The Apartment / Bunnahabhain 12

0:00 In 1960 director, Billy Wilder and star Jack Lemmon gave the world a peek into the sleazy world of high class. Manhattan in 2021. We return to the Ila region for a single malt. Scotch the film is the apartment. The whiskey is banana hovind 12 and we'll review them both. This is the film and whiskey podcast. Welcome to the film and whiskey podcast, where each week, we review a classic movie and a glass of whiskey. I'm Bob book, I'm Brad G and this week we are looking at the 1960 Best Picture Winner, Billy Wilder's, the apartment Brad. I have been waiting to talk.

1:00 About this movie for years. And I purposely did not put it in our first few seasons because I you're still a wild card, man. You're such a wild card. I never know what you're going to think of a movie. The way you said that have you just like never spoken of this movie a single time. You've just like watched it and know I've a kylin I've just been running on the journal, your thoughts. I've been running down the street just like shaking people and say have you seen it? Have you seen the other are not know. Honestly Brad this is Is this is one of my favorite films of all time and watching it again. I you know, I haven't washed it since we started doing the podcast because I wanted to wait and watch it with the more critical eye. Again, I can't wait to get into talking about it. I sincerely hope you liked it, but before we get into any of those questions, the most important question, Brad, had you seen had you heard of the movie, the apartment prior to watching it for our podcast, Bro? You've got me on two weeks in a row of movies that I'd never even heard of, man.

1:58 You know, I'm kind of surprised you. I heard of this one especially since you have been such a big fan of the to Billy Wilder movies that we've done to this point. I thought maybe you would have gone and looked kind of looked through his filmography at some point but bro, know if we win I'm taking minimal effort some sort of cinephile, Didi's, get degrees. That's dude, I gotta say man, is we got the same piece of papers. That's right. All right, so you had not even heard of the apartment. I'm really glad that you went into this kind of old and I am waiting with baited breath to hear what you thought of it. Brad, why don't you just give us kind of initial Impressions on the movie? What do you think of it? I, you know, if All About Eve is one of the most underwhelming Best Picture winners ever.

2:44 I would have to put the apartment in, probably, like, I don't know the top 20 to 30 percent of Best Picture winners, I've ever seen. There you go, like it's solid. I like, I can 100% understand why this Back best picture. You know, I think if you put it up against some of the other greats, it would, it would clearly lose. But in the year where, you know, obviously I don't know what the heck was going on in cinema in 1960, but in a year where there weren't any other like, massive contenders, this is just I think it's just one of the best films comedic dramas I've ever seen in my life and more emphasis on the drama.

3:25 You know the comedic elements. Just barely lighten it up enough to make it almost feel like real life. Yeah. More than like a drama. Does that make sense? Absolutely. And Brad I would, I don't want to correct you right off the bat here. But you did have some idea of what was going on in cinema, in the year 1960, because you and I watched Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho just last season and that was the other, you know, kind of really big popular controversial movie that came out in the year 1960. So, you know, this is better than psycho. Just looking at those two movies side-by-side, I really do think that this might be kind of an underrated Needed year for Cinema, in terms of really kind of pushing the medium forward. And talking about things that hadn't been talked about, you know, just from Some Like It Hot to this movie, I feel like Billy Wilder, really took a deep dive into some themes that you, you just didn't see explored in mainstream entertainment in that time period. Yeah, I mean you're jumping in here with like really heavy themes of infidelity of suicide of a man trying to On his way to the top, I guess.

4:32 And you just see all these things, kind of crashing into one another, you know, all in order to tell a simple love story. But I just can't imagine this coming out in 1960. Honestly, Bob, as I was watching this, I had two main thoughts and I'll get to the second one eventually. But my first, main thought was this, if you have ever watched the TV show, Mad Men, the entire show was based off of this movie. But have you ever watched mad I have? Yeah, yeah I mean tell me that I'm wrong. No, I will show was based off the whole vibe is just it's right here. The blueprint was laid. Yeah. And so I think that what you see here is, I don't want to call it like an expose but I think that what Wilder was doing was just this criticism of like men who are in power and think that they can get whatever they want and he did that by putting this unassuming nice guy kind of a guy. Against them.

5:30 And in the end, the nice guy wins. Yeah. And he's not a sleaze ball, and he gets the girl, and it's just a really cute unique and surprisingly deep film. Well, before we get any further Brad, because my sneaking suspicion will be that, not many people will have seen this movie coming into listening to this episode, and I already would wholeheartedly say, go watch this movie, you will not be disappointed. I think this is the kind of movie even like you said, Brad that you may not I come away from it, loving it, as much as I do, where I'm ranking it in like my top 10 favorite movies ever. But I don't really know of anyone that would watch this movie and walk away. Not having been entertained.

6:12 This just seems like a crowd-pleasing kind of movie. Yeah. I, you know, for a movie that deals with like, incredibly deep subjects and honestly is almost gratuitous in the way that it shows it for 4 1960, you know, which really I would say for 1950s Cinema like Like I would say this is one of the more entertaining films we watched in a while. Yeah, well I mean like now it's 61 years old and I feel like some of these scenes especially, I mean truly hold up in 2021 and we'll get to a pretty harrowing sequence later on but it reminded me of a movie that is more recent and I think actually this movie may have done it better but before we get into all that it is time for us to talk. Brad explains.

