THE WRITER’S EYE

THE WRITER’S EYE

Watching The Classics From A Different Point View

Recipe for a classic comedy:

1 raffish sax-playing Casanova

1 second banana who plays bass fiddle

1 sexy woman with bad taste in men

The seasoning: Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, Marilyn Monroe, and great character actors like Pat O’Brien, George Raft, Joe E. Brown, and Nehemiah Persoff

It’s the 1920s, and Joe and Jerry (Tony and Jack respectively) are seedy musicians desperate for work. When they witness a mob hit in a garage, they’re desperate to get out of town. They need a gig, but the only one hiring is an all-girl orchestra bound for Florida. Enter Josephine and Daphne, our heroes in drag. They make it to the train station, and just as they board, Josephine catches sight of Sugar Kane Kowalczyk (Marilyn), and he’s immediately in lust with the curvaceous, gorgeous woman. Shenanigans ensue on the overnight train to Florida with Joe doing his best to get Sugar alone, though he knows he can’t reveal himself.

In Florida, Joe appropriates the baggage of the band manager and then masquerades as a Standard Oil heir to win Sugar’s heart. She’s through with poor musicians, you see. Adopting a hilarious Cary Grant accent, Tony commences wooing.

Unfortunately for our heroines (heroes?) the mob shows up for the meeting between two gangs. What will they do? It’s funny, suspenseful, and surprisingly tender at times.

What can a writer learn by watching this film?

First, there’s the physical comedy, like a man in drag stumbling in high heels. It reveals Jerry’s character completely. He’s a bumbler and slow on the uptake, while Joe, the sharp operator, is fine. Second, there’s the way the screenwriters, including the director, the great Billy Wilder, limn character through dialogue and action. There’s no finer master of this than Wilder, six-time Oscar winner with an additional fifteen nominations. If your ambition is to write screenplays, this one has it all.