One, Two, Three (5 Stars)

I know Bill Wilder's name. I know he was a prolific director who made mostly comedies. I've seen "Some like it hot" – who hasn't? – but it isn't until today that I realised it's the only film of his that I've seen.

This evening a small group of film fans gathered at the house of my friend Alex. Once a month a group member presents two films on a similar theme. Today's theme was political comedies, and the first film was "One, Two, Three", made in 1961. It shows the misadventures of  Mac MacNamara, the executive heading the Coca Cola company in West Berlin. During the making of the film the Berlin Wall was built, but this is only briefly mentioned in a prologue. The film shows the good old days when people could travel backwards and forwards between the two halves of the city.

Mac is an efficient businessman, but one of his main interests at work is a romantic relationship with his secretary Ingeborg. She wants more attention from him and complains that he's spending too much time with his wife and kids. A further complication is that his boss in America sends his 17-year-old daughter to stay with Mac to keep her out of trouble. It's not that easy. She spends every day in East Berlin, where she meets a handsome young Communist.

The film is non-stop laughs from beginning to end, carried by James Cagney's brilliant comedic timing. The humour is mostly the result of making fun of the Germans. German efficiency and discipline is parodied. Despite my best efforts to remain silent, I couldn't help laughing out loud. While watching the film I glanced sideways to see if the others in the group, all of them Germans, also found it funny. I think they did, even though Billy Wilder was making fun of them. Billy is allowed to make fun of Germans, since he was an Austrian himself, before he emigrated to America in 1934.

After watching the film today, I want to see more of Billy Wilder's films.

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