6:56 This is the part of the podcast, where Brad breaks down the plot of the movie that he Is just seen often for the first time. Obviously that is the case today. Brad. As you know, we have implemented, a strict 60-second timer on Brad explains this year. Can you walk us through the plot of the movie, the apartment in under one minute? Jack Lemmon is a nice guy. Fred MacMurray is Shirley MacLaine is in love with the and he'd ruins her life. She tried to commit suicide. Jack, Lemmon saves her. They fall in love. Whoo! Ooh, all right, you did it in 15 seconds. Now I'm gonna, I'm gonna require you to go a bit deeper because because the one of the big parts of this movie is the kind of like you said, I don't want to expose, or even satire, but the portrayal of corporate America in the late 1950s early 60s.

7:50 Like, I don't think you can really talk about this movie without talking about the endless rows and rows of desks on this floor, that, that Jack Clemons character Baxter. Works on like the idea of corporate America, and these upper level Executives who think they're entitled to everything really kind of permeates the whole movie. Oh yeah. No II called him a. I thought we all knew that that was just like code for Corporate America and America. Yeah, right on, man. Absolutely, no. I honestly, I think that it, I don't know it as somebody in 2021 watching this film. I feel like it's almost just taken for granted that like High-powered businesses business executives are just like either like average to terrible people. Like I don't know if there's any of them that are really that good.

8:40 And so there's already such a distrust of corporate America on the average citizens end that I do feel like it dulls the edge of this movie a little bit, but I can appreciate the fact that this is probably one of the first like honest attempts at saying, hey, like this isn't okay. Like all of these people who are working in this company are real people and just because you guys can go and have your Lover's tryst at this dude's apartment because he's a bachelor, doesn't make him worth promoting. It doesn't make you guys get P. Like it's just all bad. All bad all around Brad. As always. You continue to be incredibly eloquent. It bad all bad.

9:24 It's bad for you bad. All right it's okay. I do want to jump in here and kind of Round out, Brad explains a little bit. So the the essential plot of the movie is that Jack. Lemons character Baxter is kind of a lower level employee working for this giant Insurance firm in New York City and he is climbing the corporate ladder by allowing his superiors. And people in Administration, in this building, to use his apartment to have affairs in. He is lending out his key. And what I really love about the place that the movie starts Brad, is that you can tell from the Beginning of this movie that we are coming into this situation when it's already spiraling out of control, you know what I mean? Like we don't see the first time Jack Lemmon kind of gives his apartment over to somebody.

10:11 We don't see that slippery slope, we see Jack Lemmon, you know, even though the opening narration where he's talking about how his apartment, so, great for a bachelor and you sound, so chipper, but the way they're framing it with the camera, is this, incredibly lonely? Like there's just an expanse around him and Jack Lemon is just walking down the street with no one around him and you can tell that he is already feeling this intense loneliness and regret for what he's doing with his apartment to the point where, you know, he's basically been kicked out of his own apartment because his boss needs to you know have an affair and he ends up sleeping on a park bench. And I really liked that Wilder allows us as the audience to be dropped right into that situation when it's already falling apart and not have to feel like he needs to walk.

10:59 Us through and give us, you know, tip us off at every instance like oh, this is bad. You can just tell from the beginning. This guy is in over his head. One might say that he drops us and media rests. That's very true. Boom. Brad learned a Latin phrase today. Hey man, I learned that like a while ago. Now, I love one of my favorite Parts about the opening and ending of this film. I, I love whenever a movie bookends things, right? Yeah. And I love that at the start of this film, you see, Jack Lemmon get the wrong key. You know, the dude leaves the wrong key and it's actually the key to the executive washroom but like he gets this key and it's almost like a symbol of like, well one day I'll have this key and it won't just be accidentally left underneath, you know, my carpet.

11:47 And at the end of the film, what happens? He gives him the key to the executive washroom back so that he can win his love. Yeah. And I just I loved how they bookended this movie with that, you know, kind of Plot device if you will, Brad, I feel like we are slowly, revealing tidbits of information, about this film to our listeners. And I feel like we should probably just go ahead and completely spoil the whole thing. You know, we do spoilers on this podcast. So, if we haven't already given away enough, we're going to go ahead and just give the whole thing away here. Jack Lemmon is kind of secretly pining for has a crush on the elevator girl played by Shirley MacLaine. Her name is Miss kubelik and unbeknownst to Jack. Lemmon one of the most senior Executives in the building, the guy who's in charge of personnel. Essentially, the HR, you know, vice president of this company is having an affair with Miss cubic and you come to find it out about halfway through the movie. It all kind of clicks into place for Baxter and the second half of the movie is him dealing with the Fallout of before black of a better term, you know, aiding and abetting this affair not just you know the Fallout for himself and his emotions but Fallout in terms of what's happening with with Fran, Miss kubelik internally and by the end of the film, you know, he does he quits the job.

13:08 He gets the girl like everything gets patched up but Brad you even texted me at one point today and said you were about halfway through the movie and you were right at the scene that I think is maybe the most crucial and pivotal scene of the whole movie and what happens is Jack Lemmon allows his boss to use the apartment for an affair. He finds a little pocket mirror that That has been left behind and he returns it to his boss. Sheldrake played by Fred MacMurray, and a few days after that they're having the office Christmas party. And he shows miscue Bullock his brand new office because he keeps getting promoted miraculously and he's saying a look at this incredible office that I have.

13:48 And she pulls out this pocket mirror and he recognizes that it's hers because it's cracked down the middle and it all clicks into place for him. He didn't know that she was the one that his boss was. Affair with. She doesn't know that he is the one whose apartment she was in. Yeah, I mean, what we're talking about here, Bob is just an amazing script, right? And, you know, they're talking and he's shown her his office and he sees this and he kind of, you can see his entire tone shift, you know, which once again, one of the signs of a great actor, is their ability to move, like, facially from one emotion to the other. And you see him like, like, Almost audibly shift in this tone to like, sadness and realization.

