"Some Like it Hot" (1959)

Rank on the AFI List: #22

WHAT I ALREADY KNEW ABOUT THE MOVIE:
Two musicians witness a mob hit and run away disguised as women in a female band.

LET ME EXPLAIN...
This was the first movie I saw with Marilyn Monroe in it. This was also the first movie I saw with a YOUNG Jack Lemmon. AND this movie is ranked as the #1 comedy in American film history (according to the AFI Comedy List from 2000).

Despite (or maybe because of) the fact that this movie is ranked as AFI's #1 greatest comedy, I had reservations. The reason being that the comedies I've already seen on the AFI Top Movies list ("Annie Hall" and "Dr. Strangelove") aren't in my personal Top 10 Comedies list. While still good movies with original comic elements, I just didn't laugh as much as I was hoping I was going to. Watching "Some Like it Hot" ended up being a similar experience for me.

I would describe this movie not so much as a "funny movie", but more like "it has funny parts". But let me just say, those "funny parts" were often flippin' hilarious! There are some lines in this movie that were so funny my wife and I wished we had a paper and pen and wrote them down as we watched. And other funny parts (I can think of Tony Curtis driving backwards in the boat as one I particularly thought was funny) made this movie enjoyable. But like I said, it wasn't funny enough to me that I would consider it one of my favorite comedies.

What makes this a "Top 100" Movie?
Another question should also be addressed: why is this considered the #1 comedy of all time? And my guess would be because of some possible ground-breaking elements. For a movie from the 1950s, there was a LOT of sexual humor, which I would imagine was probably pretty risque back then. And I wonder if this was the first cross-dressing comedy ever made (or at least made well). And let's face it, guys dressed up as girls, trying to act "lady-like" but usually doing so very badly (or doing so a little too well), all while getting hit on by older men is just plain funny. I wouldn't be surprised if this movie was the #1 Comedy of all time because it was the first film to base its entire plot around that gem of a comic idea.

Not really a complaint, but...
I was under the impression that Marilyn Monroe was going to be a seductress-type character with a throaty, raspy voice (my pre-conceived notion about what Marilyn Monroe was like). What she turned out to be was ditzy eye candy who was the quintessential "dumb blonde". To get a better idea of just how she is in this movie, my wife came up with a good comparison: think of characters Jessica Simpson plays, but in the 1950s.

LET ME SUM UP...
This movie has some VERY funny moments, and if those moments would have been a little more consistent for my taste, I would give "Some Like it Hot" a higher rating. But don't get me wrong, I did enjoy this movie and wouldn't mind watching it again. It may even be one of those movies that need to be watched more than once to really appreciate how good it is.

MY RATING: 6/10

TOTAL # OF FILMS WATCHED: 51