Billy Wilder's noir-comic classic about death and decay in Hollywood remains as pungent as ever in its power to provoke shock, laughter, and gasps of astonishment. Joe Gillis (William Holden), a broke and cynical young screenwriter, is attempting to ditch a pair of repo men late one afternoon when he pulls off L.A.'s storied Sunset Boulevard and into the driveway of a seedy mansion belonging to Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), a forgotten silent movie luminary whose brilliant acting career withered with the coming of talkies. The demented old movie queen lives in the past, assisted by her devoted (but intimidating) butler, Max (played by Erich von Stroheim, the legendary director of Greed and Swanson's own lost epic, Queen Kelly). Norma dreams of making a comeback in a remake of Salome to be directed by her old colleague Cecil B. DeMille (as himself), and Joe becomes her literary and romantic gigolo. Sunset Blvd. is one of those great movies that has become a part of popular culture (the line "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up," has entered the language)--but it's no relic. Wow, does it ever hold up. --Jim Emerson
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
DONT GET NO BETTER!! SWANSON AN HOLDEN DID THIS!! WHEN I WAS A CHILD I USE TO LAUGH AT THE ANTICS OF HARVEY CARMEN AND CAROL BURNETTS VERSION OF GLORIA AND HOLDENS MOVIE NOT KNOWING IT WAS AN ACTUAL MOVIE,WHEN I LEARNED BY MY AUNT WHO ALWAYS WATCHED THE OLD MOVIE CHANNEL THAT IT WAS A REAL MOVIE I HAD TO WATCH,MAN IT WAS A BRILLIANT WRITTEN MOVIE,THESE TWO BROUGHT THE CURTAINS DOWN IF U ASK ME AND I PLAN TO BUY IT SOON FOR MY AUNT WHO LOVES TO WATCH AN OL GOOD BLACK AND WHITE AND SHE WILL MARVEL OVER THIS ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1000 STARS ,GET POP CORN,A... more info
A masterpiece To put it simply: Sunset Boulevard is one of my favorite films of all time and a true classic.
Hollywoodland I just watched "Sunset Boulevard" for the first time. I absolutley loved it. I usually stay away from "black and white" movies, considering they are not from my generation. The only other old movies I've seen are "To Kill A Mockingbird", and parts of "It's a Wonderful Life". This one interested me because I work in the entertainment industry and I like movies about Hollywood. "Sunset Boulevard" puts new movies to shame. The acting and writing back then were so different. This film was written so perfectly... more info
Another great classic I've heard so much about this classic film and I really don't know why it's taken me this long to watch it. Gloria Swanson is my new idol. She absolutely owned every scene she was in. The fact that this film still hold true to this day is a testament to the genius that was Billy Wilder. Great script, wonderful, wonderful acting and direction. Today we watch fading stars of the past, try to cling on to an audience-any audience by means of reality television-all still ready for their close-ups. Brilliant... more info
Related
Sections
