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IMDbPro

Sweet Smell of Success

  • 19571957
  • ApprovedApproved
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
8.0/10
32K
YOUR RATING
Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison, and Barbara Nichols in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
Trailer for the classic drama Sweet Smell of Success, starring Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis.
Play trailer3:05
1 Video
93 Photos
  • Drama
  • Film-Noir
Powerful but unethical Broadway columnist J.J. Hunsecker coerces unscrupulous press agent Sidney Falco into breaking up his sister's romance with a jazz musician.Powerful but unethical Broadway columnist J.J. Hunsecker coerces unscrupulous press agent Sidney Falco into breaking up his sister's romance with a jazz musician.Powerful but unethical Broadway columnist J.J. Hunsecker coerces unscrupulous press agent Sidney Falco into breaking up his sister's romance with a jazz musician.
IMDb RATING
8.0/10
32K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Alexander Mackendrick
  • Writers
    • Clifford Odets(screenplay)
    • Ernest Lehman(screenplay)
    • Alexander Mackendrick(uncredited)
  • Stars
    • Burt Lancaster
    • Tony Curtis
    • Susan Harrison
Top credits
  • Director
    • Alexander Mackendrick
  • Writers
    • Clifford Odets(screenplay)
    • Ernest Lehman(screenplay)
    • Alexander Mackendrick(uncredited)
  • Stars
    • Burt Lancaster
    • Tony Curtis
    • Susan Harrison
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 174User reviews
    • 133Critic reviews
    • 100Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
      • 3 wins & 4 nominations total

    Videos1

    Sweet Smell of Success
    Trailer 3:05
    Sweet Smell of Success

    Photos93

    Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Tony Curtis and Jeff Donnell in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Susan Harrison, Sam Levene, and Martin Milner in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Burt Lancaster in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, and Susan Harrison in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Tony Curtis and Susan Harrison in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Tony Curtis in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Tony Curtis and Barbara Nichols in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, and Susan Harrison in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
    Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis in Sweet Smell of Success (1957)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Burt Lancaster
    Burt Lancaster
    • J.J. Hunsecker
    Tony Curtis
    Tony Curtis
    • Sidney Falco
    Susan Harrison
    Susan Harrison
    • Susan Hunsecker
    Martin Milner
    Martin Milner
    • Steve Dallas
    • (as Marty Milner)
    Jeff Donnell
    Jeff Donnell
    • Sally
    Sam Levene
    Sam Levene
    • Frank D' Angelo
    Joe Frisco
    Joe Frisco
    • Herbie Temple
    Barbara Nichols
    Barbara Nichols
    • Rita
    Emile Meyer
    Emile Meyer
    • Lt. Harry Kello
    Edith Atwater
    Edith Atwater
    • Mary
    The Chico Hamilton Quintet
    The Chico Hamilton Quintet
    • The Chico Hamilton Quintet
    Jay Adler
    Jay Adler
    • Manny Davis
    • (uncredited)
    Mary Bayless
    • Bar Patron
    • (uncredited)
    Nicky Blair
    Nicky Blair
    • Patron at Toots Shor's
    • (uncredited)
    Nick Borgani
    • Waiter
    • (uncredited)
    Ralph Brooks
    • Patron at 21
    • (uncredited)
    Brad Brown
    • Patron at 21
    • (uncredited)
    Steve Carruthers
    Steve Carruthers
    • Patron at 21
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Alexander Mackendrick
    • Writers
      • Clifford Odets(screenplay)
      • Ernest Lehman(screenplay) (novelette)
      • Alexander Mackendrick(uncredited)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The character of J.J. Hunsecker is based on famed New York columnist Walter Winchell.
    • Goofs
      Right at the start of the movie (2:34) when Sidney peruses J.J. Hunsecker's 'The Eyes of Broadway' column on page 21 of the New York Globe newspaper, it can clearly be seen that several of the paragraphs are repeated. Of the nine paragraphs visible, it can be seen that paragraph 7 is an exact copy of paragraph 2; 8 is a copy of 5, and 9 is a copy of 4.
    • Quotes

      Sidney Falco: The cat's in the bag and the bag's in the river.

    • Crazy credits
      introducing Susan Harrison
    • Connections
      Featured in Mackendrick: The Man Who Walked Away (1986)

    User reviews174

    Review
    Top review
    Oh yes.
    "I love this dirty town". "Match me, Sidney". "Maybe I left my sense of humour in my other suit". Great dialogue. Great script, great cinematography, great acting, great music. Christ, what do you want, blood? From the first moment we see Burt Lancaster as the impossibly sinister J.J., we know we're in for a cracking time. There he is, sitting at the restaurant table, wearing those strangely scary glasses, his face expressionless (perhaps he's smiling, just a little bit), talking to Sidney without even looking at him, firing the dialogue like bullets. When the action seeps into the New York streets, oozing menace, there's J.J. - master of all he surveys, twisting cops round his little finger, snarling and seething like some desperate animal. And there is something animal about this film: its characters writhe and twist in the lights and the shadows - demented, tortured creatures, all of them trying to maintain some semblance of normality, all of them aware, deep down, how corrupt and helpless they are. The symbols of goodness - J.J.'s sister and her boyfriend - are weak, pathetic, hopeless, unable to keep up with the neverending twists and turns of this awful labyrinth of manipulation and cruelty. Curtis and Lancaster were never better, and it's awesome to see them play such grotesque yet believable roles. How do people get like this? Where do they go from here? Perhaps it's best not to think about it, and just wallow in the brilliant nastiness of it all, before maybe going home and getting in the shower for a long, long time.
    helpful•96
    9
    • phiggins
    • Mar 11, 2002

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 4, 1957 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Italian
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
      • Dein Schicksal in meiner Hand
    • Filming locations
      • Brill Building - 1619 Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
    • Production companies
      • Norma Productions
      • Curtleigh Productions
      • Hecht-Hill-Lancaster Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $3,400,000 (estimated)
    • Gross worldwide
      • $7,704
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 36 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.66 : 1(original ratio)

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