Sunset Boulevard was a fantastic movie on a number of levels. Directed by Billy Wilder and released in 1950, it almost defined the film noir genre. Though the genre noir was kind of defined after the fact--in that I mean it was not a bulleted list of requirements that were consciously produced but rather an overall feeling in American society that manifested itself in film during the post WWII-era. It seems to me that film noir is a kind of absurdist take on cinema; there are no 'good guys' and 'bad guys' but antiheroes. Antiheroes are realistic characters that are neither good nor bad, have selfish motivations, and may or may not reach a happy ending. They are not admirable characters, but are more realistic than the typical Hollywood ‘white hat vs. black hat’ characters. William Holden’s Joe Gillis is an antihero. Sunset Boulevard also has the stark black-and-white contrast, sweeping camera angles, voice over narration, and unhappy endings that are typical in film noir.
In Sunset Boulevard, Joe Gillis is a washed up, indebted screenwriter who stumbles upon an aging silent-movie actress. Norma, played by Gloria Swanson, is fresh from burying her pet chimp when Joe happens upon her decrepit mansion and quickly makes Joe her new pet. She enlists him to adapt her narcissistic, plodding epic of Salome, a biblical temptress who demands John the Baptist’s head on a platter. In a manner of speaking, Norma becomes Salome, eventually sacrificing Joe in order to once again gain notoriety.
Sunset Boulevard contrasts the two separate worlds of Hollywood especially present in 1950. At the time, aging actors of the silent movie era were still existent around Hollywood. A dichotomy between the aging grandeur of a past age and the new, youthful—and flippant---Hollywood is contrasted between Norma’s world within her mansion and the vibrant party scenes. Joe tries to be a conduit between the two worlds but gravely discovers the danger in an obsessive desire of fame too late.
There are so many allusions to actual pop culture the movie. King Kong, Gone With the Wind, actual directors and actresses and actors—all of this is included in the film in order to make it as realistic as possible. Gloria Swanson was, in fact, an aged silent movie actress; her manservant, played by Erich von Stroheim, was a silent movie director; Norma’s fellow bridge players were played by actual famous actors, including Buster Keaton. Billy Wilder wanted there to be as much reality in the film as there was meaning. It is interesting that all of these actors signed on to be in the film knowing full-well what was being said about their era of cinema. But it was a good thing they did. Sunset Boulevard became a Hollywood classic, as much a critique of itself as an ode to it.
In Sunset Boulevard, Joe Gillis is a washed up, indebted screenwriter who stumbles upon an aging silent-movie actress. Norma, played by Gloria Swanson, is fresh from burying her pet chimp when Joe happens upon her decrepit mansion and quickly makes Joe her new pet. She enlists him to adapt her narcissistic, plodding epic of Salome, a biblical temptress who demands John the Baptist’s head on a platter. In a manner of speaking, Norma becomes Salome, eventually sacrificing Joe in order to once again gain notoriety.
Sunset Boulevard contrasts the two separate worlds of Hollywood especially present in 1950. At the time, aging actors of the silent movie era were still existent around Hollywood. A dichotomy between the aging grandeur of a past age and the new, youthful—and flippant---Hollywood is contrasted between Norma’s world within her mansion and the vibrant party scenes. Joe tries to be a conduit between the two worlds but gravely discovers the danger in an obsessive desire of fame too late.
There are so many allusions to actual pop culture the movie. King Kong, Gone With the Wind, actual directors and actresses and actors—all of this is included in the film in order to make it as realistic as possible. Gloria Swanson was, in fact, an aged silent movie actress; her manservant, played by Erich von Stroheim, was a silent movie director; Norma’s fellow bridge players were played by actual famous actors, including Buster Keaton. Billy Wilder wanted there to be as much reality in the film as there was meaning. It is interesting that all of these actors signed on to be in the film knowing full-well what was being said about their era of cinema. But it was a good thing they did. Sunset Boulevard became a Hollywood classic, as much a critique of itself as an ode to it.
A loving critique from within ... I am really drawn to this kind of art, willing to point the finger at itself but not in a self-loathing fashion.
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