Joe (William Holden) is not a very successful screenwriter, who is chased by creditors; accidentally becomes a proofreader for a script written by a rich silent movie star who dreams of returning to business.
Norma / Gloria Swanson / - a movie star of the past, now living in seclusion and thoughts returning to former glory
Max von Meyerling (Erich von Strogheim) – Norma’s butler, who executes all her orders, knows his mistress as himself, and provides for all her desires.
Betty / Nancy Olson / - an editor in the script department at the film studio, who rejected Joe's latest script, but saw a talent in his other work; the girlfriend of Joe's friend
With what pleasure I revisited this tape, which opened for me William Holden in his time and struck in the heart. One of the best movies of the 50s, in my opinion. One of the best films about the world of cinema, because without any embellishment shows the underside of the industry and what mental transformations can happen to a person who at once lost fame, fans and other familiar things.
The incredible game of Erich von Stroheim for me in this viewing came to the fore. Last time, I only noticed Holden, who is young and superb here. And Gloria Swanson, of course, is a goddess who perfectly performed her role. At times it seemed like she wasn’t playing at all. But Strogheim! How many emotions in his views, addressed to the heroine of Gloria. How much pain, pity and love... Yes, you can see a lot only with subsequent revisions.
A new look at the history of Norma and Joe. The first time I saw something repulsive. Well, just Alphonse, just an aging lady who found another boy she loved. Now, I think it's all about pity. Then came despair. And self-loathing, but the inability to escape, the fear of the unknown and senseless floating with the flow. I wonder what I’ll see next time I watch the movie. I will definitely review it.
The story is amazing, the actors are amazing, everything, that’s all for me in this film is beautiful. One of my favorites. What can I say? I highly recommend it.
Unlucky screenwriter Joe accidentally meets former Hollywood star Norma Desmond, who lives as a recluse in his mansion on Sunset Boulevard with his faithful servant Max. Once she shone in a silent movie, but now everyone is forgotten and slowly goes crazy with loneliness. Sometimes she is visited by friends like the ghosts of old Hollywood. Joe has money problems and Norma still has money. And the young man decides on his bad head to play a little crazy actress. Well, what this will lead to, you will find out after the initial credits. This is the story, you probably know it, and now get ready to read my delights. Not the story itself, but the film itself.
Billy Wilder is a bloody genius! Sunset Boulevard is an absolute masterpiece! What scenes here, what brilliant dialogues - from the first to the final frames, from beginning to end, you experience admiration and aesthetic satisfaction with every scene, every frame! And the actors, my God, what actors there are! The great Erich von Stroheim as a chauffeur servant (with his backstory), Buster Keaton himself appears in a cameo role. Wilder gathered the stars of old Hollywood and gave them the opportunity to play themselves. But outshine all, of course, the divine Gloria Swanson. Half-forgotten by that time, the actress, thanks to the invitation of Wilder, was able to do what her heroine failed to do - regained her star status. What is it, Gloria Swanson hit the jackpot from fate, getting the main role in one of the best films in the history of world cinema! Yes, hysterical and too theatrical manners of Norma many viewers do not like, but this is also one of the main features of the picture. Gloria Swanson plays the silent movie star in the style of silent cinema. All these grins, bulging eyes, cutting manners, some overplay - this is all characteristic of silent films. Young actors play in a modern way (well, more precisely, by the standards of the 50s). "The Old Men" seems to bring the film back to the era of the "great mute." And it's a stunning contrast, a great directorial reception. The final scene is pure delight and splendor!
You have to watch. Everyone. Fans of the old movie - you have no right to ignore this film.
10 out of 10
Sometimes it seems that this or that thing could not but appear, because it belongs in this world. If A had not invented it, B would have done it, and if not B, then C. That’s what comes to mind when you watch Sunset Boulevard, a story that was bound to be formed-to-be born. If Billy Wilder hadn’t directed it in 1950, someone else would have directed it at another time. It wouldn't have been without her anyway. A film is a life that has been blotted out of boredom, as Hitchcock said. And people come to the movies to share the same dream, Bertolucci once said. Sunset Boulevard is both a boring and alluring novel about a woman living in the past and a man fleeing the present. Two opposites, the convergence of which was magnificently shown by the great master Billy Wilder. Money, withering house and hopelessly withering beauty almost once forgotten movie star against the lack of money, youth and talent of a Hollywood screenwriter drowning in the worldly sea. They talk with different views of the past and reality, but they understand each other. Two unsuitable people are connected by an agreement, and in this agreement both have hope. Meanwhile, everything is built on illusion, illusion rules everything and everything in this film. The illusion permeates the plot through, and this is the biggest and most exciting intrigue here. Distorted perceptions, ordinary human delusions, unsupported dreams and empty expectations, which, however, do not immediately seem empty. Life depends largely on chance, and tomorrow may happen to us what will appear to us as a long-awaited turn in life or even salvation, but do not forget that feeling able to change something and be able to change something is not the same. Cases usually help the able, and others and other people give only an illusion, and this is what Billy Wilder made his film, very aptly called it Sunset Boulevard. The genre of noir suggests that expectations will not be met, the very concept warns the viewer that the story will not end with happiness, a spectacular exhalation of the winner or at least a happy smile. No one will live long and wonderfully. But not only that, the heroes of Sunset Boulevard have no hope. She just can't be. The film industry, this ever-hurried, high-speed train that emits piercing horns, drops some of its passengers - throwing some out of the window, and gently lowering others on the platform, and immediately rushes to the horizon, and again it is impossible to find yourself in its compartment. It's a sad story, but it's life. Life without such stories is impossible.
Billy Wilder is an unsurpassed maestro of films of the noir genre, in his work you can mainly highlight comedic paintings, but 1950 gave world cinema an extremely controversial dramatic picture.
It is the story of a young, hapless screenwriter Joe Gillis (William Holden) trying to survive in Hollywood. An attempt to escape creditors inadvertently leads him to the mansion of the fading silent movie star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson). The further stay of the screenwriter in the house of the actress begins to lead him into oblivion, which has befallen the estate since the release of sound films.
The film caused a wave of criticism and negative reactions from the film community, because this is the first picture to expose the brutal behind the scenes of the brilliant Hollywood.
The script of the film deserves special respect. Charles Brackett created bright, different characters, harmoniously complement each other. Thus, the contrast of images of Norma Desmond and Joe Gillis is of particular interest to the audience, because of the opposite views on life and art. But their difference helped not only to convey the plot of the picture with the greatest accuracy, but also to introduce the audience to the state of dissonance necessary for understanding the film. It is also worth noting the writer’s reverent attitude to heroin. To reveal her complex nature, he needed, without introducing excessive psychologicalism, to describe Norma Desmond using the interior of the house, her acquaintances and the attitude of former colleagues in the workshop to her (" she was simply afraid of the outside world). What if the world would tell her that her time was over?
Editing played an important role in the film. To most vividly show the oblivion of the house of the actress Arthur P. Schmidt used the inflow of footage, as if immersing the audience in a state of peace and tranquility.
The musical accompaniment of Franz Waxman became a real gem of the film. It helps the audience to capture the emotional state of the hero. For example, it can be traced in the scene reading Joe Gillis manuscript actress, the episode is not accompanied by dialogue and any form of oratorical art, only music skillfully conveys the character of the scene. It also contributes to the best perception of the film by the audience, as it unpretentiously introduces them to the atmosphere and mood of the picture being viewed.