14:34 And she kind of asked him. What's wrong? And he tries to catch himself. He goes, oh well, your mirror. It's broken and she goes. Yes, I know. I like it that way, makes me look the way I feel, and it's just little moments like that throughout this film that like, they're not funny. They're like, they're dramatic, like, obviously Wilder is known for his comedy and, you know, something like Could hot. It just cuts to the core. You see the depth of sadness in Franz heart and in her self-image and in her understanding of who she is. And you just feel that desire that Jack Lemmon has to like figure out what the heck is going.

15:16 Absolutely and and you feel these two different people having two different tensions, right? Because Fran is finding out that her lover and boss is actually just a Serial you know, romanticize Iran has had Add tons of flings and Baxter is finding out that his Crush has been taken in by an older sleaze ball and neither of them know what to do about it. And they awkwardly, leave the room and it just it's just pitch. Perfect. Best scene of the film. You know, I want to touch on a couple things that you said, Brad Pitt. The first thing that keeps coming to my mind is the way that Billy Wilder draws out and really makes clear to the audience, the kind of pervading sense of loneliness in this V and I talked about it with Baxter a little bit. Obviously Fran played by Shirley MacLaine is feeling it as well, but I think that everything in this movie really highlights, the the fact that these are two very lonely people and that by the time that you get to like that big office party scene, he has done such a good job of establishing their motivations that you notice the contrast between everybody outside of Baxter's do off.

16:29 His door who are having this like raucous, debaucherous party. And the fact that these two people can be standing right next to that and they, and they are still so profoundly alone. I think that Scorsese might have something to say about, you know, that looking like a debaucherous party because for him, this is like the most tame thing. That's very true spread. That's very true. I would like to see this mashed up with Wolf of Wall Street, somehow I was going to say that's an easy easy man. Nothing you could do. Yeah, Brett. I mean I just I was really struck by the cinematography in this movie and it was shot in black and white on purpose at a time when most movies were being shot in color. I think it really does kind of continue to highlight. Like I said, the loneliness of these characters, they went super wide with the widescreen and I think that was intentional as well.

17:20 I don't know. Brad. Did you find that the photography, you know, the cinematography stuck out to you? I think one of my favorite scenes was literally the very opening one when you you see Baxter working and then you slowly cut from one scene of him and everybody bustling around him to him by himself with empty row after row after row. Like obviously a lot of different movies have used that trick of the Mindless drone and you show you know, row after row of secretaries working or like assembly workers at a factory and you just, you know, show them mindlessly working. But I feel like this was one of the most beautiful ones because it homes Deeply in on Jack Lemmon and just his predicament in life of being a nobody and Brad. I think that we should talk about the three main performances in this movie and since we're already talking about Jack Lemmon let's dive into his performance. Here I have to say Jack Lemmon is one of my favorite actors of all time and and part of that is because for as incredible of an actor is he is he always seems authentically Jack Lemmon I don't know how else to phrase it, it's kind of like Like Tom Hanks where, you know, you will suspend disbelief to watch him be, you know, Captain Sully or Captain Phillips or whoever it might be in these movies that you're watching but at the end of the day you you trust him, you know, him because he is Tom Hanks and you you know, you have this attachment to him. And with Jack Lemmon by all accounts, he was as authentic of a person in real life as he was,

18:55 you know, playing a character like Baxter and I think that that authenticity A city that earnestness really really helps him here in this performance. Please miss cubic, you gotta promise me. You won't do anything foolish, who care? I would I can't I ever fall in love with somebody nice like you Yeah. Well that's the way crumbles cookie wise Yeah, I mean I think that, you know, we talked we mentioned the script for a minute here that this is like a really witty and sharp script but I don't think that it would go anywhere if it wasn't for the performance of Jack Lemmon like and there's so many little moments throughout the film. But like when he was in his bathroom after Shirley MacLaine has attempted suicide and you see him slowly like grabbing things that she could try and kill herself with. And like hiding them and you see him keep looking back into the room with care and you just feel the seriousness of the situation, you know?

20:04 And as somebody who has had friends, who have desired to commit suicide and have attempted like, for me in that moment watching him, I like, I understood him. Yeah, understood that motivation of. I just want to care for my friend, and I think that's one of the most important things in this movie is that, is that backs. Really views Fran as a friend and potential love interest and it's not just a love interest. I don't know. Did you get that sense? Yeah, for sure. And Jack Lemmon is one of the few actors that I think can really go from being kind of this lovable. I don't as a clown but you know, there are moments where he's being goofball goofball.

20:46 Yeah I mean but there are moments where he's being very performative even for the people in the movie like when he's trying to cheer up Shirley MacLaine and he's cooking spaghetti and straining. Get through a tennis racket and you know humming a fake little Italian song. And then there's moments where you know, you watch him in just this state of despondency where he's drinking himself into a stupor in a bar and it's all completely believable. And even from one scene, to the net, like, you know, that scene where he's in the office with Fran cubic and he finds the mirror or, you know, she pulls out the mirror, right before that. He decides he wants to model this dumb hat that he got for himself and it's like It's the best little sight gag in the whole movie because the hat looks horrible, and he stands there with his bowler on his head and he holds it for a beat and she's clearly not into it because she's thinking about how heartbroken she is.

21:39 And it really highlights, not just how Billy Wilder is able to balance, you know, the comedy in the tragedy. So, so effortlessly, but like you said how much he had to rely on Jack, Lemmon to make those transitions so seamless. Well, I think the best way to To illustrate, this is to contrast it with Some Like It. Hot like the beauty of Some Like, It Hot, is that the comedy steers? Like it just veers right into the Absurd, right? It's just over the top and ridiculous and you have Jack Lemmon at the height of his powers just being flat-out. Funny. And the difference of this movie is that his comedy is always grounded in reality, like tell me that you couldn't imagine some Bachelor using a tennis racket to strain his Getty like it's 100% believable and the way he does, it is charming and relaxed.

