The famous Hollywood, known by millions across the globe, is recognised for its fancy celebrities, success stories and above all, happy endings. However, not in the 1950 noir film Sunset Boulevard. Directed by Billy Wilder, the film is a tragic and uncanny sort of take on classic Hollywood. The film features characters who try to make it big or to revive their careers in the industry, all ending in a disturbing way. The downfall of the main character, Joe Gillis, is not entirely of his own making. Although he somewhat contributes to it, Norma Desmond and Max Von Mayerling both play a devious role in his downfall. The antagonist of the film, Norma Desmond, plays a cunning and violent role in relation to Joe's downfall and is the main cause of his murder. Throughout the film she exploits and controls Joe and treats her like a pet, rather than a screenwriter. Referring to Joe as “Darling” and referencing that “No one leaves a star”, forces Joe to stay with her, using him to revive her own career. Joe is inclined to listen to Normas instructions mainly for the “dough” but doesn’t realise the harsh consequences ahead of him. Billy Wilder emphasises the unusual surroundings for Joe, as the …show more content…
He is also a contributor to Joe's demise, and mainly does this by obeying Normas' commands, including bringing Joe his things to the mansion, which sets up the story. However, despite listening to Norma as a regular servant would, it is almost as if Max tries to promote and applaud Norma, which allows Joe to continue staying with her. Mentioning her as “the greatest of them all”. Billy Wilders interpretation of Max is mysterious and manipulative, hence using dark lighting and eerie non-diegetic sounds in his presence, but although Max doesn’t physically harm Joe like Norma, he keeps him occupied with her, making Max partially responsible for Joes death in the
Sunset Boulevard is a hollywood classic film that digs into the aftermath of the sound era caused. Sunset blvd came out on August 10, 1950. The film was directed by Billy Wilder, produced by Charles Brackett, and starred William Holden and Gloria Swanson. Sunset blvd shows us the aftermath of Norma Desmond and how she is stuck in the past of silent hollywood. The darkness and bitterness that many silent movie experienced after they were kicked to the curb once sound came. The film is has a classic dark drama/comedy that is one of the most acclaimed films in film noir history. The film touches on the loneliness and narcissism that silent legends were enduring. The mood of the film is immediately established as decadent and decaying by the narrator of a dead man floating face down in a swimming pool in Beverly Hills.
Eckstein, Arthur. “The Hollywood Ten in History & Memory.” Film History. 2004. Web. 16 Jan.
Sunset Boulevard directed by Billy Wilder in 1950 is based on how Norma Desmond, a huge Hollywood star, deals with her fall from fame. The film explores the fantasy world in which Norma is living in and the complex relationship between her and small time writer Joe Gillis, which leads to his death. Sunset Boulevard is seen as lifting the ‘face’ of the Hollywood Studio System to reveal the truth behind the organisation. During the time the film was released in the 1950s and 60s, audiences started to see the demise of Hollywood as cinema going began to decline and the fierce competition of television almost proved too much for the well established system. Throughout this essay I will discuss how Sunset Boulevard represents the Hollywood Studio System, as well as exploring post war literature giving reasons as to why the system began to crumble.
The main character in Sunset Boulevard is Joe Gillis played by William Holden. Joe is the protagonist of the film because he is a primary character who is pursuing a goal. His goal when he meets Norma Desmond is to finally end his financial woes. He couldn’t pay for the car he had and once he was with Norma he had everything he ever wanted. But with Joe being in a relationship just to be living in a big mansion and the clothes he got free didn’t satisfy him. In the first half of the film Joe was satisfied with being with Norma but he realized he couldn’t be himself. He couldn’t go and hang with friends all he could do was hang out with Norma in the Mansion. With Joe changing though the film I would call him a round character because at first he just want the financial sustainability of being with Norma but eventually that just wasn’t enough for him. He wanted true love and that’s why he began a relationship with Betty. Joe is also a anti-hero because he goal he is chasing was to get in a relationship with Norma for the money which is not the reason you want to be in a relationship with someone.
From the lavish mansions of Hollywood stars to the cigarette smoke filled offices of broke screenwriters, the 1950 noir movie Sunset Boulevard remains a timeless classic with a stunning story of an actress gone mad, and a screenwriter just trying to squeak by. This film is the first pre-1960’s flick that has left me with a feeling of awe. The first word that comes to mind after the credits begin to roll is just“wow!”. I was struck by the intriguing plotline and brilliant execution of the story. Not only is the film a classic for its gripping story, and twisted power dynamics, it also shows amazing camera work and brilliant acting.
“There once was a time in this business when I had the eyes of the whole world! But that wasn't good enough for them, oh no! They had to have the ears of the whole world too. So they opened their big mouths and out came talk. Talk! TALK!” (Sunset Boulevard). The film Sunset Boulevard directed by Billy Wilder focuses on a struggling screen writer who is hired to rewrite a silent film star’s script leading to a dysfunctional and fatal relationship. Sunset Boulevard is heavily influenced by the history of cinema starting from the 1930s to 1950 when the film was released.