We cannot ignore the amazing directorial work of Billy Wilder. He was able not only to masterfully implement the idea of the screenwriter in life, but also was not afraid of criticism in his address after the release of the film. The director approached the choice of actors most responsibly, he invited silent movie star Gloria Swanson to the role of Norma Desmond and did not lose, because she was able to accurately convey the character of an eccentric, dreamy actress with amazing accuracy. For the role of Max's servant, Billy Wilder immediately gave Erich Von Strogheim. The choice of director was justified, since at the beginning of his career, Stroheim was an outstanding screenwriter and director of his time, his picture “Queen Kelly” can be seen in the film. Life circumstances and spiritual resemblance to the hero allowed Erich von Stroheim to convincingly bring his character to life.
The title of the film represents the plot of the film. Sunset Boulevard can literally be translated as the boulevard of the setting sun. Thus, the director compares the way of life of the heroes living in this place with the name of the film itself. Viewers before watching movies Billy Wilder gives a clear hint of one of the most important problems captured in his film.
Sunset Boulevard can definitely be attributed to the world classics, not only because of the revolutionary idea, but also for its ingenious embodiment, for emotions, the psychology of the characters and the remaining food for thought. Billy Wilder’s film can be revised many times, and each subsequent film will reveal the film from new unexpected sides.
Director Billy Wilder has directed many movie hits and Oscar-winning films. His late noir Sunset Boulevard is really interesting and good in every way: from a honed script, great acting to deep, ironic dialogue and dark, sinister music.
In an old, pompous palace on the famous Hollywood Boulevard, surrounded by her own portraits, films and decadent setting of past success, lives an elderly, lonely silent movie star. To his trouble here accidentally, desperately wanders a young, unclaimed writer-screenwriter and remains to live with the despotic diva in her full care.
It would seem that the plot is simple, but inside this spectacular detective drama, as in an old box with a secret, the background of the adaptive, cruel industry and the vicissitudes of real film life is revealed, which does not seem so dazzling and sinless.
While the main character lives in her majestic past and dreams of illusory, unrealizable spotlights, the movie has already become sound, soon it will be color, and in the near future the age of Golden Hollywood will end. Time is merciless and fleeting in this world and the age of cinema is short. But there are eternal films, samples of real, classical cinema, for which we love this amazing film.
10 out of 10
Screenwriter Joe Gillis can’t find a job, hides from creditors and is disappointed in everything. And now, hiding a car for which he has long overdue the next installment, he accidentally falls into a chic mansion on Sunset Boulevard. The mansion belongs to a half-crazy former silent movie star Norma Desmond, who can not accept the fact that she is forgotten, and plans to return to the screen with a film of his own script – peplum about Salome. Upon learning that the guy who accidentally came to her house is a writer, she asks him to help write the script. Relationships that began as purely working relationships quickly develop into love, but with reservations: Joe feels like an abuser, and the manners of an elderly lady who is used to being idolized are somewhat frightening. And Joe starts another novel, also on a professional basis. And the script is already being finalized, and negotiations about launching the film into production are about to begin, and no one dares to tell Norma the terrible truth: the cinema has changed, and no one needs her anymore.
How this episode from the secular chronicle ends, we are shown at the very beginning (what do you know about spoilers?). The whole film tells us how it came to this, how Joe gets acquainted with the backstage of silent Hollywood, Norma goes deeper into his madness, and the industry continues to work without paying attention to them. The plot is simple, but it’s really interesting to watch – it’s not a soap opera, but a dark story about the destructive relationship of the industry, which is accused of all deadly sins in the film: she threw Joe to the side of the road, as before she threw Norma, leaving her at a broken trough (albeit with a lot of money), she inspires people with false hopes for a brilliant career, and then uses them and spits out. The industry didn’t like the movie, by the way.
The acting is great. Gloria Swanson played the role of Norma. She brilliantly conveyed the slow but sure disintegration of her character's personality - hilariously, with homely performances, hopes and ambitions, Norma slides into her own world, in which everyone needs her and in which she is forever in her twenties. She's a vampire, slowly getting drunk with blood and looking for a bigger dose. Another memorable figure is the silent film director Erich von Stroheim, who played the butler Norma Max, who hides his skeletons in the closet and real feelings behind the manners of a home robot. There are other stars of the old movies of the 1920s and 30s, like Buster Keaton, playing themselves. But their roles are limited to cameos that are easy to miss. Only the director Cecile de Mille, who, according to Norma, should stage Salome, was able to really shine - it seems that a good actor died in it. But William Holden and Nancy Olson got more modest roles - their characters are still young and did not have time to turn into titans of the industry. But it was still well played.
Good camera work, especially in the house of Norma – there everything, to become the hostess, made in the spirit of silent cinema, and the final scene is completely stylized for him. Outside the mansion on Sunset Boulevard, everything is somewhat simpler, without monumental splendor, but also executed qualitatively.
"Sunset Boulevard" among the melodramas stands out in the same way - a magnificent mansion on a fairly ordinary street. This is a legend of the genre, a classic, a must-see, and just a beautiful, interesting and moderately serious film. Even the workers of the industry, throwing it dirty rags then, in the fifties, eventually recognized it as a classic of the genre.
10 out of 10
A classic film noir from director Billy Wilder, which for me personally was the first, and so far the only, film in this genre that I bothered to watch. The genre of me. Neither the film nor the film disappointed me.
True, somewhat weakly expressed intrigue and detective component of the film, which by definition should be the basis of the film-noir, but the story unfolds in a rather interesting way. And the feature that in parallel is the story on the screen and voiceover on behalf of the main character, which seems to clarify some details, gives the film its attractive shade.
It is also noteworthy that the director of the picture, in order to historically bring the picture and its characters closer to the times of silent cinema, invited the stars of this era to participate in it to perform episodic roles or to play themselves on the screen. So it was quite nice to see some familiar faces from old movies.
In general, it is good and interesting, but I want to note that by the end of the film there is a noticeable change in the game of the actors (who, as if knowing that the film is nearing the end, began to play in a relaxed state, allowing replay) and in the plot (which became predictable in almost every scene), which makes it seem that there is a lack of time to finalize the final scenes.
Paintings covering the problems of vice, money and vanity will always be relevant to a greater or lesser degree. Well, the phrase “I am a great star, it’s just that movies have become small” said by Gloria Swanson has long become popular.
Truly brilliant can be called the work of composer Franz Wakman, the sound is so dramatic, and in places wary and frightening.
In the film there is neither evil nor good, here is the life of Hollywood, with its pros and cons.
Sunset Boulevard is not so much a whole story as one of the late pillars of Old Cinema’s protest. The first to “speak” about this was Chaplin’s “Great Dictator” in the distant fortieth, while in this picture Wilder continued to bend the bar of protest, being, in fact, one of the last witnesses of the silent film era (for which, of course, he was pretty dirty).
What is good here is that the viewer does not see the specific position of the author, which is unknown as the representatives of MGM, but only a metaphorical boundary-clash of two worlds. And no one can argue that this is not true: a young and frivolous writer Joe, who interrupts from text to text, risks losing the most valuable thing he has – a car. A commercial adventure leads him to the territory of the once famous, but already fairly forgotten silent movie star Norma Desmond. Norma is insanely rich and just as crazy with the idea of going back to the screens, setting the heat for a new school, if you will. Gillis does not hide the fact that the old actress has already “expired,” but agrees to help, for some benefit.
And everything in the production is a conflict, starting with the presence of a real talent Erich von Stroheim, who at one time issued a simply brilliant "Avarice" and the games of the main actors Holden and Swanson. The latter, by the way, deftly apply the characteristic styles of the time displayed in them - Holden's character is somewhat daring, dismissive and young, but Mrs. Swanson's Norma is completely peaceful and theatrical pathos. Despite the monotony of the plot itself and the obviously open ending, it is very exciting to observe these mood swings.
In general, Wilder is a perfect example of directorial talent, which is not tied to any genre (as it usually happens). Bill has already shown that he can do serious drama (“Lost Weekend”) and that he can also write stories about love and even simpler, without a hint of loss of quality. And here Mayer would have to wonder whether the money is all about the screaming slogans about the "mother" who "fed."