22:31 And you can feel this sense of like, oh, well, like I'm in my element. I'm in my home. I'm caring for a woman that I see as a friend. And as somebody, I kind of like, and I just everything about his performance, kept the core of the movie, which is this drama of, you know, Fran and her desire to find love their everything about His performance keeps that feeling real and if he had veered into the Absurd at all, you know, which credit to Billy Wilder for directing him. Well, that, if he had gone over the top in an instant, I think it would have discredited the entire, like core of the film. Yeah.

23:12 And countering him, you know, are balancing him out. I guess in some ways, is Shirley MacLaine as Fran, she is 26 years old, in this movie, she's only been acting in movies for five years. At this point, she is kind of A really quickly ascending star in Hollywood and watching this movie, this time, Brad, I've probably seen this movie 10 times through. I have always always been blown away by Jack, Lemmon watching it this time I was like how did I miss how incredible she is in this movie? Because she is acting in such a naturalistic way that I forgot at many points of the movie that I was watching someone pretend to be be somebody else. She's so perfectly embodies this heartbroken depressed person and every single line reading that she does is so authentic and not only that but she knows to not be showy about any of it and she knows that, you know, Jack Lemmon has the these sillier more showy performance in this movie and so she has to balance him out by being a little more subdued and Sadly, it's not the kind of performance that you really take note of, unless you have seen the movie a few times, I feel like and this time through I'm thinking to myself my gosh this might be one of the best female performances I've ever seen in a movie and I have been overlooking it all these years. I just walked out of me, quit

24:45 through that, big fat, John right in my face. The nerve. Anyway. I guess that's the way it crumbles. Cookie wise. Are you talking about? I'd spell it out for you only, I can't spell well, you know that was Bob. It's the fact that in a time where it feels like every single movie was trying to make their female leads a Marilyn Monroe, you know?

25:28 And I say this with all respect because I actually really like, Marilyn Monroe in her movies but they are trying to make their leads ditzy and dumb and not only their leads, but I feel like women were portrayed in a pretty terrible way in general as being just Ridiculously stupid and unaware of men's intentions with them and just buying any lie that they were fed, I think that Shirley MacLaine in this film, portrays a more real woman who was caught up in the lies of a manipulative just jerk. And you get the sense that she's a real girl. You don't ever get the sense that she is faking. Anyway.

26:09 And I honestly Bob, I've talked about this before on the podcast, Authenticity. I think that's what you're looking for in a lot of different films and in this one you have two characters that just come across so perfectly authentic of being who they are going to be Shirley MacLaine knocks it, out of the freaking Park in this movie. And I really think one of my favorite scenes for her is the very final one, where she comes into Jack Clemons apartment and just matter-of-factly starts playing gin rummy, hmm. And like She's she's kind of playing Coy kind of playing hard-to-get even though he knows for 100% that he has her and when she doesn't answer him when he says that I love you, it's just this like fun playful little acknowledgement of like, yeah, I know you love me. Let's play some Gin Rummy.

26:59 It's just it's just perfect. Yeah, I mean I was watching little moments like when sheldrake her boss or you know the the executive that she's sleeping with his secretary basically Corners her and confronts her. The information that he's been doing this with girls for years now and that she herself was one of them and watching Shirley MacLaine react is, it's such a like, it was almost cringey. Like, it was like watching those. Those are really hard to watch episodes of the office in some ways because she plays it, so naturally, like, she's trying to laugh it off and she's turning her head away and saying like, you know, you have to excuse me and it's the way she embodies the embarrassment. It's so perfectly done that.

27:42 You like like I said, I forgot I was watching an actress at some point and that I think is the highest compliment I can possibly give to somebody well. And when you talk about authenticity and disability you know like you said of Shirley MacLaine to just keep the audience drawn in with just how real her performances. I think you have Fred MacMurray as the foil to that of just being the most sleazy over the top villain that I think that this Movie kind of needed like with all of the groundedness of the other characters. I don't think it would have served the film to have a executive who genuinely had a terrible marriage and was like genuinely struggling. All this like it really needed to have a corporate high-powered.

28:29 Honestly, in a certain sense, no name, nobody who's just out for his own. Well and I thought the Fred MacMurray was great at that. I completely agree and I'm going to say that it's going to sound like an insult Brad, but I hope you understand what I mean when I say this I think it actually benefited the movie to have Fred MacMurray in this role, because he is not as good of an actor as the other two, like, in the late 50s, early 60s, you really started to see some of these older actors, who had been, you know, making movies in the 30s and 40s started to be in films with these people that were coming out of the Actors Studio in New York, and we're into method acting and it was like, watching two completely different clashing styles of acting on screen and sometimes it worked and sometimes And it was really obvious, and I think this is one of those times, where, you know, Fred MacMurray is just kind of a wooden actor. He doesn't have a lot of range and I think I thought that works really well in Double Indemnity when he's playing this hard-boiled, kind of guy and here it works really well too. Because, you know, we keep using the word, but he's just a dick and he plays the really, really well, but he doesn't overdo it and I think there are a lot of people who would have either tried to play it to naturalistically, or tried to play it to hammy, and he doesn't do either one. Of those things.

29:42 And I think the movie really benefits because of that. Honestly, I think one of the scenes that illustrates that movement or that almost the Baton being passed from Fred MacMurray generation on to Jack. Clemons generation is the very final scene between the two of them. When Jack Lemmon quits, there's this one singular moment that I just loved way, where Fred MacMurray goes now. I thought you were a bright man. See, I thought you were, you were understanding your place in this world. See you? You just give me the key right now. You see? And sorry. Mr. Chaudhary What do you mean? Sorry, you're not going to bring anybody to my apartment.

