Sunset Boulevard - The Centennial Collection (1950)

Classic Great Transfer and Restoration

I will keep it simple... all classic movies should get this attention... Restoration,Transfer and Remastering. I just saw the movie on TCM and this version is superior I will get all The Centennial Collections. November 13, 2008

Darkness on the Edge of Tinsel Town

There are moments in SUNSET BOULEVARD when you literally don't know what you're watching. High drama? Acid black comedy? Bitter surreal cynicism? All of the above?

I have always been blown away by this movie. The talent and insight it possesses couldn't be done today, making it even more remarkable that it was made in 1950. (One of the stories I've heard about it was that Director Billy Wilder, hoping to spring this new monster on an unsuspecting Hollywood, lied during production that he was making a delightful musical comedy called HILL OF BEANS. After the premiere, he was verbally attacked by Hollywood bigwigs in the lobby, to which he replied, "F you!").

Like so many other great classics, SUNSET BOULEVARD just fell into place. Wilder originally wanted Mae West for Norma Desmond and Montgomery Clift for Joe Gillis (imagine what kind of film that would've been!). The original opening showed Joe Gillis in the morgue with other talking corpses as he sits up to tell his story.

But what you see is what you get. It's still an amazing movie, stunning in its creativity and artistry. That great shot in the opening of Joe Gillis floating face down in the Norma's pool as photographers snap photos was done with a chilled pool and a big mirror on the bottom. The final shot and Norma's lines can still be quoted by the generations of film fans (and Carol Burnett fans!).

The character of Joe Gillis would imprint William Holden for the rest of his career, lifting him from just another handsome leading man to an actor who could play characters who had seen too much and lost too much (STALAG 17, THE WILD BUNCH, NETWORK, etc.).

Has-beens play has-beens, Cecil B. DeMille plays Cecil B. DeMille, and Jack Webb (Sgt. Joe Friday from TV's "Dragnet") is nearly unrecognizable as Gillis' pal, Artie Green.

Not to be missed. Ever. November 11, 2008

One of the best films ever made about Hollywood, tough, yet human too....

This is one of those classics that deserves its reputation and then some. It's one of the best films ever made about Hollywood, and it doesn't have a trace of "inside" jokes or condenscenion as a lot of films/TV shows about Hollywood do today. The story starts out in startling fashion as a dead William Holden is narrating from the grave (you see his body in a pool in the famous opening scene, then they flashback). Holden is a down on his luck screenwriter who stumbles across Norma Desmond (played by Gloria Swanson), a former silent screen star who lives with her trusted butler (played by the great filmmaker Erich von Stroheim). She has delusions of a comeback, and he assists her by shaping her screenplay about Salome. Holden finds the script hopelessly self indulgent, but he needs the cash, so he agrees.

The film is startling in many ways. It's a cynical, hard boiled film (close to film noir), but it isn't heartless, as many think it is. It has some of the greatest lines in movie history, and some startling scenes, such as the opening and the scene where Desmond mistakes Holden for the caretaker who has come to bury her dead monkey (the shot of the monkey is very creepy and unsettling, even today). It has some of the greatest performances in any film. Holden is terrific as the screenwriter just trying to survive, Swanson is astounding as Norma Desmond, the still alluring yet terrifying former screen star, and Erich von Stroheim is wonderful as Max, the faithful butler. The mansion in which Desmond lives looks like it was out of a Von Stroheim film from the 1920's (this may have been intentional), perhaps even emulating Von Stroheim's last film, Queen Kelly (which starred Gloria), as well. Cecil B. DeMille himself shows up playing himself, and he has some of the best scenes. He comes across as warm and humanistic, and his sadness feels very real. One of the most remarkable and poignant scenes in the film is when a gaffer recognizes Norma Desmond, she acknowledges him, and he puts the spotlight on her. Everyone on the film that DeMille is shooting recognize her, and they flock to her with admiration and love. It's a beautiful moment, perfectly realised, and it shows while Billy Wilder may have been a cynical [...], he wasn't a complete, heartless [...].

The film has hardly dated at all (most of Wilder's work hasn't), and its cynicism, intelligence, and depth still sear the screen like no other film on Hollywood. This is arguably the best film ever made about Tinseltown. There have been many films on Hollywood (Altman's The Player is one of the best examples, but sometimes that's a bit too much inside), but this one remains the best. November 10, 2008

Oldie but goodie

A classic movie which i need to see about once a year. The camera work is excellent and the story line is believable. An excellent example of what hollywood used to produce. October 24, 2008

A movie for lover of movies

"Life which can be so minuscule had taken pity on Norma Desmond. The dream she had clung to so desperately had enfolded her."

Movie script writer Joe Gillis found him self in the sunset of his career. While escaping auto preprocessors, by accident or fait he turns into a driveway on Sunset Boulevard and begins a new chapter with a mysterious actress who is in the sunset of her career.

This play in three acts is packed with stars of the time. Many of the Stars and the writer reflect their real lives in the story. I am not going to bring up a list because they are fun to discover as they show up on the screen.

Even though the movie can hold its own and is worth re-watching, be sure to get a DVD with the audio commentary. The commentary helps you see what you are watching; it also covers the original beginning of the movie.

I have been tented before viewing this movie by watching then Carol Burnet version.
October 12, 2008

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