I have long noticed that old films often (but not all) look calm and exciting, without the desire to rewind - if they look - they look from the beginning to the end, leaving behind a pleasant, different tartness, cultural aftertaste. Unlike modern attention-grabbing, but leaving an emotionally eviscerated void of feelings after watching. What's the difference? After all, both that and that commercial film created to make money.
Digging into his own feeling-feelings came to the allegory stated in the title review. Here you can even see more from political-economic 'bell tower' - mastering the new market, the company will go strictly from 'Economics' - to offer goods (films in this case) that may interest the buyer-viewer. After the mastering-saturation, there is a stage of retaining the market when product changes are no longer required, but an organized, planned income is required from the well-known fields & #39; - hence the clear genre division, and the cliché of scenario moves and an increase in purely visual impact on the client (graphics, colors, etc.). So it turns out that the seller who offered the goods turned into a skilled manipulator - a salesman armed with all the achievements of marketing and applied psychological technologies.
But the design 'Polyan' gives us the terminology for dissecting plot definitions. So this is open to elements of other genres of noir. Style is emphasized and voice-over commenting on behalf of the g, the presence of a fatal, albeit published in circulation, a woman, the tragic beginning - the finale and especially graphically accurately derived game-handling of the character from Gloria Swanson, whose magnificent sculptural upper body and especially the polished plastic head / face / eye mesmerizingly-attractive and move the plot in his ' Matryoshicity': a retired actress of silent cinema plays a retired actress in a silent movie, a silent movie game!
Well written and played the role of the character William Holden whose weak-character fluctuations are justified by the character shown.
But most of all, I was impressed by the scenographic techniques of the authors: what is like a deliberately read, but at the same time it is quite possible to be in ' real & #39; the scene is the light of the spotlight - there is attention, the lights go out, there is no transfer to new ' stars & #39; and there is no attention or even presence. And here's what's interesting in those 'stars' Narcissists or professional deformation initially tend?
Just a treat for the ears and eyes. Beautiful dialogue, beautiful scenes and actors.
Briefly about the plot from the point of view of the main characters: A young and attractive man, desperate to write another fascinating script, but without success. Now all in debt, preoccupied with his future, fate itself brings him to the threshold to Her.
An old woman who does not realize the loss of former glory, the success of former years. Anything that results from a productive past is a huge fortune. She can afford anything she wants. Why does the house and its surroundings look so abandoned? The classic truth is rich, not happy. This is a reflection of the heroine's mental state.
The film reveals both their strengths and weaknesses of the characters. And they open sharply, as if asking the audience: ' Well, they recognized themselves in this, right?'
In addition, it is also interesting to observe some moments of the life of Hollywood.
I especially loved the final scene. It was an amazing, very beautiful summary of what we had seen earlier.
Empress Boudoir
I've seen a lot in my lifetime.
Cavaliers of the string
They are now making her sad.
Irina Allegrova – “Empress”
More recently, some twenty years ago, the luxury of the Sunset Boulevard apartment was emphasized by the brilliance of outfits and the pathos of toast. Drink, as usual, for the hostess, art and cinema. The present is mute; he did not need written dialogue sheets or academically rehearsed speeches. The luxurious life of diamonds of spectator tears and oceans of scarlet roses maintained in the legend of its era a sense of exceptionalism. Try again, give up stacks of admiring letters and a wave of tempting sentences, but when the streams dry up, the reason lies in the movie itself. It shredded, they say. The owner of the dilapidated mansion Norma Desmond was able to convince the same exhausted celebrities that the reason for the wilting is not her. The point is, she believed. And the occasional visit of an unsuccessful screenwriter fleeing creditors in her garden was the beginning of the end of the former life of the star, who did not notice his own fading.
In the estate of the bronze prima of the big screen, time itself froze, but, unfortunately for Norma, at the wrong mark - a sad and not a day old story about going into circulation that crept up with the treachery of a burglar. Comediographer with a world reputation endowed her with the sound of satirical notes, but closer “Sunset Boulevard” to the tragedy – the tragedy of an outstanding personality. The royally stately Gloria Swanson played herself in the Billy Wilder tape, the type of star with an expired expiration date. Norma Desmond is a cruelly harmonious collective image of the director’s muse, who decided to outsmart nature. She was not the first to take risks: the dazzling Rebecca from the novel by Daphne Dumourier noticed hard wrinkles in the corners of her eyes and immediately decided to set the rhythm of life, switching to intrigue. And if she had coped with the first shock, she would have become something like Norma, which, not without the help of a butler, stuck in the mind of a thirty-year-old. In its own way, it is an interesting game that attracts the smell of deadly attraction; but when it has to be conducted in the company of other “wax figures” – then only Fortune’s smile and hope. Fortunately for one “gift” in a man’s face, she was generous.
The dryness of everyday prose cuts off the poetry of days gone by and betrays the weakness of human nature before the crunch of green banknotes. This hunter must be hungry, spurring the instinct of hunting prey, but the minister of art is of a different kind, and Joe Gillis' revelations to his young colleague Betty may be called the golden rules of the sweet life. A third-rate screenwriter, mediocre writer and sloppy type took refuge from debts on Sunset Boulevard and pulled out a lucky ticket, but the root was defective. About this hapless Joe, floated up his ass in a strange pool, and tells a classic story. Not for edifying purposes (well, you!), but rather sarcastically believing that times change and vices remain. And if the most phenomenal talent risks one day without regret being thrown out into the cold, but for mediocre people like Gillis it is usual to become like a bloodhound and go by the smell of big money. The irony in the fast-paced saturation: William Holden replaces a dozen costumes, but they decorate his hero with exactly the same “success” with which a home projector retains a catchy beauty in reality.
The sympathetic mood of Sunset Boulevard is no different. He is generally remarkably self-sufficient among other fifties noir. This is also the hallmark of Billy Wilder’s productions in general: Sabrina and especially Only Girls in Jazz are famous confirmations of this. The combination of sharp satire and deep drama on the one hand gives ease of presentation, and on the other evokes the tremors anticipated by Norma as Salome kissing the dead lips of John the Baptist. In the picture, the cemetery truth “all will be there” is cleverly changed. The amendment concerns a specific area, but is it really only in the movies, rolling to the sidelines, you cease to be necessary? In the tradition of a great director, the film is not without prudence, for which the impenetrable Erich von Strongheim is responsible. Butler Max in his performance is an illustration of how a true gentleman and in despicable status does not lose his dignity. The breed of birds of the big flight of the old era is still attracted by the tape, and not every retired film studio laughs Wilder. He beats on the cheeks and ridicules those who do not react to change and prefer the palaces of the kingdom of dreams to the simple realization that life is not yet over.
In the light of the excitedly raised spotlight, the face of the movie star shines as in previous years, but a kilogram of superimposed powder reminds of the senselessness and even harmfulness of self-deception. The fact that arrived in the pavilions of Paramount Norma recognize only an old guard and an elderly operator, do not want to laugh. As over the symbolic replica of the aged Buster Keaton - "pass." You can admire it. With regard to the picture, not subject to insidious time - a nice thing. Change the black and white picture to color, correlate outfits with fashion, give a resident of Sunset Boulevard "Rolls-Royce" mid-nineties, and here you have a youthful movie about eternal problems. Wilder mockingly avoids the role of judge representatives of the bohemian, preferring to illustrate their life in detail. And this tactic is as respectful as loyalty to a woman you love too much to be pushed under an icy soul of truth. Everyone has his own destiny, and elegant wisdom is a well-deserved honor.
Withering and loss of popularity in the artistic environment is perceived more acutely than in any other. Revanchist impulses are laid by nature itself, and when it comes to the star of silent cinema, they are strengthened a hundredfold. Yesterday’s empress of the big screen dreamed of stopping the inexorable flow of the sand of time in the glass clock of her life, but he cunningly fell further. The museum of the famous director was not even offered to go to mentors and share the secrets of success with young talents - it was simply put outside the filming pavilion and sealed with oblivion. Accustomed to the audience applause and oceans of flowers, Norma Desmond was trapped in her consciousness: they say, it was not she who grew old, but the movie shredded. An entourage of the same cast, looking at the evening bridge, the conviction of this only supported. It took the accidental intrusion of an unfortunate screenwriter fleeing creditors on the estate on Sunset Boulevard to start a grand comeback.
“Do not make an idol for yourself,” God bequeathed, but what about a woman who lifts herself up on a pedestal? Norma wandered in the realm of illusions, still young, fresh and hot, and a faithful butler accompanied through the alleys of dreams compactly fit in the dilapidated mansion. The tragedy of the outstanding actress is presented by Billy Wilder in a satirical manner. The natural comediographer beat the ever-relevant topic of the release with a theatrical effect designed to awaken sympathy along with censure. The presentation of the story is such that the viewer tunes in to a mocking wave at the mere contemplation of writer Joe Gillis swimming upside down in someone else's pool. And he hasn't yet told the circumstances of his death to the corpses in the morgue, as originally planned! Grotesque is everywhere, it evokes ambivalent feelings about the spontaneous novel of a third-rate screenwriter and star of bygone days. The nature of mutually beneficial cooperation, where one side gets the trappings of a luxurious life and the other gets the chance to play the role of a dream, illustrates the mores of the bohemian. Instead of intimacy - cynical calculation, instead of sincere participation - cunning game. With a pre-known, given the denouement in the first frames, the result. Wilder is more important than details, it is with their help that the picture of the world of spotlights is filled with brilliance and poverty.
The face of the old movie star again shines in the light of the spotlight, but kilograms of superimposed powder betray the metamorphosis that has occurred. It is significant that arrived at Paramount Norma sincerely welcome only an old security guard and an elderly cameraman. In fact, only they recognize her, while the actor’s growth mockingly exclaims: “Is she still alive?” DeMille’s reaction and the entire pavilion outline the true scale of the retired legend’s disaster. The era of sound cinema has come, the former symbols have fallen victim to circumstances, a merciless storm of change that breaks the inflexible. As Wilder explains, there are very different people in movie circles. Someone has the patience, intuition and insight to rebuild, and someone remains alone with a hundred of his portraits. Norma Desmond's case is not the most extreme, given Rebecca's reaction to wrinkles in the corners of her eyes in Daphne Du Maurier's novel. The owner of the Manderley estate twenty years later would be a copy of the mistress of the house on Sunset Boulevard. But unlike the book beauty, who embarked on an outstanding adventure, the cinematic was suitable only for pity and indulgence. The old car is more in demand than its owner! This is not even an irony on the part of Wilder, but a cruel sarcasm, a deafening crack, aimed, however, at bringing to life, rather than pushing finally into the abyss.
Gloria Swanson was more fortunate than her heroine: she played a role at the turn of the fiftieth birthday. The bright star of a bygone era shone for last. The impressive effect of Sunset Boulevard, which is isolated in the niche of classical noir, is largely due to its autobiography. Norma Desmond is a collective image of an expired prima, and how many? Symbolically, the appearance of the great comedian Buster Keaton, who popped in for a couple of moments to say embarrassingly: "Pass." The new generation always and everywhere replaces the old, sometimes not giving him the opportunity to say goodbye to the audience - over the past seventy years, nothing has changed since the premiere of the film. In the same way, yesterday’s idol becomes the object of ridicule when it fails to notice the great changes. But submitting to them does not mean turning into a caricature, and the example of butler Max is proof of this. A real gentleman and in a low status does not lose dignity, so why does a lady not have the opportunity to find herself in another role, and she should die in her boudoir?
But still, not every veteran of film studios laughs Wilder. He ridicules those who prefer the halls of delusion to the mere realization that life is not yet over. The director of the film “Only Girls In Jazz” never aspired to be a judge for the entire cast, and Sunset Boulevard is a balanced, instructive film where wisdom coexists with principledness. Dressed in an elegant witty wrapper, they give the tape immortality. Important things go very easy ironic tone. A respectful attitude, if you think about it, is worthless, if at the decisive moment you do not dare to shove your loved one under the cold shower of truth to protect from the fate of a walking rarity, whom everyone will remember not for talent, but for cowardice.
Before us is a film that brought its director Billy Wilder not only several Oscar nominations and victories in some of them, but also serious accusations against him, consisting in desecrating the film community that raised him.
The fact is that the film really, to put it mildly, does not like Hollywood and the film industry, in which it is so easy and easy to forget actors who have become unnecessary due to technological progress and changing trends.
We are shown the story of a young screenwriter named Gillies, who by perfect chance (although we all remember Woland’s precepts that no one just falls a brick on their head) falls into the house of a famous actress in the past, at the peak of her withering, as an actress, as a woman, as a person.
In fact, the main character in this film is certainly not a young screenwriter trying to make ends meet, namely, the famous in the past movie star Norma Desmond. The way her character is revealed, how, over time, she is consumed by the madness of understanding her very sad fate, is shown really well. And, just a few moments later, watching her madness, her hysteria on simple, seemingly simple things, you imbue this heroine with real pity and even warmth.
The world of the film industry is dangerous and, unfortunately for its residents, short-lived. Yesterday, the king of screens is forgotten and not needed. The harsh reality of that side of the set opens to the viewer the film Sunset Boulevard.
Joe Gillis (William Holden) in the very first frame shows us a corpse in the pool. How he got to “life” like this, Joe invites us to find out before this story is distorted and embellished by the media.
There he is, Joe Gillis, a Hollywood writer, sitting on the ground trying to write a text that can be sold. It's useless. And so the creditors are chasing him to take the car for a long default on debts. Hiding from them, Joe drives into a seemingly abandoned mansion or, as he himself called it, "the ghost of the mansion." But there lives in the past the queen of silent cinema, and now forgotten Norma Desmond – Gloria Swanson – who is still “swinging on the waves of fame, which is long gone.” Norma Desmond, obsessed with herself, wants to return to the screens, and Joe unwittingly becomes her “assistant”, calling it prison.
The film vividly reflects the severity and impermanence of the world of cinema. Also in the film sounds the idea that the viewer is not important writers, they only need actors. Unfortunately, this is true, few people are interested in who wrote the script, who was responsible for the shooting. The screenplay for Sunset Boulevard was written by Charles Brackett, D.M. Marshman Jr., Billy Walder. The latter is also the director of this film. Actors are only the ones who perform what is already invented. But most of the glory goes to them. The more painful it is to fall from a height when the waves of glory suddenly cease to swing. Some actors are replaced by others, directors and screenwriters are changing, and this is actually very sad.
In 1951, the film received 3 awards and 8 Academy Award nominations, as well as 4 awards and 3 Golden Globe nominations. At both awards, the Best Film award was received, which is well deserved, because the writers wrote well, the director staged well, and the actors played well.
The film was created in order for the viewer to see what is hidden behind a beautiful picture, how the world of cinema changes (mostly for the worse), breaks people. This film is especially important for those who want to connect their lives with it. But Sunset Boulevard is not aimed at making a person change his mind about becoming a resident of the world of cinema, but so that he was ready for the consequences.
Hollywood is the dream of millions; at first glance, the source of unshakable fame and wealth. But in reality, it is a cruel, merciless world in which only the strongest survive. In general, the dark side of Hollywood and the ghosts of forgotten stars is one of the most interesting topics in feature film. But only a few directors managed to present it in the right way, as Billy Wilder did in his cult noir Sunset Boulevard.