30:23 I'm not just bringing anybody. I'm bringing this Cube lie. Especially, not miss Cube lie. How's that again? No key. Baxter. I picked you for my team because I thought you were a very bright young man. Do you realize what you're doing? Not to me, but to yourself, normally, it takes years to work your way up to the 27th floor, but it only takes 30 seconds to be out on the street again. You dig? I dig, he looks up into Jack Clemons eyes and obviously, I'm exaggerating some but he goes, You Dig and Jack. Lemmon goes, oh yeah. I dig. And like, it just felt like this, like, symbolic moment of, like, you dig was a terrible, terrible line. And like, jet the way Jack Lemmon just throws it back at him casually.

31:14 I just felt like that was a moment where I was just like, I just, I loved every second of this. There was a moment in this movie and you know will censor this for the the wide release but patreon you'll get an earful here. There's a moment where I just looked at the screen and I wanted my breath. There's no one else in the room. Oh, just like you mother like I I said it out loud to the screen and it's the moment where a sheldrake Fred MacMurray. And Miss kubelik are in the apartment together for the first time. And she gets him, a Christmas present, and it's a, it's a recording, it's an LP. Of The Pianist in the restaurant that they go to. And the first thing he does is he says, well you know, we better leave that here.

31:56 Meaning I can't take this home to my wife, I'll have to explain things and she goes, yeah, we better leave it here and then he says well you know II didn't get you anything but here's a hundred dollars and he pulls a hundred dollar bill out of his wallet and the way they frame it Brad they cut back to her on the couch and it is like at eye level with her sitting on the couch. So you basically just see like Fred mcmurray's waste he's and you just see this, huh? Two dollar bill kind of like fall into frame while she's looking at him with this. Look of just utter contempt and and hatred, and it was the most crushing thing to watch him drop this hundred dollar bill at her. It basically has a way of saying like you are nothing but a cheap whore to me and it like that scene and that the way they framed it, visually, I think will forever be burned in my mind, and the way that she stands up and like, takes her It off and and he just goes, although we don't really have any time for that and he and she, I don't remember exactly how she says it, but she basically says, well, if you already paid for it, I figured, I might as well. See ya.

33:02 And you're just like, oh man, and he just kind of goes on, don't talk like that. Okay, bye, right. Yeah, he's I mean, all three of them are great in this movie, Brad. I don't think we're saying anything, like revolutionary here. There's movies really good, the acting is phenomenal. The script is great. Rate. The direction is fantastic. I think it's time for us to hit pause and drink some whiskey. So what do you say? We sip on some single malt scotch and try this Buna haben 12? Yes, let's drink it.

34:14 Alright, today we are checking out Buna Haven. 12-year Brad. This might be the most fun to say, name of any whiskey we've ever had on this show. I love the Scottish people and their names. And this one Buna haben is one that I'm going to say at least 50 times in this segment. So just prepare yourself. I don't know man. The nectar nectar might have been that might be our best. We probably should run a segment on Instagram with the just the best names of whiskey. That's right time. That's true. I broke logic is right up there, too. That's right, man. All right, so Buna, hob and 12 year is an interesting whiskey Brad. This is an I'll, uh, scotch.

34:56 And as we know, Ila scotches are usually very heavily peated. Think Laphroaig, but Boone, aha Van Gogh's, an opposite route. They really don't heavily Peach their Scotch at all. In fact, as I know Agnes, I'm not getting many, you know, any Pete at all. So it may be completely unpainted for all. I know, this particular expression of Buna, haben 12 was kind of revamped back in the year 2010, they upped the proof on it to 46.3%. So we're looking at a basically, a 92 and a half proof whiskey here. It's non chill filtered and they have not added any coloration to it. One thing we've really never talked about on this show, is that unlike bourbon with Scotch. They can actually add caramel Alluring to Scotch whisky to make it look darker in the glass, and it doesn't affect anything.

35:44 They have to put on the label. It's still considered Scotch. So there's actually been a pretty big movement in the scotch world to stop doing that and just present, you know, the whiskey, the way that it's supposed to look in the glass. So it has a much lighter look in the glass, but that's just because they haven't added any coloration to it, dude. They just need to listen to The Beatles, man. Let it be, let it be let it be. That's right. And there's our copyright strike for this episode. Kaboom, you're welcome. Well Brad, let's get into drinking this. I'm really excited. This is the second week in what three weeks now. Brad, that we are drinking Scotch, so I'm excited to get back into drinking some single malt. Scotch whiskey, what are you picking up on the nose of this Buna? Haben? 12-year, honestly, I think that you can still get a little bit of that smoke. And it's not, you know, I'm not to calling this a peated scotch, but there's a little bit of that smokiness for me. It's actually coming across a little bit, alcohol forward. There's some hints of saline flowers and a little bit of just generic sweetness.

36:46 But yeah, it's a nice pleasant. Smelling knows that I'll give a 7 out of 10. Are you ready for this Brad? Because a couple weeks ago we did a burl our 16 and a burl our 18. Mmm. And while I remember yes, and while I liked both of those whiskies, you were much more. What's the word effusive in your praise and I was a little bit more reserved and Brad, I think the tables are To be turned this time because I want ahead and took all my notes on this already. I love this whiskey. I love it. Brad, this nose is beautiful. I mean, if you just kind of, let it air out a little bit in the glass because it's been in our sample bottle for a while, it has layers of butterscotch.

