That's the way it crumbles, cookie-wise

I just watched The Apartment, directed by Billy Wilder, for the first time since film class back at Kenyon. I think I'm on a bit of an early 1960s kick, between this and Mad Men. The Apartment covers some similar ground but in a warmer, but not sentimental, way: workplace alienation, infidelity, the power imbalance between a young woman working as a secretary or elevator operator and the more successful, less emotionally involved guy with a wood-paneled office.

Billy Wilder's dialogue always impresses me afresh, and it's hard to believe he was not a native English speaker. He pairs beautifully with I.A.L. Diamond here, and together they walk a fine line between comedy and tragedy, being touching without getting maudlin. One of my all-time favorite movies.