Synopsis Writer Joe Gillies is not having the best of times. He is poor, he has nothing to pay the bills, and creditors are determined to take away his car, which he is trying to hide in the garage of what he thought was a posh mansion on Sunset Boulevard. It turns out that in this house, hiding from the world, lives in the past silent movie star Norma Desmond. Joe accepts her offer to become a personal screenwriter, not assuming the consequences of this relationship.
Of course, the film is primarily worth noting for the excellent play of actors. William Holden as Joe Gillies played a desperate screenwriter, experiencing a deep creative crisis and looking for himself in this world, who had a unique chance to realize his dreams at the cost of his imprisonment in the Golden Cage. Also, it is impossible not to mention the game of Gloria Swanson in the image of Norma Desmond, who is so obsessed with the dream of returning to former glory that she ceases to distinguish the line between reality and fiction. Finally, we should mention Erich von Stroheim in the brilliant role of Max’s servant, who for Norma turns out to be more than just a butler.
For most viewers, the name of Billy Wilder is largely associated with the romantic comedy “Only a Girl in Jazz”, and in general with the comedy genre. Therefore, few people realize that this director also knew how to shoot piercing dramas. “Sunset Boulevard” can be attributed to the category of deeply psychological cinema. Throughout the film, he shows how fame can lift a person to the sky and at the same time throw him down, turning him into a star that few people remember. So that the viewer could feel the illusory world and complete loneliness in which the main character lives, Billy Wilder stuffed the film with various symbols, like a living room furnished with portraits, or a dead chimpanzee, whose funeral the main character paid so much attention.
The script of the film is a separate topic for conversation. Again, just a little bit about the plot. The film opens with a scene where police arrive at Norma Desmond's home. In the pool floats the lifeless body of Joe Gillis, who behind the scenes begins to tell the story that led him to such a fatal end, and the action is transferred to the past. Joe Gillis, an unemployed screenwriter who fails to sell his latest work to any studio, doesn’t know where to go. During a chase from creditors, the burst wheel of his car leads to the home of former star Norma Desmond. She asks the hero for professional help to help finish the script. Reluctantly, Joe agrees. However, the heroine becomes too attached to him, and out of pity, Joe becomes her lover. But Norma literally doesn’t leave Joe alone, trying to control his life. Such a mad passion, coupled with an irresistible desire to return to its former glory, create a dangerous tension in the house that will lead to a fatal shot.
Result Sunset Boulevard is really one of the best films. In addition, which shows the unpleasant side of the “beautiful” In Hollywood, he simply depicts the degree of degradation of a person when his obsession with fame and popularity knows no bounds, and he himself is ready to live in fantasy rather than accept what is lost.
10 out of 10
Sunset Boulevard is the boulevard of the setting sun. Of course, the picture belongs to the classics of world cinema. An exciting plot from the very beginning does not let the viewer go until the last minute, thereby forcing him to plunge headlong.
On the one hand, the “extinguished” star Norma Desmond, who is locked in her own small world and does not allow anyone to come to her except her butler (later the plot will put everything in its place) in some way disappointed in society, but not forgotten by her fans (this is purely her opinion). Her home looks more like an abandoned castle than a star audience. The image of Norma is very subtly conveyed by actress Gloria Swanson, who is herself one of the bright personalities of silent cinema. She like no other understands what fame and recognition are, but unlike her on-screen image, her fate has developed much better.
The second protagonist of the film is Joe Gillis, a loser screenwriter. Running from creditors, accidentally caught under the wing of the star and fell in love with her. Not really a bad person, but like anyone who has tried to make a profit. Caught under the bad influence of a flawed society becomes a victim of a “crazy” Norms. Not needed by anyone during life, he remains forgotten even after death. The role was performed by another equally brilliant Hollywood actor William Holden, winner of the Oscar and included in the list of "100 Greatest Cinema Stars" (level!!)
The film was directed by Wilder. He has about 100 jobs. Among them are cult: “In jazz only girls”, “Camp for prisoners of war N17”, “Sabrina” and others, many of which are highly revered in the history of world cinema.
Truly brilliant can be called the work of composer Franz Wakman, the sound is so dramatic, and in places wary and frightening. No wonder, no wonder that Wakman collaborated with such horror geniuses as Hitchcock and Cukor.
Paintings covering the problems of vice, money and vanity will always be relevant to a greater or lesser degree. Well, the phrase “I am a great star, it’s just that movies have become small” said by Gloria Swanson has long become popular. In the film there is neither evil nor good, here is the life of Hollywood, with its pros and cons. Final curtain.9 out of 10
I love black and white movies, but there aren’t many classic Hollywood movies on my list, and this one certainly isn’t. It seems to me that Hollywood tragedies and thrillers lack European charm. Quite successful, terribly cute they got light comedies and melodramas - today it is a rarity.
But more about Sunset Boulevard. Yes, quite an interesting story about the once great silent film actress, who fell out of the clip of movie stars with the arrival of sound films. The creators wanted to convey the already obvious (I think) idea that Hollywood is merciless, ' does not believe in tears' and so on and so forth. But in my opinion, this picture did not quite cope with such a task. Hollywood in it in all its unsightly form and cruel manifestation will not be enough, more arguments of the heroine about how great she is and how unfair that the era of silent cinema gave way to these chatty actors. It was possible, roughly speaking, ' to despise', to subject Norma to a real sobering humiliation in the presence of colleagues in the shop, which would then finally undermine her psyche. The image of Norma Desmond is too collective, consists of clichés, not humanized. Not enough of her soul, her real thoughts - all the buffoonery, play, hysteria - with all this overdone. This story wouldn't suffer from a little bit of psychology. By the way, it seemed protracted, despite the average duration. Two nights of viewing half the movie.
Who was on the screen the whole time? An eccentric, capricious, aging woman. The impression that she has always been this way and her madness, and megalomania are not the result of bygone fame, as the authors of the film hint.
And it is not clear whether they sympathize with this crazy movie star or more important was the attempt to show what the rotten film industry has done to her. The idea is clear, but I, as a viewer, counting deeply ' to be disappointed ' what is happening on the screen, to sympathize and be surprised, the film did not make an impression.
Not only do I not sympathize with the main character, but I also feel a fair amount of irritation until her last steps up the stairs. The attitude would be different, and the bitter end of pretty Joe Gillis would be forgivable if Norma suffered as a person, not just as a wounded actress. It makes her look ridiculous and pathetic. Holden's hero is a weak-willed, weak man, although he is more empathetic. I got into a stupid situation out of my own carelessness, but why was it worth it to endure an old woman, and then not in time to catch up? His motives are clear, but inconclusive. Respect is caused only by a conscious decision to leave Norma himself as a man, and not by hand with a girl in love who decided to save him from prison.
I won't say ' maybe I don't understand something' or ' I'm a weak critic' I'm not sorry for the time I wasted either. ' Masterpieces of world cinema' must be viewed, but not with the aim of dispelling the myth of their greatness, but to make your own opinion without claiming 'fia, and this you call a masterpiece, the same to me!'. The film is a masterpiece - for someone - it was, is and will be, but for me.
In a huge dilapidated mansion on Hollywood Boulevard lives aging silent movie star Norma Desmond. All her thoughts and dreams are in the past, when she was young and beautiful, and the magnificent Rudolph Valentino bathed in the pool of Norma’s house. But the era of silent cinema has sunk into oblivion, and with it its heroes. Norma can’t accept the loss of popularity. She invents her own world, where fanfare, flowers and universal worship are all hers. In her blindness, Norma does not notice that she has only one fan left - butler Max.
That's such a contradictory nature and breaks in, fleeing creditors, unsuccessful screenwriter Joe Gillis. Norma decides to get a handsome young man and buys him. Money, things, blackmail. And Joe does not have the strength to give up the humiliating role of Alphonse with a rich, eccentric woman.
