Some Like It Hot – Kino Lorber (4k UHD/Blu-ray Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 1959
Director: Billy Wilder
Writers: Billy Wilder, I.A.L. Diamond, Robert Thoeren, Michael Logan
Cast: Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, George Raft, Pat O'Brien, Joe E. Brown, Nehemiah Persoff, Joan Shawlee

Release Date: February 8th, 2022
Approximate Running Time: 121 Minutes 36 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 English, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $39.95

"When Chicago musicians Joe and Jerry accidentally witness a gangland shooting, they quickly board a southbound train to Florida, disguised as Josephine and Daphne, the two newest—and homeliest—members of an all-female jazz band. Their cover is perfect…until a lovelorn singer falls for Josephine, an ancient playboy falls for Daphne, and a mob boss refuses to fall for their hoax!" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Some Like It Hot comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 88.9 GB

Feature: 88.6 GB

This release uses the same 4K source that Criterion used for their Blu-ray release. Image clarity, shadow detail, black levels, contrast, and compression are solid, and grain looks organic.

Audio: 4.75/5 (DTS-HD Mono English), 4.5/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 English)

This release comes with two audio options: a DTS-HD mono mix in English and a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English. Both the audio mixes are in excellent shape; the dialog comes through clearly and everything sounds balanced. The mono track does a great job with ambient sounds, and the score sounds appropriately robust. The 5.1 track is a good remix track that slightly opens up the sound spectrum. Included with this release are removable English subtitles.

Extras:

Extras on the 4K UHD include an archival audio commentary with Paul Diamond (Son of I.A.L. Diamond), screenwriters Lowell Ganz, and Babaloo Mandel, and actors tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon, and an audio commentary with film historian Joseph McBride, author of Billy Wilder: Dancing on the Edge.

Extras on the Blu-ray include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 23 seconds, DTS-HD mono English, no subtitles), an archival featurette titled The Making of Some Like It Hot (25 minutes 45 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette titled The Legacy of Some Like It Hot (20 minutes 22 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an archival documentary titled Nostalgic Look Back (31 minutes 13 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette titled Memories from the Sweet Sues (12 minutes 3 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), Virtual Hall of Memories (21 minutes 4 seconds), Billy Wilder and Volker Schlöndorff discuss Some Like It Hot (14 minutes 35 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), More with Billy Wilder and Volker Schlöndorff (6 minutes 3 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), an archival featurette titled Tribute to I.A.L. Diamond (2 minutes 8 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), and trailers for The Apartment, One, Two, Three, Irma La Douce, The Fortune Cookie, Avanti, and The Front Page.

Other extras include a limited-edition slipcover.

Summary:

The sign of a great comedy is one that remains funny no matter how much people's tastes change when it comes to humor. And though humor has drastically changed in the sixty-three years since Some Like it Hot was released, It is a rare example of a film whose humor is timeless.

When it comes to comedy, there are few directors that are in the same league as Billy Wilder. The way in which he used humor in his films is what set him apart from his contemporaries. And though he directed several comedies that are regarded as the cinema’s best, One would be hard-pressed to name another comedy he directed that eclipses what he was able to achieve with Some Like it Hot. Needless to say, they don’t make films like Some Like it Hot anymore.

From its opening moments, Some Like it Hot is bliss. It is a film where everything perfectly falls into place. There’s an abundance of clever one-liners that all hit their mark. Another area where Some Like it Hot excels are the crazy scenarios that it puts its characters through.

Another area where Some Like it Hot shines brightly is the performances of its three leads: Marilyn Monroe (The Seven Year Itch) in the role of Sugar Kane Kowalczyk; Tony Curtis (The Defiant Ones) in the roles of Joe/Joanne/Shell Oil Junior; and Jack Lemmon (The Apartment) in the roles of Jerry and Daphne. Marilyn Monroe’s character epitomizes her public persona. Though Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon are unconvincing as women, this actually works in Some Like It Hot’s favor. Also, when Tony Curtis assumes the Shell Oil Junior persona, he does a very good Cary Grant impersonation.

From a production standpoint, Some Like it Hot is a flawless film. The absurd premise is deliriously realized, a briskly paced narrative ensures that there’s never a dull moment or a chance to catch your breath, and a coda that ends with the line, "Well, nobody's perfect!", is an exemplary way to summarize the events that preceded.

Some Like it Hot makes its way to 4K UHD via an excellent release from Kino Lorber that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and a wealth of insightful extras, highly recommended.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a VLC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer