Item: The Apartment

Price: $10.99

Where to Buy: Amazon

Review: As a child of the '80s and '90s, I was first introduced to Jack Lemmon in "Grumpy Old Men." I wasn't inspired to further explore his career.

That all changed in the last year, and "The Apartment" is the biggest reason that Jack Lemmon is now one of my favorite actors.

The Academy Awards will be presented this Sunday, Feb. 22, so this week I will highlight my favorite "Best Pictures" that would make thoughtful, thrifty gifts for the film fiends in your life.

"The Apartment" stars Lemmon as C.C. Baxter, a bachelor businessman who gets ahead by lending his apartment to two-timin' bosses. It all falls apart when his crush, a lovely elevator operator played by Shirley MacLaine, tries to commit suicide in C.C.'s apartment while having an affair with his boss.

Extramarital affairs and attempted suicide are rarely the ingredients for a comedy du jour, but this film and its clever, witty, funny dialogue holds up even today.

Impress your movie-loving friend even more by pairing this movie with "Irma La Douce," another Lemmon-MacLaine flick.

Directed by Billy Wilder, "The Apartment" is a classic movie gift for the serious film aficionado and casual movie buff alike.

Image from: Amazon