But Joe can't live long in a vault of faded hopes. He wants to live, breathe, drink wine, love young beauties. Only Norma is not ready to let him go.
The film is black and white, shot in a theatrical manner, but very beautiful. It opens for us the veil of the world of the film industry of America at the beginning of the last century, the drama of actors who “went into circulation.”
The main character seems to be drawn from another lady - Miss Havisham from "Great Hopes" by Charles Dickens. No wonder the reference to this work is at the very beginning of the film.
Anyone who is interested in American classics and just a good movie must watch.
8 out of 10
At first it seemed like it was going to be disgusting boredom, but I was surprised that despite the year (damn it’s been 66 years!), it was technically well filmed and not disgusting with the sound. I got into the soul moment with the organ, with the music of the right scene and the transition to its source. As well as romantic moments with the girl co-author of his script (girl weakness).
The film, not close to me, but entertaining story. Having laughed more than once, I sincerely sympathize with each of the heroes, especially those in love with a dying, smoldering star, his self-sacrifice is amazing to me.
I am not a special connoisseur of cinema as such, but I would recommend this thing to watch, at least just out of interest.
The fascinating film-noir is primarily attractive with its history, where the star of world cinema, literally languishing in her own cage made of gold, falls in love with a second-class male screenwriter who accidentally lost his way in her house and as if at the age of 16 he almost physically loses his head, giving gifts, useless things, money and other things, not wanting to give or share his only happiness with anyone under any conditions and in no case.
This story reveals completely different aspects of the human soul. There are also questions of careless, sweet nostalgia, from which we cannot get away because of our attachment to it and unwillingness to admit that the time when we were young and strong has long passed. Here the guise of narcissism is exposed, and on behalf of both women and men. In "Sunset Boulevard" shows how much a person can get obtrusive on another person, and how can be a two-faced hero who seems at first sight quite good, and even more, a good character. That the desire to live on a "big foot", and doing nothing, but only deceiving the sincere feelings of another, is inherent in many people, and this crumb of the nature of Alphonse can be inside every man, even if he does not suspect it. And self-admiration and own praise unexpectedly, or knowingly, can manifest in any girl or woman. That is, in this movie, first of all, human souls, hidden thoughts and lusts not known to them themselves are understood, addressing the viewer to the worked-out, necessarily living persons that the picture boasts of - this is wonderful. And acting work, whether it’s William Holden (Joe), Gloria Swanson (Norma), Nancy Olson (Batty) or Erich von Strogheim (Max), only finally completes memorable, full-fledged images that have both motivation and history, which will also be filled with some unexpected twists of fate that eventually played at the end of the film.
By the way, you do not expect such a finale, although his presence is outlined immediately, you still cannot understand how this happened until the very end, and when you realize it, you get a sincere delight from the work of writers: Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder and D. M. Marshman Jr. At the same time, the production itself plays a huge role, with its stylistics clearly relating itself to noir and perfectly supporting the image of this genre, for which we should say a second thank you to Billy Wilder, who, like Kubrick in his early works, managed to exalt the noir genre to the top, showing a picture worthy of the works of Lang and Hitchcock, during the years of his fading.
This is not a drama of one person, it is a drama of many people. The similarity of the general specifics can be compared with the “Birdman” González Iñárritu, but here the analysis of human souls goes much deeper, because it is considered banal more, in fact, souls. Nostalgia, which is in fact the grave of talent, self-made madness, pliability of a “beautiful life”, endless devotion and self-sacrifice, as well as finding yourself and finding someone in love with whom you can not be for various reasons – what it is, what it is and how it affects people. The film not only answers such questions, it at the same time gives fertile ground for reflection, because in any problem the viewer will definitely find himself, which is already, in fact, the reason - this is how cinema should be.
P.S. Thank you very much.
Attention, attention! He speaks and shows Central Television. An attacker known as Sunset Boulevard is wanted. After a series of crimes of varying severity committed recently: turning a world star into a wax figure, turning a talented director into a servant and a promising screenwriter into a slave, he did not calm down and shot a man. The murder was committed last night with the help of a famous accomplice - none other than the Cinema is involved in the case. According to our information, the Cinema has already been seized, and at the moment he is being questioned by law enforcement agencies at the police station. He denies all involvement in yesterday’s events, changes in mood and fiercely demands a lawyer. There is no information about the location of the Boulevard. People, be vigilant! Please provide any information on the phone specified in the running line.
Director Billy Wilder, imbued in the forties atmosphere of noir and gave the world one of the best representatives of the genre “Double insurance”, with the start of the new decade decided to return to the subject and became one of those who opened the milestone, which is now called “late noir”. In his film, the most wretched and worthless representatives of Hollywood of those years, who absolutely do not want to empathize, met face to face. The happiest one here is the agent who says to the hungry and about to be evicted employer, "Do you need $300?" I could give them to you, but do you realize that the best scripts come from poverty? The rest of Hollywood has already chewed and spit out. Some are completely resigned to their fate, but some are trying to grasp the very straw that can open the second wind of their career. And here, as in sports, all means are good. Lies, betrayal, cynicism, hovering in the clouds - all this is about our heroes. Those traits of character, about which it is better to keep silent in decent society, are distributed unevenly here, but densely - as in a comic picture, when God wanted to drop a pinch on the Earth, and the jar suddenly opened. Most importantly, expressions such as “I’m from an acting family!” (when my mother is a make-up artist and my father is an electrician) and “I’m expensive, $500 a week” (when I have a battered dozen in my pocket) do not add to the stories of comedy. The whole story is a drama about lost souls. There are absolutely no positive characters, and all the experiences of the viewer are concentrated on the detective part of the plot and near-Hollywood thoughts adapted to our modern life, because the relevance of the problems of the characters of the film for more than half a century from its creation has not become less.
They gave themselves to cinema, but what did cinema give them in return? Glory? Money? Popularity? Maybe maybe... But not happiness. You will not see any happy person in the picture. Embroiled in lies and empty hopes, the heroes of the film can hardly stop. They deceived everyone, even themselves. Horrifyingly, they are happy to be deceived and live out this life rather than live it. The philosophy is clear, everything is like the classic – “To be or not to be?” And Wilder's questions are not veiled, but quite transparent. Trying to squeeze into the skin of the hero, the viewer during the viewing repeatedly faces a choice of two options and always misses. This is Sunset Boulevard, and simple human logic doesn't work here. And if you want to swim in the pool, and not vegetate in the poverty-stricken basement, where once sent his hero Bulgakov, you just have to answer the opposite of what your soul commands. Symbolic is the scene that would have closed the third act if the film had been a performance (there would have been four acts in total). A silent movie star leaving the studio she visited for the first time in 20 years with tears in her eyes. She's happy, because a young man has just gathered around her and devoured his eyes. And even the viewer is momentarily happy. However, the fact that she will no longer be acting in films, her script is terrible, and there was no point in coming to the studio, only encourages the cry of one of the young people: “Norma Desmond?” I thought she was dead ...” The last nail in the coffin of both the fame of the actress and fleeting audience happiness drives the finale of the scene – a phrase directed by Cecil DeMille, from which it becomes clear that he never wants to see her again. Twenty years ago, she was everything to him.
