His classics are truly that - Double Indemnity, The Lost Weekend, Sunset Blvd, Some Like It Hot and The Apartment are great films by any standard.

Not all of his work was so successful, I feel. My least favourite of his pictures which I've seen (I haven't seen a few of his lesser-regarded works) is A Foreign Affair, which limps along on the shoulders of a badly miscast Jean Arthur and wastes a wonderfully ripe situation, and several of his other movies are mediocre at best, although usually at least had interesting elements.

But he deserves his place among the greats for that run of wonderful films. As you say, the man had range, and ambition.

@rudely_murray said:

His classics are truly that - Double Indemnity, The Lost Weekend, Sunset Blvd, Some Like It Hot and The Apartment are great films by any standard.

Not all of his work was so successful, I feel. My least favourite of his pictures which I've seen (I haven't seen a few of his lesser-regarded works) is A Foreign Affair, which limps along on the shoulders of a badly miscast Jean Arthur and wastes a wonderfully ripe situation, and several of his other movies are mediocre at best, although usually at least had interesting elements.

But he deserves his place among the greats for that run of wonderful films. As you say, the man had range, and ambition.

I haven't seen A Foreign Affair, but I will. And will revisit this when I do - stay tuned!

Oh, you may well enjoy it - many people do. And even A Foreign Affair, which I didn't care for overall, has an amusing performance by Marlene Dietrich to lift it a little. I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

I'm also not a big fan of The Major or the Minor, The Seven Year Itch or The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes - but I like everything else I've seen from him. Definitely one of the greats.