Sunset Boulevard (DVD)

When I bought Sunset Boulevard (or is it Sunset Blvd.? I still don't know) I didn't really know much about it, other than that it was a "classic" and that the average rating from the staff of IMDb is 9.5/10, and that's good in anyone's books.

It tells the story of Joe Gillis (played by William Holden), a screenwriter who's a bit down on his luck. His latest film idea isn't too popular, and there are a couple of debt guys ...
...an old, dilapidated mansion on Sunset Boulevard. Crumbling and decaying, it puts Joe in mind of Miss Havisham and her abode. He hides the car in the garage and goes to leave…

However, the house is not empty. It is home to Nora Desmond (played by Gloria Swanson), a former silent movie queen, who these days isn't doing anything but sitting at home getting fan mail, and writing a script for her next movie, Salomé. She invites Joe inside, ... more

When I bought Sunset Boulevard (or is it Sunset Blvd.? I still don't know) I didn't really know much about it, other than that it was a "classic" and that the average rating from the staff of IMDb is 9.5/10, and that's good in anyone's books.

It tells the story of Joe Gillis (played by William Holden), a screenwriter who's a bit down on his luck. His latest film idea isn't too popular, and there are a couple of debt guys on his back, looking to take away his car. One day, whilst escaping from these guys, he turns into the driveway of an old, dilapidated mansion on Sunset Boulevard. Crumbling and decaying, it puts Joe in mind of Miss Havisham and her abode. He hides the car in the garage and goes to leave…

However, the house is not empty. It is home to Nora Desmond (played by Gloria Swanson), a former silent movie queen, who these days isn't doing anything but sitting at home getting fan mail, and writing a script for her next movie, Salomé. She invites Joe inside, and on discovering that he is a writer, asks him to look over her script. He doesn't like it. But when she offers him the chance to live the good life, in return for his services in getting the film made, he gladly takes it. At first, all is rosy - she buys him gifts, fancy clothes, expensive food and drink, and he loves it.

However, Joe begins to find her oppressiveness restrictive, and yearns to be back living his own life again. But he can't face telling Nora the bad news, because she's scarily ambitious, self-obsessed, and tragically deluded, as you can see from the film's most famous line. She's a has-been; unpopular, old. Will Joe be the one to give her the bad news, or will he go along with her pretences?

Sunset Boulevard deserves to be remembered for several reasons. Firstly, writer and director Billy Wilder's (Some Like It Hot, The Apartment) witty, scathing and intelligent script, which won the Oscar in that year. Most critics will say that Sunset Blvd. is the best Hollywood film ever made about Hollywood. The script looks at what goes on behind the screen, and shatters the tinsel town dream once and for all - it examines how fame and fortune can corrupt your soul and change who you are, as well as how quickly you can rise and fall in the movie industry. It's all about whether or not you can cope with this - Nora Desmond clearly can't.

It's also a very funny film, with lots of great lines and large doses of sarcasm, wit and irony. It's surprising how modern the film feels; the pulling back of Hollywood's magical curtain to reveal the hidden underbelly seems a very contemporary idea, and the screenplay itself would not be out of place in a film of today.

Secondly, this film contains one of the best performances I have ever seen, from Gloria Swanson. It's interesting to compare her character to Swanson in real life - she herself made lots of silent films as a young actress, and returned to the screen for this film after a break of about ten years. She is completely commanding on screen, and at times quite terrifying. She's vain and self-important, and monstrously manipulative, yet she seems quite vulnerable and frail at the same time, and Swanson pulls this off magnificently, totally becoming the character. You just can't take your eyes off her.

She is a little bit over the top and melodramatic in parts, but only because she's playing such a theatrical character.

William Holden is also excellent as Joe; very understated opposite Gloria Swanson's theatricality. He's just your average guy, and you can relate to him, but you can also see how he gradually becomes disillusioned by, yet dependant upon, Nora's money, and this is very well portrayed. Erich Von Stroheim and Nancy Olson are both very good as Nora's butler and Joe's love-interest respectively, and there are appearances from Cecile B. DeMille and some famous actors, playing themselves.

Finally, the film looks superb too. Its noir-ish black and white photography and sinister lighting gives it a very dark tone, which works well with the black humour of the script. The film's also famous for its opening sequence, in which police rush to the pool of a house, and we see a body floating in a pool. This is actually the body of the narrator - the body of Joe Gillis. So from here, we go back six months and he tells his story. A bit like American Beauty, knowing the end doesn't diminish any of the tension, and the inevitability of the tragic ending adds a whole new level to the film.

I now know why Sunset Boulevard is a classic. Sharp, incisive and scathing, yet always personal and sympathetic for its characters (yes, even for Nora in some parts), Billy Wilder's film is a piece of genius. Boasting iconic and memorable performances all round, this is a classic that you have to see.

As for 9.5/10, well, I'd go 0.5 better.
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You can buy Sunset Boulevard for £7.89 from www.sendit.com

Directed by: Billy Wilder

Starring:

William Holden … Joe Gillis
Gloria Swanson … Nora Desmond
Erich Von Stroheim … Nora's butler, Max
Nancy Olson … Betty Schaefer

Classification: PG (some violence and self harm references)

Running time: 110 minutes

Year: 1950

My rating: 10/10 

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