is 1960's The Apartment by Billy Wilder. The film tells the story of C.C. Baxter and his life in the big city. The movie stars Jack Lemmon, Shirley Maclaine and Fred MacMurray.
The movie opens on November 1, 1959. C.C. Baxter (Lemmon) is narrating. he works for a large insurance company. he lives in an apartment on the upper west side. he pays $85 a month for a nice one bedroom apartment. His apartment only has one problem. he can never get into it. Through a series of events his apartment has become the location for romantic liaisons by four managers in his company. Right now Mr. Kirkeby is having a brief interlude. last night Mr. Eichelberg used it for a Halloween party.
While being put out of his apartment is inconvenient it does have its benefits. each manager has been submitting glowing performance review reports on C. C. Baxter. perhaps the reports are too good, because Baxter becomes noticed by Mr. Sheldrake (MacMurray) of Human resources, who has his own designs on Baxter's apartment. These five men are not the only ones with romantic pursuits. Baxter has a huge crush on elevator operator Fran Kubileck (Maclaine). Unfortunately for him, Miss Kubileck is in love with Mr. Sheldrake, a married man.
These complications work their way through the office and the apartment until everything comes to a dramatic collision on Christmas Eve.
You would expect a movie with all these romantic hi-jinks to be as funny as Wilder's previous picture Some Like It Hot, but it's not. It's a fairly serious drama with comic overtones. The film touches on themes of loneliness in a crowded city, adultery, infidelity, suicide and sexual promiscuity in the work place.
Many directors find a muse to give voice and face to the characters they create. Alfred Hitchcock had James Stewart, John Ford had John Wayne and Billy Wilder had Jack Lemmon. The two men worked together on seven films. In The Apartment jack lemmon is at his most restrained. Wilder prevented him from ad-libbing so most of the familiar lemmon tics and mannerisms are gone. This results in a superb performance of understated brilliance. Fred MacMurray who was beginning to make a name as a lovable dad in Disney films and My Three Sons plays a Mr. Sheldrake as a callow, selfish, cad is a pitch perfect performance.
The film is a perfect look at urban life, circa 1960. The modern appliances, Instant Coffee, TV with wired remote, electric blankets, TV dinners, sleeping pills and safety razors. The office scenes could easily be the inspiration for Mad Men. Today everything that goes on would be considered sexual harassment, but back then female employees were fair game and booze flowed freely at the office party.
The Apartment is one of the first adult themed films that I sought out and bought for my new RCA Selectivision system back in 1983. I had heard of it, but it was rarely seen on television. I still remember how touched I was by the romantic story of Mr. Baxter and Miss Kubileck. If you have not seen The Apartment you are missing out on a great American film.
At The Movie House rating ****
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