37:27 And caramel, you can get a little bit of that malt on it, but for me, it was stone fruit. I got a lot of Peach on this. I got dark chocolate notes. Just on the nose of this. I found this to be incredibly complex. It's still very light and you can tell like you said, Brad that there is some alcohol on it. I didn't find it to be offensive. I didn't find it to be alcohol forward. I love this knows. I'm actually going to give us an eight and a half on the nose. Brad. Yeah. That is pretty high up there and a lot of words that you just said, but when I get into the taste, I think that honestly it's kind of at a similar point for me. There's a few hints of vanilla there that are kind of under written by really strong saline.

38:07 Taste that I'm getting I'm not getting blown away by any one particular note, its kind of vaguely sweet and kind of pleasureful. And so I'll just I'll call it a 7 out of 10. One thing that I've been doing the last few weeks, Brad, when we're tasting Whiskey's, especially because, you know, sometimes we record right after dinner, we might have some funky taste still on our, on our palettes. I had Chinese food tonight, so I was like, I got to find something to reset my palate here. I have a very standard Bourbon and a very standard sky. Atch that I just take like a thimble full basically just to kind of get acclimated to the flavor of scotch again before I dove into this one. And so for me it's Cutty Sark which is not a very good scotch and you know, it's just, hey, here's alcohol and maltiness.

38:53 And there you go. And I followed it with this about 10 minutes later. Brad for me, this was very sweet right from the jump. I thought it was sweet with just a hint of of that saline you're talking about. It had a really nice spice on it. When I breathe out afterwards, I had nutmeg and clove, I just really thought that it's not a complex flavor, but there is just layers and layers of richness to this man. Like I got a ton of brown sugar, I got a ton of butterscotch and yet it still stayed very, very light on the palate. This is one of the best scotches I've had on this show and probably two seasons Brad, like I Thinking back, the only ones that really stand out to me that I liked immediately better than this. We're keen to Ruben and Laphroaig lore. I'm going to give this a nine and a half on the palate. Dude.

39:44 I think you need to start writing some copy for Buna Harbour, hey, this you are all about this stuff. Like I said, I like it's fine. It's just not blowing me away in any way. I think when I get to the Finish it's a little bit nutty, kind of on the finish with a little bit of that floral Aroma coming through it. It's a solid finish. But once again, nothing has blown me away. I'll give it a seven and a half out of ten. Yeah, I think if there is one area where this is not great, it's the Finish. It's a bit more of just kind of a standard scotchie finish Oak. It actually soured for me a little bit on the finish and then I got quite a bit of smoke on the backend Brad. So you're right. It is lightly peated. I think it definitely carries a smokiness with it but overall still Pleasant not alcohol forward.

40:29 Not harsh. It doesn't dry the mouth. Thought it was definitely. Ring. I thought it was a good finish like you. I'm gonna give it a seven and a half out of ten. Yeah and that brings us to our overall balance. I think this is a well-balanced whiskey. I personally though just feel like there's a need for more complexity here that I was not getting. So I'm just going to stick right where I'm at man. I'm gonna give it a seven out of ten. It's solid it's just not blown me away. I think this is a beautiful whiskey. Like I would not be very often that I would use the word beautiful to describe a whiskey and I think in some ways we have been a little bit Old because a lot of the scotches we've been trying, Brad have been finished in other types of casks to give it a little bit more sweetness, a little bit more maturity.

41:11 So like I don't know if I would stack this right next to a Glenmorangie Keen to Reuben, because that has a very particular flavor that's been sort of, you know, I don't say added to it, but, you know, infused into it. And if you like this up next to like a regular Glenmorangie, like, I know that's a Highland, not a Nyla. But this thing has so much more depth so much. Our richness. It's very sweet. It's really decadent. I would choose this over like a Glenmorangie 10-year any day of the week, I think it's incredibly well-balanced. I'm gonna give it a 9 out of 10 on the balance. I mean, I don't mean to throw you under the bus here but this is double matured and X Bourbon and X Sherry, Cask, quite right. But that is essentially what most scotches do. Like we did that with a burl are a couple weeks ago, X, bourbon, barrels, and X.

41:58 Sherry, Sherry butts are pretty much the standard for maturing skin. Scotch. Okay. Yeah, I mean I am not, I guess I'm just not getting what you're getting Bob. I just think it's kind of bland Lee. Sweet and has a few interesting notes and it's just okay. And you know, that's when we get to the value, you know, this sells for $55 and confusingly enough 83 cents. Yeah. In the state of Ohio, I don't understand that price could you know use any of the just make a 55? No no no 83. I wonder if that works out to be like an even number when they had tax on to it or something. I mean, maybe the like what happens when they change the tax rate?

42:39 Exactly. Now I just, it's, I love when you find little anomalies like that. But honestly, for me, when you have a world with Keen to Reuben for like five dollars less than this, I just can't consider this a great value. Like it's, it's fine, it's good. I would drink it. If it was offered to me. But at $56, I can only give it a 4 out of Non-value a 4 out of 10. Yeah like it's it's just I can't I've said this a million times already Bob, it's just fine. Yeah. Like it's like it's it's good interest but in the world of scotch for me I'm only gonna buy a scotch if I'm just really Blown Away by it and I really like scotch and so you know, even at the fifty, sixty seventy dollar range, unless it's blown me away.

43:28 I don't want to spend that much money, man. I mean, I will say that. That I think this has a ton more character, a ton more sweetness, a ton more flavor than the aberle. Our 16 that we tried two weeks ago. Like, I'd think this this would stack up if we did these side-by-side again, I actually would venture to say that you might pick this over the a burl, our 16 and again we're comparing different regions of scotch here, speyside to Isla but for me Brad I really do think that at this price point. The only whiskey, the only Scotch I should say. That I think is a better value is the key to Ruben and Ohio has actually raised the price of Buna, haben and lowered the price of keen sir Reuben.

