Some Like It Hot

Release Year: 1959

Director: Billy Wilder

Review: A screwball romantic comedy which serves more to show the comedic talents of the two stars then anything else.  Set in the prohibition era, two struggling musicians, played by Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, accidentally witness a mob massacre.  To escape the mob, and to make some money, the duo take the only way out of town, cross dressing and taking a job in an all female band, where one of them inevitably falls in love with the singer named Sugar(Marilyn Monroe).    Directed by Billy Wilder, 'Some Like It Hot' is still manages to be funny and provocative today, fifty years later.
 
At the core of why this movie is still endearing are the rich performances.  Curtis and Lemmon are so natural, slipping in and out of their woman roles that its almost off putting.  They manage to be sincere, while always hysterical.  Helping in the comedy department is a great comedic performance by Joe E. Brown, playing the part of a desperate millionaire.  Every time he is on screen he steals the spotlight with his goofy persona.  Marilyn Monroe really makes the film however.  Above all else, this is a sex comedy.  You can't help but be mesmerized by Monroe every time she is on screen.  She's appealing today as she was when the movie was released.  Every scene she is in she is captivating and holds this screwball comedy together with her seductive performance.  There are some holes in the film.  The entire mob plot seemed completely unnecessary and really brought the film down whenever it focused on it.  Also, being a screwball the slapstick humor could be a bit thick at times, inciting more than a few groans.  Despite this, it remains a funny, lighthearted film, full of fantastic character acting.
Rating: 4/5