Post by klep on Dec 14, 2015 7:51:57 GMT -6
MOVIE OF THE WEEK: The Apartment
SECOND WEEK OF THE HOLIDAYS
The Apartment is the best kind of Christmas movie. It's the kind that embraces the meaning of the holiday without batting the viewer over the head with it and doing any heavy moralizing. There are no grand speeches about the meaning of the holiday, it's just present enough for viewers to draw the connection (or not) as they choose.
C. C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) is an up-and-comer at an insurance firm. He's discovered that he can curry favor with company executives by allowing them to use his apartment to cheat on their wives. In the voiceover introduction he claims not to be that ambitious, but his actions in this regard put the lie to his words. He's sacrificing his own well-being and reputation among his neighbors to impress people who are clearly taking advantage of him in hopes of professional advancement. And it works! He gets his promotion, only to realize he's still expected to loan out his place to his new boss. Still, it's a situation he thinks he's happy with.
Except then Baxter discovers that his boss' piece on the side is someone he cares about, and he starts to question just what it is he's doing with his life. I don't want to spoil too much here for people who haven't watched it yet, but events on Christmas Eve cause him to come around and give up his ambiton in favor of being good to his fellow man. Wilder lets you almost forget, but there are enough reminders along the way to get you to realize this really is a Christmas movie at heart.
Jack Lemmon is great as C. C. Baxter. He has a slyness to him that lets you believe he could be morally corrupted in this fashion, but he also conveys a real goodness that makes his awakening believable and sincere. He really seems like a guy who can only be blind as long as no one shines a light for him. And Shirley MacLaine is wonderful in her role as Jack's boss' mistress, conveying grit and modernity while allowing a certain innocence to shine through - the kind that could believe her boss really will leave his wife for her.
What is your favorite part of this movie? Do you agree that its surface indifference to the holiday makes it superior to Christmas films which harp more on the season?
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 12/21: Fanny and Alexander
THIRD WEEK OF THE HOLIDAYS
Ingmar Bergman's family drama will be our third film of the holidays. I'm going to try to watch the extended TV cut, but I won't blame you if you settle for something shorter. We'll also devote a day this week to talk about The Good Dinosaur and how it compares to Toy Story to coordinate with the Next Picture Show Podcast.
SECOND WEEK OF THE HOLIDAYS
The Apartment is the best kind of Christmas movie. It's the kind that embraces the meaning of the holiday without batting the viewer over the head with it and doing any heavy moralizing. There are no grand speeches about the meaning of the holiday, it's just present enough for viewers to draw the connection (or not) as they choose.
C. C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) is an up-and-comer at an insurance firm. He's discovered that he can curry favor with company executives by allowing them to use his apartment to cheat on their wives. In the voiceover introduction he claims not to be that ambitious, but his actions in this regard put the lie to his words. He's sacrificing his own well-being and reputation among his neighbors to impress people who are clearly taking advantage of him in hopes of professional advancement. And it works! He gets his promotion, only to realize he's still expected to loan out his place to his new boss. Still, it's a situation he thinks he's happy with.
Except then Baxter discovers that his boss' piece on the side is someone he cares about, and he starts to question just what it is he's doing with his life. I don't want to spoil too much here for people who haven't watched it yet, but events on Christmas Eve cause him to come around and give up his ambiton in favor of being good to his fellow man. Wilder lets you almost forget, but there are enough reminders along the way to get you to realize this really is a Christmas movie at heart.
Jack Lemmon is great as C. C. Baxter. He has a slyness to him that lets you believe he could be morally corrupted in this fashion, but he also conveys a real goodness that makes his awakening believable and sincere. He really seems like a guy who can only be blind as long as no one shines a light for him. And Shirley MacLaine is wonderful in her role as Jack's boss' mistress, conveying grit and modernity while allowing a certain innocence to shine through - the kind that could believe her boss really will leave his wife for her.
What is your favorite part of this movie? Do you agree that its surface indifference to the holiday makes it superior to Christmas films which harp more on the season?
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 12/21: Fanny and Alexander
THIRD WEEK OF THE HOLIDAYS
Ingmar Bergman's family drama will be our third film of the holidays. I'm going to try to watch the extended TV cut, but I won't blame you if you settle for something shorter. We'll also devote a day this week to talk about The Good Dinosaur and how it compares to Toy Story to coordinate with the Next Picture Show Podcast.