Post by klep on May 16, 2016 8:16:26 GMT -6
MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 5/15: Sunset Boulevard
Billy Wilder had a knack for finding some aspect of society that had gone wrong and viciously satirizing it. In Sunset Boulevard, he turned his eye on celebrity culture and more specifically the way that Hollywood treats its female stars. We focus like lasers on the latest celebs, but as soon as something new comes along we are quick to forget about them and turn our gaze. That kind of roller coaster can be tough to deal with, and not everybody can handle it. It's bad enough for the men, but at least if they establish a certain level of celebrity they can expect to stay in the spotlight for most of their natural lives. The women, on the other hand, have a sell-by date. As soon as their looks start to go (or even sooner), they're gone. Women in their 30s play mostly mothers and women in their 40s start getting matronly roles. If their hair is grey, they're lucky to get anything at all.
Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) is just such a faded star - long out of the public eye as a result of her age (only 50 as the film starts) and the industry's turn to sound. It's clear that at her height she was very successful and very celebrated - her estate is massive and those industry people who remember her time on screen hold her in high esteem. But it didn't last, and the level of stardom she had is something that is difficult to let go. Norma certainly never did. She wallows in the past, dealing only with people who knew her when and surrounding herself with relics of that bygone age. Indeed, what may at first seem like an overly campy performance from Swanson makes sense when you realize that Norma is still performing for her audience, even if that audience has dwindled to just her butler Max. Her isolation and obscurity is tragic.
But Wilder of course is not one to write single-note characters, and Norma is more complex than just a victim of a sexist and exploitative system. Her fade from the spotlight has not been graceful, and she still carries herself with the arrogance and entitlement of an A-list star. She's manipulative and inconsiderate to the point of being abusive, having guilted first her ex-husband Max and now Gillis into doing her every bidding lest she follow through on her suicide attempts. When she finally snaps at the end and kills Gillis, it's because she's pushed him further than he can take and he's trying to leave.
But of course Wilder is not going to end the film without circling back to his original point, and with the murder comes the media. The easiest way for a faded star to regain the headlines is to fall from grace, and a juicy murder is just the ticket. She never stopped being ready for her closeup, but it's only now that the world is once more willing to give her one.
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 5/23: The Night of the Hunter
This Charles Laughton/Robert Mitchum noir is regarded as one of the best of its genre and Im personally very excited to see it for the first time. The Night of the Hunter is available to rent on Amazon Instant Video, though it is not free for Prime members.
NEXT PICTURE SHOW PODCAST for 5/16: Iron Man
This week's podcast looks at how far the Marvel Cinematic Universe has come in its 8 years of existence. Tomorrow they kick things off by looking at where it all began, with 2008's Iron Man. Iron Man is available to rent on Amazon Instant Video, though it is not free for Prime members.
And don't forget that June is MUSICALS MONTH! Starting with June 6, we'll have 4 weeks of musicals from (I hope) throughout film history.
Billy Wilder had a knack for finding some aspect of society that had gone wrong and viciously satirizing it. In Sunset Boulevard, he turned his eye on celebrity culture and more specifically the way that Hollywood treats its female stars. We focus like lasers on the latest celebs, but as soon as something new comes along we are quick to forget about them and turn our gaze. That kind of roller coaster can be tough to deal with, and not everybody can handle it. It's bad enough for the men, but at least if they establish a certain level of celebrity they can expect to stay in the spotlight for most of their natural lives. The women, on the other hand, have a sell-by date. As soon as their looks start to go (or even sooner), they're gone. Women in their 30s play mostly mothers and women in their 40s start getting matronly roles. If their hair is grey, they're lucky to get anything at all.
Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) is just such a faded star - long out of the public eye as a result of her age (only 50 as the film starts) and the industry's turn to sound. It's clear that at her height she was very successful and very celebrated - her estate is massive and those industry people who remember her time on screen hold her in high esteem. But it didn't last, and the level of stardom she had is something that is difficult to let go. Norma certainly never did. She wallows in the past, dealing only with people who knew her when and surrounding herself with relics of that bygone age. Indeed, what may at first seem like an overly campy performance from Swanson makes sense when you realize that Norma is still performing for her audience, even if that audience has dwindled to just her butler Max. Her isolation and obscurity is tragic.
But Wilder of course is not one to write single-note characters, and Norma is more complex than just a victim of a sexist and exploitative system. Her fade from the spotlight has not been graceful, and she still carries herself with the arrogance and entitlement of an A-list star. She's manipulative and inconsiderate to the point of being abusive, having guilted first her ex-husband Max and now Gillis into doing her every bidding lest she follow through on her suicide attempts. When she finally snaps at the end and kills Gillis, it's because she's pushed him further than he can take and he's trying to leave.
But of course Wilder is not going to end the film without circling back to his original point, and with the murder comes the media. The easiest way for a faded star to regain the headlines is to fall from grace, and a juicy murder is just the ticket. She never stopped being ready for her closeup, but it's only now that the world is once more willing to give her one.
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 5/23: The Night of the Hunter
This Charles Laughton/Robert Mitchum noir is regarded as one of the best of its genre and Im personally very excited to see it for the first time. The Night of the Hunter is available to rent on Amazon Instant Video, though it is not free for Prime members.
NEXT PICTURE SHOW PODCAST for 5/16: Iron Man
This week's podcast looks at how far the Marvel Cinematic Universe has come in its 8 years of existence. Tomorrow they kick things off by looking at where it all began, with 2008's Iron Man. Iron Man is available to rent on Amazon Instant Video, though it is not free for Prime members.
And don't forget that June is MUSICALS MONTH! Starting with June 6, we'll have 4 weeks of musicals from (I hope) throughout film history.