There's a long tradition of filmmakers poking fun at the movie business. But no one bit the hand that fed him more viciously or with sharper fangs than Billy Wilder in Sunset Boulevard.
Not exactly a hot take here, but this is nothing short of one of Billy Wilder's best works and one of the greatest film noirs ever made. The narrative, the structure, the dialogue, the acting, the camerawork - this is one of those impeccably rare occasions where every aspect of a film is so unbelievably well-executed that it really doesn't age. An easy, easy classic and one that should be seen by many, if not all, at one point or another.
Although Billy Wilder's 1950 Hollywood noir Sunset Boulevard gets less attention as a travelogue, it's both an examination of the dark psychological landscape of out-of-fashion show-business types (as underlined by the title) and an actual trip through its physical environment.
Billy Wilder’s cynical edge is finely honed in this darkly amusing satire, which won three Academy Awards. It’s a film that is perennially ready for its close-up.
This brittle satiric tribute to Hollywood's leopard-skin past--it's narrated by a corpse-- is almost too clever, yet it's at its best in this cleverness, and is slightly banal in the sequences dealing with a normal girl (Nancy Olson) and modern Hollywood.
Billy Wilder’s paramount triumph of film-noir melodrama, piercing through the Hollywood industry’s utter callousness and an over-the-hill silent era actress’ poignant illusion of a comeback to garner the spotlight.
The film begins like DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944, 8/10), our ill-fated protagonist Joe Gills (Holden), a 30 something hack writer for the Hollywood studio, narrates beyond his grave to reveal the tragedy ending - as shown in a majestic shot from the angle of the bottom of a swimming pool (a trick done by putting a mirror in the bottom and shot from its reflection), a man’s body is floating on the water, facing down, and for sharp eyes, it is obviously Joe himself.
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On old Hollywood ass/Writer's ass writer's movie, in a good way. Really great performances but the suspense doesn't get there in the end for me. Awesome ending.
It is damn near impossible to say something bad about Sunset Boulevard. A classic in every sense of the word, this one shows why Billy Wilder's work is so critically acclaimed. Brilliant directed, paced, written, and some great acting from William Holden and Gloria Swanson, come together to form one of the most well-known and popular film noirs of all-time. Riveting throughout, this one tells the story of Hollywood gone wrong and really all comes together well. The narration and identity of the narrator were both great, great touches that really worked wonders for the film. The characters are all well-written and, oddly, sympathetic. Overall, Sunset Boulevard is a really cool film that I cannot recommend enough. Though it may not be my favorite film ever obviously, it is still really, really good and you can easily see why it has gotten the praise it has over the years.
On a déjà vu des films de ce genre qui traitent de vieilles gloires surannées du cinéma muet et qui n'ont pas passé le cap du parlant... et là blablabla... c'est le drame (si j'ose dire).
A l'époque en 1950, peut-être que ça interpellait un certain public nostalgique mais de là à en faire une patate chaude de presque deux plombes, faudrait pas pousser Mamie dans les orties. Donc c'est William Holden qui s'y colle et je n'ai a priori rien contre lui, car ce n'est certainement pas le pire bellâtre de ce temps-là. Loin de là, même.
Et William donc, scénariste minable devient gigolo à son insu ou pas totalement de la... (j'allais écrire la vieille bique, n'exagérons rien) de la vieille dame encore chouette mais pas tout-à-fait qui n'a pas encore imprimé que "le changement, c'est maintenant". La voix off tente de mettre du liant à cette histoire qui endormirait une tortue mais sans succès, hélas.
Parce que de toute façon, pour blablater ça blablate, ça déblatère et on pique du nez à vitesse grand V. La mise en scène de poisson crevé dans le coma n'aide pas non plus à tenir la rampe tandis que la "star" du muet est décidément très loquace et une caricature totale, sans nuance et sans talent, y compris jusqu'à la fin grotesque.
Remarquez, j'ai presque eu un film muet la plupart du temps : pendant qu'on accélére avec la télécommande, on entend plus leurs conneries. Ouf.