Sunset Blvd. (1950)

A screenwriter develops a dangerous relationship with a faded film star determined to make a triumphant return.

Director:

Billy Wilder

Writers:

Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder

Stars:

William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim

Top Rated Movies #60 | Won 3 Oscars. Another 15 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Holden	...	Joe Gillis
Gloria Swanson	...	Norma Desmond
Erich von Stroheim	...	Max Von Mayerling
Nancy Olson	...	Betty Schaefer
Fred Clark	...	Sheldrake
Lloyd Gough	...	Morino
Jack Webb	...	Artie Green
Franklyn Farnum	...	Undertaker
Larry J. Blake	...	1st Finance Man (as Larry Blake)
Charles Dayton	...	2nd Finance Man
Cecil B. DeMille	...	Cecil B. DeMille
Hedda Hopper	...	Hedda Hopper
Buster Keaton	...	Buster Keaton
Anna Q. Nilsson	...	Anna Q. Nilsson
H.B. Warner	...	H. B. Warner

Storyline

In Hollywood of the 50's, the obscure screenplay writer Joe Gillis is not able to sell his work to the studios, is full of debts and is thinking in returning to his hometown to work in an office. While trying to escape from his creditors, he has a flat tire and parks his car in a decadent mansion in Sunset Boulevard. He meets the owner and former silent-movie star Norma Desmond, who lives alone with her butler and driver Max Von Mayerling. Norma is demented and believes she will return to the cinema industry, and is protected and isolated from the world by Max, who was her director and husband in the past and still loves her. Norma proposes Joe to move to the mansion and help her in writing a screenplay for her comeback to the cinema, and the small-time writer becomes her lover and gigolo. When Joe falls in love for the young aspirant writer Betty Schaefer, Norma becomes jealous and completely insane and her madness leads to a tragic end.

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Plot Keywords:

silent film star | hollywood california | narrated from the grave | butler | madness | 

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Taglines:

A HOLLYWOOD STORY: Sensational...Daring...Unforgettable...Sunset Blvd.

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Genres:

Drama | Film-Noir

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

Other actresses considered for Norma Desmond were Mae West (who wanted to rewrite the dialogue), Mae Murray, and Mary Pickford. In fact, Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett even went to Pickfair to pitch the story to Pickford, but her horrified reaction as the story progressed made them stop halfway through and apologize to her.

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Goofs

When Norma is holding the screenplay being written by Joe and Betty, their names are joined by the word 'and'. This would mean that Joe (who is listed first) had written the entire screenplay, sold it to a studio, only to have Betty revise/rewrite the script. Since the two characters were working together, their names should have been joined with an ampersand ('&').

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Quotes

[first lines]
Joe Gillis: Yes, this is Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, California. It's about 5 o'clock in the morning. That's the homicide squad, complete with detectives and newspaper men.

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Crazy Credits

The Paramount logo appears as a transparency over the opening shot. The words "Sunset Blvd." are shown stenciled on the curb of that street.

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Connections

Referenced in Stars of the Silver Screen: Bette Davis (2011)

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Soundtracks

Charmaine/Diane
(1950) (uncredited)
Words & Music by Erno Rapee & Lew Pollack
Played by the band on New Year's Eve

User Reviews

A very brave look at Hollywood when Hollywood was bullied by an absurd censorship.

Usually, Cinema is considered as the most delicate form of art because it has the biggest potential to become 'dated' one day. Once a movie thought as 'mind-blowing' can easily become a 'turkey' a decade later.

This is not the case here. Sunset Boulevard still remains as one of the most eerie film in the cinema history and still a realistic depiction because of its reflection of Hollywood. It can give you the idea of the dream land's transformation into a nightmare.

The film is about a troubled script writer 'Joe Gillis and a forgotten silent film star Norma Desmond's weird relationship and the madness that surrounds them and the people around them. Don't wanna give much of the plot, on account the fact that it is a pure gem that should be invented without knowing nothing. But I can talk about the cinematic aspects of this movie.

This movie has some very eerie moments because of using a great cinematography. The moments of burying the dead monkey and watching the old film of Norma Desmond are exquisitely presented. The movie has some one of the most innovative scripts of cinema and that is certainly justified by the unforgetable and memorable lines captured from the film. The directing is top-notch but who are we kidding it is Billy 'the great' Wilder. The end of the movie is one of the most chilling part of the movie and it can truly give you some nightmares about insanity. The narration of the movie by the head character was probably done by this movie at the first place and this influenced so many movies afterwards.

One of the reasons that this movie is still not dated is because of its courage. The Hayes code was at its peak at the beginning of fifties which manipulates the producers to limit their bad thoughts on one subject, especially on Hollywood. The movie got 11 oscar nomination but only got 3 of them. Apparently, the reason was its harsh criticism on Hollywood.

There are some arguements about Sunset Boulevard's genre. It is considered as the greatest film-noir of all time. I don't think it is a film-noir at all. For some aspects, the movie has some noirish elements such as the black and white German-expressionist cinematography and an 'on the edge of insanity', femme-fatale but these two are not enough to make a film-noir. I think this is a psyhcological drama with some horror(the end is horrifying for me) and with some very very dark comedy.

Overall, This is truly a classic and one of the best movies of cinema history that will never lose its effects on cinema. Heavily influences American Beauty and Mulholland Drive, also making those movies a must see. 10/10

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 September 1950 (Australia)

Also Known As:

A Can of Beans

Filming Locations:

Bel-Air Country Club - 10768 Bellagio Road, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,752,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$169,067, 13 May 2018

Gross USA:

$299,645

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$300,073

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min 104 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1