Bud Baxter is a minor clerk in a huge New York insurance company, until he discovers a quick way to climb the corporate ladder. He lends out his apartment to the executives as a place to take their mistresses. Although he often has to deal with the aftermath of their visits, one night he's left with a major problem to solve.
I wouldn't call this 1960 picture one of Billy Wilder's best comedies -- it's drab, sappy, and overlong at 125 minutes.
– Jonathan Rosenbaum,
Chicago Reader,
13 Dec 2006
fresh:
Most of the time, it's up to director Wilder to sustain a two-hour-plus film on treatment alone, a feat he manages to accomplish more often than not, and sometimes the results are amazing.
– Variety Staff,
Variety,
15 Aug 2007
fresh:
With tremendous performances by the two leads (Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine), this is yet another "must see" title to be found on Wilder's resume.
– James Berardinelli,
ReelViews,
10 Jun 2008
fresh:
Directed by Wilder with attention to detail and emotional reticence that belie its inherent darkness and melodramatic core, it's lifted considerably by the performances.
– Wally Hammond,
Time Out,
8 Jun 2012
fresh:
Wilder, a bilious and mercurial wit, here becomes a wide-screen master of time ...