#950: WILDER, Billy: Some Like It Hot (1959)

WILDER, Billy (United States)
Some Like It Hot [1959]
Spine #950
Blu-ray


One of the most beloved films of all time, this sizzling masterpiece by Billy Wilder set a new standard for Hollywood comedy. After witnessing a mob hit, Chicago musicians Joe and Jerry (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, in landmark performances) skip town by donning drag and joining an all-female band en route to Miami. The charm of the group's singer, Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe, at the height of her bombshell powers) leads them ever further into extravagant lies, as Joe assumes the persona of a millionaire to woo her and Jerry's female alter ego winds up engaged to a tycoon. With a whip-smart script by Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond, and sparking chemistry among its finely tuned cast, Some Like It Hot is as deliriously funny and fresh today as it was when it first knocked audiences out six decades ago.

121 minutes
Black & White
Monaural
1:85:1 aspect ratio
Criterion Release 2018
Director/Writers


Suggested by a story by Robert Thoeren and Michael Logan.
Screenplay by Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond.
Wilder was 53 when he directed Some Like It Hot.

Other Wilder films in the Collection:

#1126: Double Indemnity (1944)
#396: Ace In The Hole (1951)

The Film

Film Rating (0-60):

60

The Extras

The Booklet

Twelve-page wraparound featuring an essay by author Sam Wasson.

Commentary

From 1989 featuring film scholar Howard Suber.

Short program

On Orry-Kelly’s costumes for the film, featuring costume designer and historian Deborah Nadoolman Landis and costume historian and archivist Larry McQueen.

Documentaries

Three behind-the-scenes.

Appearances

By director Wilder on The Dick Cavett Show from 1982.

Conversation

From 2001 between actor Curtis and film critic Leonard Maltin.

French television interview

From 1988 with actor Lemmon.

Radio interview

From 1955 with actor Monroe.

Trailer

Extras Rating (0-40):

39

60 + 39 =

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