Billy Wilder: An
Enduring Legacy on DVD
Sabrina on DVD |
Stalag 17 on DVD |
Some Like It Hot on DVD |
Billy Wilder, one of the most consistently
successful director/writers to have worked in American film, died on March 28, 2002. He
was 95, so his demise was not exactly unanticipated. After all, he had spent the last two
decades of his life accepting what he caustically referred to as "catch them before
they croak" awards: a special tribute from the Cannes Film Festival in 1979 (The
Lost Weekend was awarded the first Palm D'or in 1945), the Writers Guild
Laurel Award in 1980, a tribute from the Film Society of Lincoln Center in 1982, the
American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award in 1986, and the Irving Thalberg Award of
the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1987. Wilder once remarked that he
would have traded any -- or all -- of them for a chance to have directed one more film.
It could be said that Wilder, through his lifetime output
of over 26 films, invented the hip, caustic, morally ambiguous America that later rejected
him after a few critical and box-office disappointments. Best known for his comedies --
which included Seven Year Itch, Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, and
the still under-appreciated farce One, Two, Three -- Wilder also wrote and directed
the quintessential American film melodrama, Sunset Blvd.; a charming romantic
comedy, Sabrina; a rousing tale of American prisoners of war, Stalag 17; the
harrowing The Lost Weekend; and the film that virtually defined film noire, Double
Indemnity.
Wilder fled his native Germany the day after the Reichstag
torching -- and he arrived in America with no knowledge of English other than popular song
titles. In a 1990 interview with Aljean Harmetz, he described his ambitious program to
turn himself into an American. He shunned the cafes and other immigrant hangouts in an
effort to immerse himself in English and made a point of learning 20 new words each day.
However, Wilder never took solo credit for any of his American scripts, preferring to work
with partners, including a stormy 12-year collaboration with Charles Brackett, who parted
ways with Wilder after Sunset Blvd. Wilder co-wrote Double Indemnity with
Raymond Chandler, who took an exceedingly strong dislike to him and wrote scathingly funny
accounts of their collaboration. In 1957, Wilder found his ideal writing partner, I. A.
Diamond, who worked with him on 12 films, including Some Like It Hot; One, Two,
Three; and The Fortune Cookie.
Wilder's films all feature great wit -- including some of
the most deliriously giddy dialogue ever filmed -- and complex characterizations. People
are never monochromatic in a Wilder film -- heroes have flaws and even the villains
contain surprises. Like Shakespeare, Wilder was fond of impersonations -- they feature
prominently in his films from the beginning: Five Graves to Cairo, The Major and
the Minor, and, of course, with stunning success in Some Like It Hot.
Surprisingly, many of Wilder's greatest successes remain
unavailable on DVD: Sunset Blvd.; The Seven Year Itch; One, Two, Three;
and Private Life of Sherlock Holmes all remain MIA. Itch is slated for a May
2002 release, and a collector's edition of Sunset Blvd. seems inevitable. One
wonders if One, Two, Three and Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, which have
always been under-appreciated, will make it to the silver disc, though. There was a fine
laserdisc of the 1961 James Cagney farce, but Holmes has never fared well. It was
meant to be a three-hour film and was slashed to two hours for its theatrical release. At
two hours, it seemed somewhat disjointed, and although Wilder's insights into the great
detective's psyche were intriguing, the plot seemed incomplete. A DVD restoring the
director's cut might be that much desired rarity: a director's cut that actually burnishes
a film's reputation.
As things stand, there are some superb Wilder DVDs
available. MGM's special edition Some Like It Hot is about as close to perfection
as you can get. The picture is brilliant, of course, pairing a Wilder/Diamond script with
a spectacular cast. The telecine and audio transfers are pristine. Don't even waste time
thinking abut it -- just add it to your collection immediately.
Stalag 17 hasn't been given the star treatment yet
and that's a pity. I suspect there's a lot more detail in the black & white
cinematography than Paramount's transfer reveals. Still, picture and sound are better than
passable in this 1999 release. The story is a cracker -- William Holden's cynical
self-promoter is suspected of spying by his wisecracking and lovable fellow prisoners.
Does the fact that he's so forward about looking out for #1 mean he's a traitor?
Double Indemnity is another superlative DVD
transfer. It's thoroughly modern in its sensibility, so it hasn't really aged a bit -- and
Stanwicke, MacMurray (playing a sleazy insurance agent against type) and Edward G.
Robinson all turn in spectacular performances. Wilder and Chandler may not have enjoyed
their collaboration, but the script is taut and plausible. A winner.
Sabrina is far more charming than the critics ever
acknowledged. Don't judge it by the mawkish Harrison Ford remake -- go for the original,
which actually has quite a keen eye/ear for the subtleties of America's unspoken-of caste
system. It's the perfect date movie for the post-modern couple who distrust sentimentality
that lacks subtlety.
I may be in the minority, but I have never found The
Apartment to be among Wilder's finest. It has a fine cast and reasonably snappy
dialogue, but the smarmy 'Sixties attitudes about sex and adultery just don't seem
believable any more. I suspect that executives then, as now, would have no trouble
arranging for their companies to pay for their love nests -- why impose upon your schnooky
employees when the Plaza has fresh sheets and room service? I'll pass -- you might feel
differently if you're a Jack Lemmon completist or a sucker for Shirley MacLaine.
But the biggest surprise for the Wilder neophyte might be The
Lost Weekend. It was almost too frank for Paramount, which contemplated pulling the
picture from release when they saw what Wilder had wrought. Good thing they stuck by it --
it collected four Oscars at the Academy Awards, including one for Milland, who revealed
unsuspected grittiness in his portrayal of a drunk who hits rock bottom over the Yom
Kippur weekend (Wilder collected the other three, for Best Screenplay, Best Picture, and
Best Director). The story holds up well and the transfer is actually very good.
Despite all of his successes -- and even the frustrations
of his last years -- Wilder never took himself too seriously. He categorically rejected
the title auteur, for example. He claimed his goal as a director was simply to
prevent audiences from going to sleep. Maybe so, but his true success was in giving the
world wonderful dreams it could experience while remaining awake.
...Wes Phillips
wes@onhometheater.com
|
