The Apartment (1960)

• Bil Antoniou

BILLY WILDER

Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBBBB. 

USA, 1960.  The Mirisch Corporation.  Screenplay by Billy Wilder, .  Cinematography by .  Produced by Billy Wilder.  Music by . Production Design by .  Costume Design by , .  Film Editing by .  

 excels as a low-level office worker who, on occasion, lends his bachelor apartment to philandering business superiors to use for trysts with their mistresses. Unbeknownst to him, one of them () is going there with the elevator girl who has caught Lemmon’s eye ( in the best American female role of the sixties). The romance is witty and wise, the drama is acidic and dark, and somehow with Billy Wilder’s magic involved, one always seems to complement the other without it ever getting uncomfortable or uneven. Absolute perfection.

Academy Awards:  Best Picture; Best Director (Billy Wilder); Best Original Story and Screenplay; Best Art Direction-BW; Best Film Editing
Nominations: Best Actor (Jack Lemmon); Best Actress (Shirley MacLaine); Best Supporting Actor (Jack Kruschen); Best Cinematography-BW; Best Sound

Golden Globe Awards:  Best Picture-Comedy; Best Actor-Musical/Comedy (Jack Lemmon); Best Actress-Musical/Comedy (Shirley MacLaine)
Nomination: Best Director (Billy Wilder)

Venice Film Festival Award: Best Actress (Shirley MacLaine)

One thought on “The Apartment (1960)”

  1. Pingback: Stills of the Night: Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, in Billy Wilder’s (1960) ‘The Apartment’ | pundit from another planet

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