Ha ha. Gotcha!
I know there are a bunch of my closest friends who just opened this post and are now completely confused. Because, for years and years and years, I've been saying how "Some Like It Hot" was my favorite movie of all time. And it comes darn close. But, as time and I have gone on, I recently realized that there is one movie that rises above "Some Like It Hot." By mere inches to be sure. But, nevertheless, given my current status as an adult cinephile, I realize that my #1 favorite film now achieves that honor solely because I myself have matured. More on that next week.
None of this is designed to diminish one iota what a tremendous movie "Some Like It Hot" truly is. A few years ago, the American Film Institute called it the greatest film comedy ever, and, in my humble opinion, it ran away with it like the 1927 Yankees. The movie is almost 50 years old and is still as fresh as the day it was released in 1959. Years from now, people will still be watching it and talking about the performances of Marilyn Monroe, Jack Lemmon, and Tony Curtis. At the same time, a half century from today, absolutely nobody will be remembering Will Ferrell, Adam Sandler, and anybody else that is purportedly a screen comedian these days. Last year, when critics were gushing over the likes of "Superbad" and "Knocked Up," I was convinced that none of them have ever bothered to consider "Some Like It Hot." You have never seen a film comedy if you have never sampled this masterpiece from Billy Wilder.
"Some Like It Hot" also holds a very special place in my own personal film history, as it was the very first time I heard a movie theater audience laugh. Out loud. I was very, very, very young, but I distinctly remember going to Loews' Mount Vernon theater to see it. It was even more noteworthy since it was probably the only time I ever went to an indoor theater with both my parents in tow. Back in those days, your neighborhood movie house ran two pictures and you frequently didn't pay attention to start times. You just showed up when you wanted to. There were many times when we would show up and see the final 20 minutes of one movie, see the next one, and then leave at the exact spot where we came in. Very weird and I would never even fathom doing that today.
We inexplicably arrived to see "Some Like It Hot" about ten minutes from the end. I remember very little except that it was the big chase scene through the hotel. And the audience was roaring with laughter. I did not know what to make of it all. Many years later, I truly understood.
There is not one single wasted moment or line of dialogue in this whole movie. Every word has a purpose and a function. And, more importantly, it gets you to where Billy Wilder wants you. In the palm of his hand. Laughing hysterically till it hurt. I've read the screenplay several times and it is a master course in film comedy. It should be used as a textbook in film schools all over the country.
I've seen "Some Like It Hot" probably 30 or 40 times in my life. It never gets old or repetitive. I've seen it on TV and on the big screen. It never gets any less funnier than it was the very first time. When I walked into that Loews theater across from City Hall in Mount Vernon.
And heard all those people enjoying a truly phenomenal movie. Dinner last night: Shrimp and chicken pasta at 17th Street Cafe in Santa Monica.
1 comment:
You rascal you. The old switcheroo. Now I know what #1 is.
There are few movie moments funnier than Jack Lemmon, a rose in his teeth, dancing with Joe E. Brown. And the scene where he shakes the maracas while laying in bed. Tony Curtis doing Cary Grant always makes me laugh. Monroe's dippy sweetness is easily the best thing she ever did. She was always late on the set but Wilder said it was worth it. True.
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