44:10 So I always say a year ago, you could flip flop. The prices of the to this would have been about five dollars cheaper at least in the Kingdom. Ruben, Brad for me. I think it's a 9 out of 10 on value. This is, this is one of the better scotches that I can think of, for $55 or less and we are going to come out in extremely different places on this whiskey. I'm coming out too. Day, 43 and a half out of 50 on this ya, Baba, I'm coming out to a 32.5 on this. Alright, so that is bringing us out to a 76 out of 100 or a 38 out of 50. So, it is over that 35, Mark, where we typically say that it's worth trying, it's worth buying.

44:51 I actually would say that in the rarest of instances for me, being the Cheapskate that I am, I would recommend both, I think it's worth buying a bottle of this at $55. I would absolutely. We recommend trying it at a bar because it's going to be less than $10 to try this Brad. Where would you come out in terms of recommendations? Yeah, this is true. Yeah, yeah, I mean if you really want to try it that's fine. I don't think it's particularly worth grabbing but go for it if you want to. Would you like, would you recommend someone to try this at a bar? Would you say pass on it all together? I honestly Bob, there's very few whiskies that. I would say, don't try it, got it. But honestly like, you know, there's probably maybe out of all the Whiskey's wherever ever drank. There's probably only 10 to 15 that. I'd be like, man.

45:39 I would even pass on it at the bar. I get that. Yeah, I'd say, go for it. Like, if you enjoy Scotch, if you enjoy especially sweet, Scotch go for it. Yeah. It's solid. It's a good poor. But overall buying a bottle. No, not as much. All right man. So we're divided on that one. Hopefully we're not too divided on our movie of the day. So what do you say we get back into talking about the apartment. Let's get to it.

46:44 All right. That was Buna. Haben 12, a whiskey. That Bob and I are pretty daggone split on. I don't often come out 11 points away from each other on her whiskeys. Yeah man. I was really shocked to see that. Yeah, you know it was fine is fine but on my gosh yeah it was really good. It was not anything. You say fine, one more time. Hey Brad. I like I just have to double check my notes Here. Was it? Fine? Ah it wasn't, it wasn't fine. It was just fine. You know. Do you remember the episode of How I Met Your Mother? Where robin keeps talking about that painting of Lily's? It's hanging in the, in the coffee shop. He goes, oh, it's really neat. The colors are neat and Ted's like, I'm sorry, just to clarify.

47:30 Would you say that it's more neat or Neato burrito? Yeah. That's where I'm at. With this Brad. This was, he was Neato burrito. Bob. All right, man, let's get back to talking about the apartment. Dude, I have a burning thought on my mind that's been sitting on me since I was like, I don't know about an hour into the film. Oh, is this a scorching-hot brad G? Take Jim Carrey modeled his whole acting career off of trying to be kind of like Jack. Lemmon oh man, are you Brad listen to me like 100% agreement with you?

48:10 Like if you listen to the way Jim or Jim Carrey Jack Lemmon. And I mumble some of his lines in this movie, like, when he's depressed, or when he's drunk, it is Jim Carrey's. Whole performance in Eternal Sunshine, but he is trying to do the yes, dude. Yeah, 100%. And like the, the physical characteristics that he has like, when we haven't even talked about this part of the film, and I think it's brilliant. The one time that Baxter tries to get a woman and it's a married woman and he's like you're worried he's about to dive into the vein of Of sleazy high-powered executive that moment he turns on the music and he's kind of dancing around.

48:50 The apartment, is the moment where I was like, oh it's Jim Carrey. Like the way he was moving around the apartment, I was just immediately, like, oh, it's Liar. Liar, it's Bruce Almighty. It's everything I've ever seen Jim Carrey. And I honestly, like it's this is not a knock on Jim Carrey. I really like him as an actor know, for sure, for sure. I just was struck The comparison and my rated just popped it, dude. I'm going to share, maybe the nerdiest story I can share with you. And when you've seen as many movies, as I've seen, like, my brain constructs, like, pretend remakes of movies. And I think sometimes like if they were ever going to remake this, who would I want to be in it?

49:34 And we actually played this game a little bit with, I think the Great Escape way back in season one. So when I first saw this movie I was in high school. So it was around 2004 2005 this The movie called The Terminal had just come out with Tom. Hanks, I don't if you've ever seen, it's a Spielberg movie and the lead actors in that movie was Catherine Zeta-Jones and she was playing a flight attendant who was having an affair with, I think a pilot or something like that, you never see the guy in the movie, but she played to a tee, the Shirley MacLaine part of this movie. And I just remember thinking to myself, oh my gosh, like, Catherine Zeta-Jones, might be a few years older than Shirley MacLaine was at this point. But I was like, if they ever wanted to remake the apartment, like, you have Jim Carrey and 2004 era, Catherine Zeta-Jones, like right there for the taking.

50:24 And I just, I'm pissed in retrospect that no one read my mind. And made that remake, bro. I'm telling you, man, once we start the film and whiskey Studio, we will just make all of those remakes that we've always order to make. We're just gonna cast them as 65 year olds. Yeah, just do it anyway. Yeah, Jim Carrie will be lights out. Wow, I Brad, I'm really happy that you noticed that as well. Because I have been thinking that to myself for like, what 15 16 years now is that also what you yell at people on the street, I do I shake them and Isaiah remedy making chip. Carriage we make any Apartments I just have this image of you being George Bailey running down the snowy streets of Akron shaking people. Yeah like when he when he's accosting the pretend version of Mary that's coming out of the library it's like trying to kiss her that's made out of that version. Don't you see Jim Carrey is Jack Lemmon oh man Brad I think this is a good time for us to move into our final scores and I am interested to hear what you have to say here because at the beginning of the episode, Said that you thought it was a really solid movie that it was in the top, you know, 20% kind of a thing.

