Some Like It Hot (1959)

Blazing into the senses like a hurricane of film-making joy, Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot is the magic that appears when the right cast meets the right script meets the right director at the right time. As if the universe suddenly decided to take Murphy's Law out of the equation, replacing him with his cousin Chaos Theory as a substitute for the job. Only, instead of raining on the parade, said relative happened to be in a phenomenally good mood, aligning all what could be aligned in favor of Wilder's brainchild. Oh yes, this film is quite the little miracle. Brisk and bananas from the get-go, this is a highly energized comedy rush that hits the ground running. Comparable to releasing a couple of gerbils from their cage, who have been drinking excessive amounts of Red Bull all morning and are now dying to make the most of their freedom. Except, they're not gerbils, but two dame-crazy musicians named Joe and Jerry. Kinetically played by Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon (the latter of which drew my memory towards Jim Carrey in his prime), their outlandish adventure begins with quite the nasty bit of business, as they become the witnesses of a gangland massacre by notorious mob boss Spats Columbo. A carnage which is actually founded in a real-life incident involving Al Capone and two rivaling criminal gangs in 1929 Chicago. Feeling the heat and not keen on moving to a permanent address six feet under, they grab the only wise option available (read: escape plan) and join up with an all-female band on their way to a gig in Florida. There's just one little catch: the band is expecting two gals and thus they have no choice but to cross-dress as the fictitious broads Josephine and Daphne. An incognito undertaking which sees further complications when they both are smitten by the spellbinding charms of the voluptuously sexy (and self-admittedly not-too-bright) Sugar Kane Kowalczyk, an ukulele player and hot little number played by Marilyn Monroe. And really, who can blame them for braving the risks of becoming diabetic. A classic bombshell if there ever were one. Well arrived in the Sunshine State, troubles heap up to even greater extents, as the hotel where the band is staying is later used as a rendezvous point by Spats and other crime lords. To make matters worse (if not to say more hilarious), Jerry has become subject to the flirty advances of Osgood Fielding III, a love-struck old millionaire, who despite Jerry's best efforts is completely oblivious to his rejections. Even at the very end when Jerry exposes himself as a man, the delightfully hopeless Osgood simply responds by saying "nobody's perfect". You also gotta give credit to a screenplay that produces laughs aplenty, without ever resorting to profanity or the type of vulgar humor that has become the norm on the modern comedy scene (albeit that has its charms too within the right context). Younger generations may find it hard to believe that there even was such a time, but surely we would never have had gems like Tootsie and Mrs. Doubtfire if this film hadn't set the pace. A side-splitting, kooky and wildly entertaining classic, whose long-enduring status as a masterwork of comedy, I can now cheerfully get behind. So spin that bass and let the good times roll, for this movie is a diamond and as we all very well know, diamonds are worth their weight in gold. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mikes-Movie-Reviews/281824101875153?ref=hl