Average Rating:

.

Some Like It Hot - Special Edition [1959]

starring: Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, George Raft, Pat O'Brien
directed by: Billy Wilder

November 26, 2001
This film appeals on so many levels - it's a farce, a sophisticated comedy, a gangster movie, a musical - some classic lines and probably a good contender for the best last line ever. Please watch this, it's that good.

Average Rating:

.

The Apartment [1960]

starring: Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray, Ray Walston, Jack Kruschen
directed by: Billy Wilder

November 26, 2001
The apartment is one of the essential Christmas movies along with the other black and white classics - It's a wonderful life, Miracle on 34th Street, Some like it hot and Scrooge. It's a fantastic film for a cold, dark December night and seems to work best at that time of year, just like The odd couple or Rear window work best in summer.

Average Rating:

.

Sunset Boulevard [1950]

starring: William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson, Fred Clark
directed by: Billy Wilder

April 07, 2003
She's ready, but are you ready for her? In this magnificent film, Billy Wilder bites the hands that feeds him. Gloria Swanson dazzles as desperate, faded silent movie star Norma Desmond, who is trying to claw her way back to the top after years of seclusion in her Hollywood mansion on Sunset Boulvard. However, her time has been and gone, and at fifty years old, this seems impossible. When Joe Gillis (Holden), an equally desperate screenwriter, happens upon her mansion while fleeing some debt collectors, he finds the perfect way to make some money by using Norma. However, will he be able to escape her wrath when she discovers the truth? After all, in the immortal words of Desmond, "No-one ever leaves a star, that's what makes one a star....."

Average Rating:

.

Double Indemnity

starring: Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, Edward G. Robinson, Porter Hall, Jean Heather
directed by: Billy Wilder

February 12, 2007
the theme by now has been done to death itself of two evil lovers plotting the murder of an older spouse to claim his riches ,

that stanwyck is typecast as the hard -blonde who kills without flinching an eyelid and fred is a very atypical insurance agent who falls for a blonde woman of dubious charmS is even more shaky,

but there are delights indeed ,the sharp images ,lyrical shadows ,incisive dialogues and a taut narrative which keep your attention despite the flaws,

and that is billy wilder telling a story and he seldom can go wrong or enter the world of cliches despite being in a stereotyped los angeles where no one is an angel and money is the altar to worship,

i find the movie over-hyped and improbable ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Billy Wilder Collection - Vol. 2 - The Apartment/The Seven Year Itch/Witness For The Prosecution/The Fortune Cookie/The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes

starring: Jack Lemmon, Christopher Lee, Shirley Maclaine, Fred MacMurray, Marilyn Monroe
directed by: Billy Wilder

January 22, 2007
the theme by now has been done to death itself of two evil lovers plotting the murder of an older spouse to claim his riches ,

that stanwyck is typecast as the hard -blonde who kills without flinching an eyelid and fred is a very atypical insurance agent who falls for a blonde woman of dubious charmS is even more shaky,

but there are delights indeed ,the sharp images ,lyrical shadows ,incisive dialogues and a taut narrative which keep your attention despite the flaws,

and that is billy wilder telling a story and he seldom can go wrong or enter the world of cliches despite being in a stereotyped los angeles where no one is an angel and money is the altar to worship,

i find the movie over-hyped and improbable ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Sabrina [1954]

starring: Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, William Holden, Walter Hampden, John Williams (II)
directed by: Billy Wilder

September 03, 2001
Everybody loves a good Cinderella story, especially if it has a dash of realism and a sense of humour. And unbaked souffles.

And methinks it also helps the case if you have Audrey Hepburn as the modern Cinderella-with-a-wit, which is the strongest point in the charming little romance called "Sabrina." While the chemistry between Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart is never entirely believable, the movie is as buoyant and whimsical as a summer daydream, but with way better dialogue ("Bounce please, ladies").

Sabrina Fairchild (Hepburn) is the daughter of the chauffeur at the palatial Larabee estate. She's also in love with the ne'er-do-well second son, David (William Holden) -- and even attempts suicide after seeing him with one of his many girlfriends, ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Billy Wilder Collection - Vol. 1 - Avante!/Irma La Douce/Kiss Me, Stupid/One, Two, Three/Some Like It Hot

starring: Jack Lemmon, Horst Buchholz, Tony Curtis, Marilyn Monroe, Edward G. Robinson
directed by: Billy Wilder

January 22, 2007
Everybody loves a good Cinderella story, especially if it has a dash of realism and a sense of humour. And unbaked souffles.

And methinks it also helps the case if you have Audrey Hepburn as the modern Cinderella-with-a-wit, which is the strongest point in the charming little romance called "Sabrina." While the chemistry between Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart is never entirely believable, the movie is as buoyant and whimsical as a summer daydream, but with way better dialogue ("Bounce please, ladies").

Sabrina Fairchild (Hepburn) is the daughter of the chauffeur at the palatial Larabee estate. She's also in love with the ne'er-do-well second son, David (William Holden) -- and even attempts suicide after seeing him with one of his many girlfriends, ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Avanti [1972]

starring: Jack Lemmon, Juliet Mills, Clive Revill, Edward Andrews, Gianfranco Barra
directed by: Billy Wilder

June 07, 2004
When "Avanti!" was released in 1972, the world and its cinema had changed irrevocably. This gentle, slightly slow moving romantic-comedy about not-so-hip people had no real place in a film world gripped by gritty realism, escalating cursing and the depiction of ultra-violence. Still "Avanti!" (it means "forward") was nominated for 6 Golden Globes and won one - Best Comedy Actor for Jack Lemmon.

Produced and Directed by the incomparable Billy Wilder, it featured a fabulously inventive and witty script from the dynamite duo of Wilder and his long-time writing buddy L.A.L. Diamond. Check this out. Clive Revill (Nominated as Best Comedy Supporting Actor) is in the Hotel bus on route with Lemmon from the airport telling the busy executive of Armbruster Enterprises ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

Camp Classics Collection: Some Like It Hot, Priscilla Queen Of The Desert, La Cage Aux Folles, Birdcage (4 Disc Box Set)

starring: Marilyn Monroe, Robin Williams, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wiest, Nathan Lane
directed by: Billy Wilder, Stephen Elliot, Edouard Molinaro, Mike Nichols

February 19, 2007
When "Avanti!" was released in 1972, the world and its cinema had changed irrevocably. This gentle, slightly slow moving romantic-comedy about not-so-hip people had no real place in a film world gripped by gritty realism, escalating cursing and the depiction of ultra-violence. Still "Avanti!" (it means "forward") was nominated for 6 Golden Globes and won one - Best Comedy Actor for Jack Lemmon.

Produced and Directed by the incomparable Billy Wilder, it featured a fabulously inventive and witty script from the dynamite duo of Wilder and his long-time writing buddy L.A.L. Diamond. Check this out. Clive Revill (Nominated as Best Comedy Supporting Actor) is in the Hotel bus on route with Lemmon from the airport telling the busy executive of Armbruster Enterprises ... Read More:

Average Rating:

.

The Lost Weekend

starring: Ray Milland, Jane Wyman, Phillip Terry, Howard Da Silva, Doris Dowling
directed by: Billy Wilder

February 20, 2006
Ray Milland delivers his finest performance in this 1945 drama. Even over 60 years later, it remains believable, tense and hard-hitting. A must for all Jane Wyman fans, too.