Tuesday, August 4, 2026

The Apartment

By 1960, nearly twenty years into his career as a writer/director, Billy Wilder had made one unforgettable film after another. And yet, his latest effort might just be his best yet--it is, some say, the quintessential Wilder movie: The Apartment. But nothing's easy with Wilder, and making his groundbreaking comedy was no exception. Join our Patreon for episodes and content you won’t find anywhere else! Patreon.com/TheFilmographersPodcast Social media Instagram @thefilmographers Bluesky @thefilmographers.bsky.social Letterboxd @filmographers YouTube @TheFilmographersPodcast Website https://filmographerspodcast.com/ Credits Keir Graff & Michael Moreci, hosts Kevin Lau, producer Gompson, theme music Cosmo Graff, graphic design Time Stamps 1:32 – Mike’s one-sentence summary 1:59 – Origins of “The Apartment” 10:02 – Casting 20:33 – Production 35:26 – Plot summary 36:10 – What makes “The Apartment” so enduring? 45:42 – Why do we care about C. C. Baxter? 52:35 – Is this Wilder’s most sweet-tempered film? 58:01 – Is this Wilder’s most Jewish film? 1:04:43 – What do Wilder’s endings have in common? 1:10:17 – Release & reception 1:17:30 – Legacy 1:22:37 – Filmographers Five: Movies about Offices You Wouldn’t Want to Work In 1:23:27 – #5: “Playtime,” dir. by Jacques Tati (1967) 1:24:01 – #4: “Kafka,” dir. by Steven Soderbergh (1991) 1:24:28 – #3: “Sorry to Bother You,” dir. by Boots Riley (2018) 1:25:06 – #2: “Being John Malkovich,” dir. by Spike Jonze (1999) 1:25:43 – #1: “Glengarry Glen Ross,” dir. by James Foley (1992)