I drew the above after watching Billy Wilder's 1960 film The Apartment for the 9 billionth time. Despite what my efforts may indicate, the film is not a B movie horror about a sex pest with no peripheral vision who is murdered in an elevator by faceless ghouls, rather it is satire cum romantic comedy in which office drone CC Baxter - played by the late, great Jack Lemmon- advances up the corporate ladder by allowing his superiors to use his apartment to have it away with ladies who are very definitely not their wives. Hilarity ensues when his CEO makes use of this set up to get his sleaze on with the lady of Baxter's dreams, the very lovely Miss Kubelik, as played by the very lovely Shirley MacLaine.
Despite a lot of the references now being dated beyond belief (elevator girls/typing pools/Noo Yoik taxi drivers referring to people as "Mac") the film still feels relevant, given that it's essentially about allowing yourself to be debased in a soul crushing job in order to get on in life, which last I checked was still a thing. It's hardly an obscure film - it usually crops up in those 100 greatest films ever lists that are periodically published, but going off my own experience it's one that's passed a lot of people by and tends not to be talked about a lot, so I'm talking about it now. Think of it as an analogue version of Mike Judge's Office Space, only with better leads and no scene where three guys go gangsta on a photocopier. It is my very favourite film and if you haven't already seen it then I would highly recommend you do so
We celebrated me dad's 60th over the weekend. Among other thing we got him giant helium filled balloons in the shape of a 6 and an 0. We will now hold onto them till they can be re-utilised when his 90th rolls round. Next week me and the missus are off up the lake district. I'll bring you all some kendal mint cake back
Love and fishes
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