Obviously, the director had to make this film in a noir atmosphere. Ninety percent of the scenes were shot at night, completely removing from the narrative the remains of light tones. The mansion chosen for filming is strikingly organic for a motley crazy company. There are doors without locks, a home theater, a swimming pool, and old photos hanging everywhere, and an organ that periodically begins to play without human help. The chance to go crazy in such a house increases significantly. And the fact that the protagonist decided to adopt an alternative to sleeping in galoshes under the leaky ceiling of the outbuilding, moving to a castle house, may be the worst decision of his life. The operator, whose task was to escalate tensions even when the narrative left the mansion, also brilliantly coped with the work. Whether there are two, three or thirty people in the frame, the shooting does not cause complaints, the feeling of one’s own presence does not fall below a certain high bar. But most of all, it helps to keep the viewer stunned by music. The same organ, musicians on the heroine’s birthday, as well as deftly inserted sketches by Franz Waxman are perfectly combined with the tension that does not go to zero throughout the action. And, by the way, the efforts of the composer were not in vain: the film won the nomination “Best Soundtrack” at the Golden Globe and Oscar in 1951.
Shot hastily, without a ready-made script, Billy Wilder's film has long been a classic. Some see it as allusions to the fall of Hollywood, some as an ordinary drama about a negligent screenwriter, and some are not at all ready to recognize a film masterpiece in it. One can partially agree with each of the sayings, but I do not see him as a competitor in the nomination “Film in which the cruelty of the film industry was most vividly shown”. This doesn’t mean that people who aren’t filmmakers aren’t going to be close to the movie, because who hasn’t thought about how good we are at what makes us money, and how long it will last? Wilder made humanity wonder if its evolution was going in the right direction, further strengthening its position as a master of drama. Comedic triumphs awaited him.
Billy Wilder is one of the most important directors of the past. And the main masterpiece of his life is Sunset Boulevard. The fact is that few films noir have a second bottom, an additional meaning that is not understandable to everyone. Sunset Boulevard is a pleasant exception. It tells about the fate of silent film actress Norma Desmond, who can not accept the fact that her time has passed, that she is no longer young and is not needed by modern directors. She lives her roles and dreams of returning to the cinema, not realizing that this is no longer possible. The film itself became a kind of metaphor, the main message of which is not to live in the past. They can be admired, remembered with trepidation, but we must continue to live today, albeit not so beautiful.
Sunset Boulevard is also a very beautiful film. Black and white picture, luxury cars of the forties, chic interiors of Norma Desmond’s house – as a result, the cinema has its own unique style. And, of course, the thick atmosphere inherent in many noirs of those years. Anyone interested in the era of classical noir will get a lot of fun from viewing.
There can only be one result – we have one of the best film noir. Sunset Boulevard came out so unique and unusual that it is worth seeing in general for everyone, regardless of genre preferences.
A film by Billy Wilder about the life tragedies of an aging film actress and a young unclaimed screenwriter.
Shot in the fashionable genre of noir, /noir (French film noir - "black film") / the film was nominated for eleven Oscars, / received three /. The main roles starred William Holden, / according to the version of the American Film Institute, occupying the 25th place in the list of "100 Greatest Cinema Stars" / and Gloria Swanson, / starred in silent films, in particular, as a partner of Charlie Chaplin /. In addition, in the role of himself, the film starred director Cecil de Mill, / repeatedly previously shot Gloria Swanson /.
So, the Hollywood of the fifties. The screenwriter, Joe Gillis, a typical loser, can not attract the attention of the bigots of cinema. By the will of fate, he enters the home of silent movie star Nora Desmond, now almost forgotten by fans. For many years, she dreams of returning to the screen and writes the script of the film “Salome” with which she hopes to return to the big screen.
It is not so simple that our desires are consistent with reality. Life flows, changes and dictates its laws. It's not easy to adjust to them. The young are coming in, hot, brave, talented. And they make a different movie. They remember the great Nora Desmond, they revere her, but they don't understand her. They don't understand. She has already played a role in the history of cinema.
Not understanding or trying to understand what is happening in the world of cinema, Nora Desmond hires Joe Gillis to write the script Salome. But in the process, she loses her head with love. Joe Gillis himself, of course, understands that he is parasitic at the expense of his dream, his employer. But after it begins to burden the role of “Alphonse” and he tries to break free.
This is the first plan.
The second plan is no less dramatic.
Two artists, an aging actress and a young screenwriter. Both are filled with ambition. Wallpaper cannot fit into the harsh world of the film business. Everyone has a delicate vulnerable soul, and the film market requires spectacles. Film producers are everywhere, they do not invest money, films should make money.
But what is the life of an artist, not understood by contemporaries? An artist who is not noticed and does not want to notice.
Here is the tragedy of the Creator, to try to convey to humanity the great, good, eternal and at the same time does not want to understand that lives in the world of pustygan.
But this is the life that makes the tragedy that ended the story right.
Morality for a film is as necessary as mother’s care and care is for a child. This is an integral part of any, so to speak, film that will be interesting to an intelligent and sane person. And this picture is a vivid example of resourcefulness and even genius, since the monologue of the “dead character” was first used. His story, the end of which is tragic for him, is imbued with moral themes, in general, quite familiar and already ordinary - greed, ambition, vanity, but the author of the tape contrasts all this with the main virtue of the film and this is not love, it seems to me the highest feeling - compassion. After all, the main characters of the film (William Holden and Gloria Swanson) are somewhat similar to each other, namely their professional failures. Only that still not all is lost and he clings to the "protrusion", and Norma Desmont - in the past, the great actress of silent cinema, everything is long over, and this was understood by everyone, except for Norma herself, who is trying to forget herself in the world of her dreams, lives in her mansion, chic, but abandoned, no different from the actress herself. Not so much the acting influenced the success of the picture, as the use, so to speak, of the “literature” of the film brought him extraordinary. Reminiscent of Bresson in his films about a priest and about a prison prisoner, only the great Frenchman, in my opinion, transferred the hero’s diary to the screen, a person was important to him, and the director of Sunset Boulevard moved the whole novel to make it clear to the viewer what the relationship between the main characters of the film was - there are already two characters.
In this wonderful film, I remember two moments in particular: when Norma goes into the bedroom with a moisturizing mask on her face and when the so-called “pig’s eye” takes the spotlight away from Norma at the direction of the director. These are two very revealing points: they point to Mrs. Desmont's mental state and to her despair, multiplied by the loneliness and seclusion of life. In the first moment, the light goes out in the crevice from the castle. Billy Wilder, I think what I meant by this is that Norma lost hope along with her sanity, and she will not become a normal person living not with dreams of fame, but with love for a loved one and most likely the darkness that ensued in this opening of the door lock heralded the “darkness of inner peace.” Norms.
In the second moment, when the light moves away from Desmont and her friends in an instant leave the star. She became useless without the fame and fame that went with her films into oblivion. Again, the whole despicable human essence, especially in the creative sphere, which the author of the film emphasizes repeatedly - cruelty in the film industry.
I remember one quote of the main character, uttered unconsciously and in visions of the radiance of his life, that is, in a fit of recklessness. The stars have no age! whispered Norma after three shots at the unfortunate writer, whose fate changed dramatically after turning into the courtyard at 1086 Sunset Boulevard.
9 out of 10
Vanity in all its manifestations envelops the minds of men with a sweet haze. Not everyone, but those who fall into this ghostly embrace need to always be aware of the line between the real and the world of expectations and created fantasies. After all, life, real life can play a cruel joke and hurt the pride of a person so much that he literally loses the thread of what is happening and rolls towards the inevitable tragedy of the individual.
Hollywood, with all its secrets, alluring laurels and brilliant tinsel, is not without reason called a dream factory, where the seekers of fame and money in an endless stream go to the intangible good, and try to implement their, as they think, believable plans. How many were there and how many more will there be? The question is rhetorical, which, in fact, does not require an answer, but their fate always finds a place in the minds of the inhabitants and should serve as an edification.
One of these small, in comparison with the total number of tragedies was the Hollywood fairy tale of Joe Gillis. Already broken and trampled by the heavy foot of the film industry, he is on the right path to realizing the futility of his stay here and the waste of his time. Circumstances drive him into a dead end of poverty and total inner self-destruction. But the road always has its turns and corners, one of which leads him to the apogee of his dreams, but he does not yet know about it.
