Billy Wilder was responsible for some of the best, most sharply written films of Hollywood’s golden age, across all genres, but it’s his iconic comedies, such as The Apartment, Some Like It Hot and The Seven Year Itch for which he is chiefly remembered. Now one of his most under-appreciated films, the satirical madcap comedy One, Two, Three, is finally getting a UK Blu-ray release as part of Eureka Entertainment’s Masters Of Cinema series on 15 April.
James Cagney plays C.R. “Mac” MacNamara, a top soft drinks company executive shipped off to (then West) Berlin and told to keep an eye on his boss’ 17-year-old Atlanta socialite daughter Scarlett (Pamela Tiffin) while she visits Germany. Scarlett’s tour seems endless, and Mac discovers she’s fallen for a (then East) Berlin communist agitator and the young couple are bound for Moscow! Mac has to bust up the burgeoning romance before his boss learns the truth, all the while dealing with his wife Phyllis (Arlene Francis) and her own impatience with German living.
This has got me genuinely excited, that winning writing team of Wilder and long-time collaborator I.A.L. Diamond along with a rare non-gangster role for Cagney make this one to watch out for, and hopefully it will get the recognition it deserves. Watch the trailer:
Special features include:
- Limited Edition O Card slipcase [2000 copies]
- 1080p presentation on Blu-ray
- LPCM audio (original mono presentation)
- Optional English SDH subtitles
- Brand New and Exclusive Interview with film scholar Neil Sinyard
- Feature Length Audio Commentary by film historian Michael Schlesinger
- PLUS: A Collector’s booklet featuring new essays by film scholar Henry K. Miller, critic Adam Batty, and archival material
One, Two, Three comes to Blu-ray on 15th April, it’s available to pre-order now: https://amzn.to/2IfCLl5
