Rent Sunset Boulevard (1950)
4.2 of 5 from 341 ratings
1h 46min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond, an ageing silent film queen, and William Holden as the struggling writer who is held in thrall by her madness, created two of the screen's most memorable characters in Sunset Boulevard. Winner of three Academy Awards, director Billy Wilder's orchestration of the bizarre tale is a true cinematic classic. From the unforgettable opening sequence through the inevitable unfolding of tragic destiny, the film is the definitive statement on the dark and desperate side of Hollywood. Erich von Stroheim as Desmond's discoverer, ex-husband and butler, and Nancy Olson as the bright spot in unrelenting ominousness, are equally celebrated for their masterful performances.
- Actors:
- William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson, Fred Clark, Lloyd Gough, Jack Webb, Franklyn Farnum, Larry J. Blake, Charles Dayton, Cecil B. DeMille, Hedda Hopper, Buster Keaton, Anna Q. Nilsson, H.B. Warner, Ray Evans, Jay Livingston, Fred Aldrich, Joel Allen, Gertrude Astor
- Directors:
- Billy Wilder
- Producers:
- Charles Brackett
- Writers:
- Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder
- Others:
- John Meehan, Arthur Schmidt, Ray Moyer, Sam Comer, Franz Waxman, John F. Seitz, Doane Harrison, Hans Dreier, D. M. Marshman Jr.
- Studio:
- Paramount
- Genres:
- Classics, Drama
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch if You Like Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, 10 Films to Watch if You Like: Licorice Pizza, 21 Reasons to Love, 21 Reasons to Love... Ingmar Bergman, A Brief History of Old Age on Screen: Part 1, A History of Cinemas in Films, A History of Films about Film: Part 1, A History of Gay Cinema: According to Hollywood, All the Best: A Celebration of New Year Movies, Award Winners, Brando: A Centenary Celebration, Drama Films & TV, Films to Watch If You Like..., Getting to Know: Denzel Washington, History of US Presidents in Cinema: Part 2, Holidays Film Collection, JFK on Screen, Oscars: Winners & Losers, Paramount's Laughing Thirties, A Brief History of Film..., The Instant Expert's Guide, The Instant Expert's Guide to Steven Soderbergh, The Instant Expert's Guide to: Billy Wilder, The Instant Expert's Guide to: Rainer Werner Fassbinder, The Instant Expert's Guide to: Wim Wenders, Top 10 Golden Bear Winners, Top 10 Screen Kisses (1896-1979), Top 100 AFI Movies, Top Films
- Awards:
1951 Oscar Best Art Direction Black and White
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 25/03/2013
- Run Time:
- 110 minutes
- Languages:
- English Dolby TrueHD 1.0, French Dolby Digital 1.0, Portuguese Dolby Digital 1.0, Spanish Dolby Digital 1.0
- Subtitles:
- English, English Hard of Hearing, French, Portuguese, Spanish
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Sunset Boulevard: The Beginning
- Sunset Boulevard: A Look Back
- The Noir Side of Sunset Boulevard
- Sunset Boulevard Becomes a Classic
- Two Sides of Ms. Swanson
- Stories of Sunset Boulevard
- Mad About the Boy: A Portrait of William Holden
- Recording Sunset Boulevard
- The City of Sunset Boulevard
- Franz Waxman and the Music of Sunset Boulevard
- Morgue Prologue Script Pages (HD)
- Deleted Scene (HD)
- Hollywood Location Map
- Behind the Gates: The Lot
- Edith Head: The Paramount Years
- Paramount in the '50s
- Galleries
- Theatrical Trailer (HD)
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Reviews (3) of Sunset Boulevard
'All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up' - Sunset Boulevard review by CP Customer
I was expecting big things from this picture and it delivered! I instantly loved the direct opening, very film noir. There are some killer scenes, most of which contain Glora Swanson, who commanded every scene she watched, she was incredibly believable and a quote that sums her character up is ‘I am big. It’s the pictures that got small.’ Her character was very complex; I went from despising her to pitying her. The lighting was beautiful and played a key role in making Norma Desmond’s (Glora Swanson) mansion a character in itself. This film is a classic to be watched by film lovers of all ages, I want to watch it again now!
8 out of 9 members found this review helpful.
Fabulous - Sunset Boulevard review by SL
Excellent film, fabulous acting, (Gloria Swanson, wow!) and a wonderful story. Well worth watching and lovers of old motor cars will see a few beauties too!
2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.
Classic noir. - Sunset Boulevard review by Steve
Wilder coldly picks away at the soul of Hollywood in this dark meditation on the film business: half horror, half thriller. It is a typically cynical Wilder vision, famously narrated by a dead man; Joe Gillis (William Holden ) a failing screenwriter floating in the pool of forgotten silent film star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) face down with a bullet in his back.
The mansion Norma shares with her former director/husband, now servant, Max (Erich von Stroheim) is a fascinating location; part Gillis' morbid dream, part mausoleum. It is a kind of Hollywood purgatory, a development hell. Gillis tries to finagle a deal with death, but he is doomed. He is a ghost writer.
There are many gorgeous gothic touches from Wilder and co-author Charles Brackett, like the funeral of Norma's dead chimp, or the wind that blows low eerie echoes through an old cinema organ. The film is full of delicious insights into cinema and its history.
Holden is good as the hubristic, cursed writer, but Gloria Swanson is something more; she is truly strange. Norma entraps Joe in his journey through moral emptiness and the desire to succeed at any cost. It has the expressionist look of film noir, but it's Wilder's pessimism about human nature that most makes Sunset Boulevard a legend of the genre.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.