The Best Last Line of Movie Dialogue

In my view, it’s from the classic 1960 Billy Wilder film The Apartment.

As anyone who follows Go Into The Story, Billy Wilder is my favorite filmmaker and The Apartment is my favorite move. Not favorite Wilder movie. Favorite movie, period!

IMDb plot summary: A Manhattan insurance clerk tries to rise in his company by letting its executives use his apartment for trysts, but complications and a romance of his own ensue.

Written by Billy Wilder & I.A.L. Diamond

Here is the script version of the ending. It begins in a Chinese restaurant just minutes before midnight on New Year’s Eve. Sheldrake is there with his mistress Fran. She bonded with Baxter in his apartment recuperating from a failed suicide attempt, disconsolate over the romantic rut she is in with Sheldrake, a married man who will never get divorced.

Here is the movie version of the scene:

It’s a perfect ending to a perfect movie. And that last line of dialogue: Shut up and deal. Also perfect.

Here’s a video featuring ten screenwriting lessons from The Apartment.

If you haven’t watched The Apartment, I envy you! To watch the film for the first time! If you have seen the movie before… no better time to screen it again. Believe me, there are things you will learn about cinematic storytelling worthy of multiple viewings.