The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)

An unscrupulous movie producer uses an actress, a director and a writer to achieve success.

Director:

Vincente Minnelli

Writers:

Charles Schnee (screenplay), George Bradshaw (story)

Stars:

Lana Turner, Kirk Douglas, Walter Pidgeon

Won 5 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lana Turner	...	Georgia
Kirk Douglas	...	Jonathan
Walter Pidgeon	...	Harry Pebbel
Dick Powell	...	James Lee Bartlow
Barry Sullivan	...	Fred Amiel
Gloria Grahame	...	Rosemary
Gilbert Roland	...	'Gaucho'
Leo G. Carroll	...	Henry Whitfield
Vanessa Brown	...	Kay Amiel
Paul Stewart	...	Syd
Sammy White	...	Gus
Elaine Stewart	...	Lila
Ivan Triesault	...	Von Ellstein

Storyline

Told in flashback form, the film traces the rise and fall of a tough, ambitious Hollywood producer Jonathan Shields, as seen through the eyes of various acquaintances, including a writer James Lee Bartlow, a star Georgia Lorrison and a director Fred Amiel. He is a hard-driving, ambitious man who ruthlessly uses everyone - including the writer, star and director - on the way to becoming one of Hollywood's top movie makers.

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Plot Keywords:

screenwriter | rise and fall | film studio | film producer | hollywood california | 

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Taglines:

The story of a blonde who wanted to go places, and a brute who got her there - the hard way!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 February 1953 (Brazil)

Also Known As:

Tribute to a Badman

Filming Locations:

Beverly Hills Hotel & Bungalows - 9641 Sunset Blvd., Beverly Hills, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,558,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,025

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Composer David Raksin had scored a huge hit with the theme song for Laura (1944) but resented the fact that the lyricist received an equal share of the profits. As a result, he insisted that the love theme from this film be released strictly as an instrumental. It became a hit, but not at the same high level of his theme for the earlier film.

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Goofs

In the section of the movie narrated by Bartlow, Jonathan is shown, alone in a room, having a phone conversation which has important repercussions later on. Since no one else was there, and Jonathan did not disclose this conversation, Bartlow could not have known of it.

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Quotes

Fred: [after Jonathan's father dies broke and disgraced] Are you going to change your name?
Jonathan: Change it? I'm gonna ram the name of Shields down their throats!

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Alternate Versions

Also available in a computer colorized version.

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Connections

References Anna Karenina (1935)

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Soundtracks

Don't Blame Me
(uncredited)
Music by Jimmy McHugh
Lyrics by Dorothy Fields
Performed by Peggy King

User Reviews

Entertaining backstage business

Glossy MGM soaper has many things to recommend it, not the least of which is a surprisingly grounded, natural Lana Turner (looking great, even in ordinary jammies) playing a successful movie actress who, along with a top screenwriter and director, help producer-on-the-skids Kirk Douglas stage a comeback. Not especially revealing about Hollywood, which at this stage wasn't quite ready to unmask itself, but still engaging and intriguing. Douglas is well-cast (he spits out his lines with a terse jaw--nothing new--but he's right for this part and is commendable). Turner is a revelation and deserved at the very least an Oscar nomination for her work; the picture did go on to win Academy Awards in five categories, including Gloria Grahame as Best Supporting Actress; Charles Schnee, Best Screenplay; Robert Surtees, Best Cinematography, Black-and-White; Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White; and Best Costume Design, Black-and-White. Well-directed by Vincente Minnelli, the picture gets less attention than something like "All About Eve", but it's actually more entertaining. *** from ****