The noir style is showcased in Sunset Boulevard with its use of visually dark and uncomfortable settings and camera work, as well as its use of the traditional film noir characters. In addition, the overall tone and themes expressed in it tightly correspond to what many film noirs addressed. What made this film unique was its harsh criticism of the film industry itself, which some of Wilder’s peers saw as biting the hand that fed him. There is frequent commentary on the superficial state of Hollywood and its indifference to suffering, which is still a topic avoided by many in the film business today. However, Sunset Blvd. set a precedent for future film noirs, and is an inspiration for those who do not quite believe what they are being shown by Hollywood.
In Nathanael West’s “The Day of the Locust,” multiple characters are introduced within Hollywood, California, which is widely regarded as the national capital of the film industry. One main character focused on throughout the novel is Tod Hackett, who West portrays as being superior to the fantasy observed around him. Many of the characters have traveled to Hollywood in pursuit of a personal, ambitious goal. However, there is a reoccurring theme of failure in their pursuits due to the fictitious personalities and actions they have created for themselves influenced by a setting full of artificialness.
Nathanael West’s The Day of the Locust is said by many to be the best novel to be written about Hollywood. When we immediately think of Hollywood, we think of a glamorous story, in the picturesque setting of Los Angeles, full of characters with abundance of talent living the much sought after American dream. This is perhaps what sets West’s novel apart from the rest. The story is full of characters that have a vague impression of the difference in reality and fantasy in life. The characters are submerged in their lives in Hollywood, with what seems to be a false reality on how the world works. The untalented would-be actors, withering vaudeville performers and prostitutes place a certain grotesque over the novel from the beginning, and in a world of certain fantasy and chaos like this, violence is bound to come to the fore as a theme in many different forms. The protagonist of the story, Tod Hackett, is different to the rest of the characters in the novel. Tom is a talented artist, but still has a good view of reality by times, so Tom can act part as an observer in the novel. Tom however has been sucked in to the fantasy world also life has become somewhat submerged in the fantasy world.
Ebert, Roger. Rev. of Almost Famous, dir. Cameron Crowe. Rogerebert.com. Chicago Sun-Times, 15 Sept. 2000. Web. 29 March 2011.
Voytilla, Stuart. Myth and the Movies: Discovering the Myth Structure of 50 Unforgettable Films. Ventura Boulevard: Michael Wiese Productions, 1999.
In both plays, Hedda Gabler and A Streetcar Named Desire, the authors create very complex characters whose obsession creates conflict regarding their private lives. Tennessee Williams creates Blanche, whose the heroine and the antagonist Stanley, whose the antagonist. On the other hand, in the play Hedda Gabler, Henrik Ibsen creates Hedda, the heroine and the antagonist, Judge Brack, the antagonist. Both authors establish antagonists, such as Stanley and Judge Brack, containing some sympathetic elements to help the reader understand their motivations towards the heroines, Blanche and Hedda. The characters of Stanley and Judge Brack obtain motivations analyzed by the reader to be known as vengeance and scornful but sympathetic acts to oppress the protagonists of the story.
Sunset Boulevard (Wilder 1950) explores the intermingling of public and private realms, puncturing the illusion of the former and unveiling the grim and often disturbing reality of the latter. By delving into the personal delusions of its characters and showing the devastation caused by disrupting those fantasies, the film provides not only a commentary on the industry of which it is a product but also a shared anxiety about the corrupting influence of external perception. Narrated by a dead man, centering on a recluse tortured by her own former stardom, and concerning a once-promising director who refuses to believe his greatest star could ever be forgotten, the work dissects a multitude of illusory folds to reveal an ultimately undesirable truth. Its fundamental conflict lies in the compartmentalization that allows the downtrodden to hope and carry on. Sunset Boulevard carefully considers the intricate honeycombs of dishonesty and deception that constitute a human life, then dissolves the barriers and watches the emotions, lies, and self-contradictions slurry together and react in often volatile and destructive ways.
Billy Wilder’s noir film ‘Sunset Boulevard’ is a gothic horror that depicts the dark side of Hollywood, highlighting its rather uncaring and numbers focused treatment of actors, screenwriters and directors. The film showcases the misleading ambition that many characters are blinded by in this “Hollywood machine”. Other characters in the film, similar to those “blinded by ambition” are instead following those goals left by others, neglecting their own future or career. However, during the film, not all characters follow this “blinding ambition” and still uphold their own ideas and morals. Due to the ever-asking and needing nature of the ‘Hollywood machine’, many characters are forced to abandon their morals and blindly follow their ambitions for the sake of their careers and desires.
Classical Hollywood is a tradition of methods and structures that were prominent American cinema between 1916 and 1960.Its heritage stems from earlier American cinema Melodrama and to theatrical melodrama before that. Its tradition lives on in mainstream Hollywood to this day. But what is it?