Billy Wilder's classic comedy The Seven Year Itch is a total sex farce, however there is no sex in it whatsoever. The Seven Year Itch blew the lid off of 1950's stodgy conservatism, shocked audiences with its irrereverant view of marital infidelity and showcased the late, great Marilyn Monroe in her most sexually suggestive role to date (at the time the film was released).
Of course, the premise of the story is simple (without giving too much away). A married man is alone for the summer while his wife and son are off on vacation and is "tempted" (for lack of a better word) by his voluptuous upstairs neighbor. Hijinks and hilarity ensue when Richard Sherman discovers that he, himself is the victim of none other than the infamous Seven Year Itch!
I think that the greatest thing that this film has going for it is the interplay between its stars, Marilyn Monroe and Tommy Ewell. Of course, Marilyn is her normal self in this one and gives yet another trademark performance, but this one however transcends the boundaries of just a "normal" role and shoots her star into the celluloid heavens where it remains to this day. If Gentlemen Prefer Blondes made her a star then the Seven Year Itch just confirmed it and allowed her star to shine even brighter than ever before. In this film, Marilyn plays the role of "the Girl", someone who is never named but who plays the role of the "innocent" girl next door to the hilt, but has a touch of tempstress within her still.
What's so funny about this film is the mannerisms in which it gets played. They're always a tad to the extreme but seem never to get taken over the top too much. As always with a Billy Wilder script, the dialog crackles with certain one-liners ("Rachmaninov makes me goose-pimply all over") and an impeccable writing style that only Wilder was able to pull off.
In closing, this was THE film with the now-famous/trademark subway grate scene which was the impetus for Marilyn and Joe DiMaggio's divorce. Some people have said it was inevitable, but as Marily herself had said once "they're not in love with Norma Jean, they're in love with her(Marilyn Monroe)." And we as an audience still are...over fifty years later!
It's true what they say...some things DO improve with age.
My rating: 3 stars
Of course, the premise of the story is simple (without giving too much away). A married man is alone for the summer while his wife and son are off on vacation and is "tempted" (for lack of a better word) by his voluptuous upstairs neighbor. Hijinks and hilarity ensue when Richard Sherman discovers that he, himself is the victim of none other than the infamous Seven Year Itch!
I think that the greatest thing that this film has going for it is the interplay between its stars, Marilyn Monroe and Tommy Ewell. Of course, Marilyn is her normal self in this one and gives yet another trademark performance, but this one however transcends the boundaries of just a "normal" role and shoots her star into the celluloid heavens where it remains to this day. If Gentlemen Prefer Blondes made her a star then the Seven Year Itch just confirmed it and allowed her star to shine even brighter than ever before. In this film, Marilyn plays the role of "the Girl", someone who is never named but who plays the role of the "innocent" girl next door to the hilt, but has a touch of tempstress within her still.
What's so funny about this film is the mannerisms in which it gets played. They're always a tad to the extreme but seem never to get taken over the top too much. As always with a Billy Wilder script, the dialog crackles with certain one-liners ("Rachmaninov makes me goose-pimply all over") and an impeccable writing style that only Wilder was able to pull off.
In closing, this was THE film with the now-famous/trademark subway grate scene which was the impetus for Marilyn and Joe DiMaggio's divorce. Some people have said it was inevitable, but as Marily herself had said once "they're not in love with Norma Jean, they're in love with her(Marilyn Monroe)." And we as an audience still are...over fifty years later!
It's true what they say...some things DO improve with age.
My rating: 3 stars