Holden's character is not so much expressive as average statistical. Weak, indecisive and suspicious, typical adapter. That was his job. To be, not to seem like another of many. Another story that would not be so memorable were it not for the evil joke of fate, thanks to which he finds himself in a mousetrap like a small gray mouse. Mysterious, trembling in his knees gloomy, huge, abandoned among the pale bluish hills, the mansion turns out to be the home of an unnecessary screenwriter. But also the habitat of the legendary once silent movie actress named Norma Desmond performed by Gloria Swanson. Her heroine, having survived the brilliant peak of her career, became hostage to the illusory world of self-deception, without which her life would have no meaning.
Interesting and impressive collective image embodied his game Swanson. On the one hand, it acts as a tribute to the work of the great silent film actresses, and on the other, it appears as a set of the most recognizable and clichéd features of its prototypes. She is a star, with all the necessary psychological attributes: a complacent, odious, unshakeable and at the same time defenseless and naive, abandoned woman. Her proudly perceptive look, like an X-ray that shackles the mind and the senses, but it hides a deep longing. The actress manages to convey the elusive spirit of fame and power to which she has already become accustomed, and the absolute rejection of the idea that her time has gone irrevocably.
The grotesque that Wilder uses to create the image of Norma fills literally everything, from appearance, thoughts and ending with a golden but dilapidated cage in which the heroine is enclosed. Not the last in the strengthening of the influence of the image was the age opposition of the young and full of strength and hopes of the character Holden to this gloomy and dull woman from the poster thirty years ago. Interacting within the framework of common, initially professional, interests, the characters go to the realization of mutually beneficial coexistence, which must have its price.
Not an outside observer of the action and another colorful character was the caretaker of the monastery of the former glory of the film star, Max performed by Erich von Stroheim. It is he who, as if a warning of fate, appears before the screenwriter, having arisen out of nowhere and striking with his cold piercing in every movement. Like a shadow he hangs over the hero, like a hunchback Igor from Frankenstein, and each time inspires fear. Strogheim's game is something. So deeply and with such drama, he presents this image to the viewer, creating the brightest film character of the turn of the 40s - 50s.
The resulting triangle is so unusual and unpredictable in its interaction that sometimes you expect a surge, as if a storm is about to break out. But no, the action is also monotonous, which contributes to even greater inner anxiety. The main character gradually realizes that he benefits from such existence and with this his image changes. This is no longer a simpleton, hungry for fame and money, he is well settled under the wing of Madame Norma, he is fine. But at the same time, a clear understanding of the fragility of relations and internal reflection push him to take a decisive step.
The closed world of the main characters is contrasted with the bright and dynamic life of Hollywood. The parties and everyday chores of people at film studios are another plane for the main character, where he can not, and closer to the climax can not return due to his own alienation. He sees the other side of the coin every day. The only ray of hope, the director decided to make Betty Shafer - a modest appraiser of future scenarios, who ironically, without knowing it, sent the hero to Sunset Boulevard by her refusal.
A truly grim and at the same time attractive and exciting story you watch throughout the entire minutes of the film. Black and white shade complements the atmosphere of what is happening and gives an even greater effect, largely due to high-quality camera work and soundtrack. Bravo to Wilder, who so realistically showed everyone the ruthless life of Hollywood remnants of the past, chewed by society and forgotten as unnecessary. Despite the fact that the characters for the most part turned out to be diluted with a touch of irony. But the irony is so bitter and sometimes pathetic, but appropriate and justified.
Time runs inexorably. It witnesses the rise and fall of thousands of human destinies that are so similar to each other. The same desires, the same mistakes and feelings. That's what this movie is about. Classic noir and all world cinema in the excellent presentation of Billy Wilder.
How many plot lines, how many destinies, the choice of the conscious and not conscious ...
It is enough to try on Joe Gillis, enter into his image and follow his path. We pay tribute to the great actors, the inimitable director and ... and the screenwriters, because this is their masterpiece, a masterpiece that can not be called a movie - life, this is a more appropriate word; a life in which there is no game after rules, life is full of feeling; a life in which it is so not easy to find and preserve something important and expensive; a life in which everyone is himself a director, writer and actor ... that's just ... there are other moments when the tire bursts, when various hopes, desires, scenarios come into action random (?) circumstances; in which there is so much struggle ...
No, you're not going to see games in the movie, you're not going to find anything that looks unreal, fictional, anything that didn't happen in the 50s, 60s, even in the 2000s. We opened the book of life, painted it with pictures, squeezed to two hours ... but to understand the value of this gift, you need to experience something like this ... you need to try on yourself ... look at the world from the point of view of an unfortunate writer - a debtor, a rich but lonely star of black and white cinema, a butler-director who dedicated himself, sacrificed for ... what?, a young girl reviewer, with boundless desire and desire ... what?, an old friend of a former star who did not want to disappoint, who remembered that good.
In general, enjoy yourself, imagine yourself in the place of actors, live their lives and... and you will find out – cinema or life.
10 out of 10
She is a half-forgotten silent movie star Norma Desmond, living in a dilapidated mansion, surrounded by ghosts of the past.
He is the hapless screenwriter Joe Gillies, who teemed with postwar Hollywood. Debts and problems accidentally bring him to the actress’ house, and his life has changed dramatically since that day.
Genius noir with no less brilliant Gloria Swanson, a silent movie star who essentially played herself. They say this is the greatest film in America, next to which you can put only “Gone with the Wind”. From the moment Norma Desmond pulled off her glasses in a performance of Swanson and I saw her half-crazy furious look, I realized that I had never seen the greatest female actress.
The film is an extravaganza, with the “wax figures” of silent cinema of the 20s, living out their years in the heyday of so hated sound cinema.
As a person interested in photography, I was simply struck by the chiaroscuro of the film, an unusually tragic and sharp drawing on Gloria’s face.
Whether it is the grotesque emotionality of Norma Desmond, the tragicomy of her faithful butler, or the attempts to be decent hero William Holden, everything looks so modern and vivid that you forget that this picture is more than half a century.
This is not done anymore, and it seems that all the newfangled digital technologies still look pale next to the film of the Paramount studio of the 50th year.
10 out of 10
Young screenwriter Joe Gillis unsuccessfully tries to find his place in Hollywood, but his work remains unclaimed. One day he accidentally falls into a mansion on Sunset Boulevard. The owner of the mansion is famous in the past “screen star” Norma Desmond. Aging Desmond does not want to admit that she is completely forgotten by the public and is not needed in modern cinema. She actually takes Gillis hostage, and he is torn between the work of the writer and the fate of the gigolo.
Billy Wilder is best known as a comedian. On his conscience. Only girls are in jazz.” But for the sake of justice, he has always been characterized by a special cynicism and irony. In "Sunset Boulevard" he revealed in this hypostasis in the absolute.
With the mandatory melodramatic attributes of Hollywood cinema of the late 40s, this is primarily a film about the specifics of Hollywood morals, the destruction of illusions, the underbelly of the life of “stars”, the omnipotence of producers, etc. The film is also a kind of nostalgia for silent cinema, the heroes of which have gone into oblivion, but were called by Wilder as episodic actors.
No wonder the main conflict develops between the screenwriter and the actress with the director. Wilder's Dream Factory turns into a "nightmare factory" with a bitter filling of disappointments. What is characteristic of the "Oscar" race in 1951 "Sunset Boulevard" competed with "All about Eve" - a drama about the mores of theatrical New York. In the battle of two megacities, the latter won, but today’s viewers can equally be interested in both works, sealed with the seal of truth about the life of the “stars”, not so glamorous and joyful for everyone who fell into this world. The audience quickly forgets its heroes.
10 out of 10