51:42 It doesn't sound like you're ready to go, all in, and give it like a nine and a half, or a 10 out of 10. So share your final score with us, but but also, can you enlighten me a little bit on what you think might be some of the flaws or the drawbacks of the movie here? I do think that there are a few points throughout the film, where it drags a little bit like, you know, the moment of the start of the movie, when he's making all these phone calls to the different, guys, to try and And rescheduled dates like it's a gag and it's funny but it kind of drags a little bit and there was just one or two other moments throughout the movie where I just felt myself wanting a little bit faster of a pace and not in a comedic sense just in a genuine like, okay, let's get to the next part. Like what?

52:25 Like, we need to keep moving. But overall, I really don't have much to complain about this film. I think it's really solid. I'm going to compare to Some Like It Hot again because I gave Some Like It Hot a 10/10. And I think, you know, I'm gonna give the apartment a 9 out of 10. I think the reason that it's not getting a 9 and a half, or a 10 out of 10, for me, is the fact that like, in the vein of comedies, I think Some Like It Hot just stands Head and Shoulders above. Most, any comedy ever, written directed and acted filmed like it is so far above that. For me, it's just a 10 out of 10, and I honestly think that the apartment might be the better move. Movie overall.

53:07 But in the end, there are a lot of really beautiful dramas out there that I can compare this to and go. Yeah, this is like one of the better entries in the heartfelt. Meaningful drama Department with a little bit of Comedy thrown in, I don't know. Does that make sense? Yeah, no I totally understand. And I get your critique, you know, when we watch the movies for the podcast you and I both take notes while we're watching a movie and I will freely admit that there were a couple parts of the movie that I It more convenient to take notes during so you're right there probably is and it's not very much like if they trimmed maybe even like three minutes off the run time, I think it would be a little bit tighter but for me it's just like, man, this movie hits a level of emotional depth that I don't think has really been surpassed in some ways by movies that have tried to do it since then. And the scene that I was talking about earlier Brad, that I called a really harrowing sequence is that whole sequence in Jack Clemons apartment after he He discovers that Fran has, you know, tried to overdose on pills, he calls the doctor over and they have to basically keep her from dying the whole night and Wilder just puts us in that apartment and does not shy away from the horrible.

54:20 After-effects of, you know, the actions of this dick sheldrake, and watching that sequence. I was reminded of a very similar sequence in the movie. Almost Famous, which we're going to be reviewing here in, just a few months. And Brad, you've seen the director's cut of that movie. So, You've at least seen that scene before, but, you know, a main character in that movie tries to commit suicide, they have to pump her stomach out. It's very similar to the apartment and yet that movie Cuts away Way quicker than this one does. And I'm not saying that just, you know, forcing people to watch something harrowing makes it better, but I think that it's really a testament to how well made this movie was that in 60 years.

55:02 I don't know if that scene has been topped in terms of what they're trying to do. And so, for all those reasons, for the reasons of, you know, it being a comedy and a tragedy, and a romance and working at all, three, it's a nearly perfect movie for me. I'm going to give it a 10 out of 10, honestly. Bob, I was worried that you were going to mention Pulp Fiction there when you're talking about overdosing seen. Oh gosh, not that one. Not that one. But honestly, I will say, there is a moment when the doctor was just slapping her. That I was worried that like a Only one viewer might watch that and just think that it's like over the top and, you know, abusive and on, you know, unnecessary and I will say this as somebody who has watched, people had their stomachs pumped and been brought back from the brink of death, you know, after suicide attempts or alcohol poisoning or things like that.

55:57 Nah dude, that doctor was being gentle. Yeah, like, being 100% honest like that. I mean it was a gruesome scene. It was brutal, it was honest. East. And that's what I really loved about it. Once again, this movie is not shying away from the reality of what's happening. When these, you know, sleaze balls are just taking advantage of women. Well, on that really happy and shiny. And positive note, we would like to hear what you think about this movie. I, I mean, Brad, I assume nine out of ten. You gave it your going to recommend that people should go watch this movie. Oh yeah, dude. I mean, if you can get it at a bar, if you can, you know, just going to shut up. Oh sorry. We're talking about movie. Yeah.

56:37 Yeah. You should you should totally watch this movie 5. It's it's great. And if you have seen the movie or if you wanted, if we have persuaded you to go watch it. Hit us up after the fact, you can find us on social media on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram at film whiskey. Honestly, Bob, I'm just going to make another pitch. Don't go see All About Eve. I just want to remind everybody that that is not a movie worth watching, whereas the apartment is eminently. We a better film and much more worth watching than All About Eve. So now that, that public service announcement is over. If you want to give us some feedback verbally auditorily, give us a phone call.

57:18 You can leave us a voicemail on our website which is anchored on FM / film, whiskey, Brad, I am ready for this with every ounce of my being next week. We're coming at you with the only movie to this day to feature a man, free falling and bouncing off a propeller into icy cold water. There's 1997's Best Picture Winner Titanic. I cannot wait. I will see you next week. Brad as we discussed that Masterpiece, but until then, I'm Bob book, I genuinely had no idea what movie you were talking about. If I just said like Happy Feet or like anything else, like the cold Eames?

58:00 Yes, the Santa Claus has. Oh man, I am bread. G'yahhhh. And guys, I'm so pumped for next week. Titanic should be a great time. We'll see you next week.