[10]

In this darkly comic noir masterpiece from Billy Wilder, a struggling Hollywood screenwriter (William Holden) moves in with a delusional silent film star named Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) who wants him to write the script for her big comeback. But when the writer strikes up a relationship with a younger woman (Nancy Olson), the eccentric diva goes dangerously insane with envy. Sunset Boulevard is both film noir and dark comedy, a psychological thriller as well as a peek behind the sordid curtains of Tinseltown. It’s also about as campy as a film can get without losing its classic status. There’s nothing else quite like it.

You’re immediately pulled in by narration from a dead man. Yes, Holden’s character starts off the story floating face down in Swanson’s swimming pool. The rest of the movie shows you how he got that way. Swanson, almost playing herself here, is introduced early on — mistaking the wandering Holden for her dead chimpanzee’s pallbearer. (Did I mention the campy aspect?) Swanson is magical as Norma Desmond, over-acting and chewing the scenery like a drag queen on speed. The Oscar-winning screenplay gives her a plethora of great moments, but my favorite comes in her first scene with Holden when she rails against her own obscurity.

Holden: “You’re Norma Desmond. You used to be in silent pictures. You used to be big.”
Desmond: “I am big. It’s the pictures that got small.”

Erich von Stroheim (who actually directed Swanson in a silent film) plays Norma’s butler. The character is the strong, silent type, but you eventually learn he’s also Norma’s ex-husband — and he still has feelings for her. It’s a poignant touch to the movie that he’s trapped and subjugated in Desmond’s fantasy world.

What I love most about Sunset Boulevard is the sordid nature of Swanson and Holden’s relationship. She’s crazy and creepy, but he needs a job. So he pretends to be her lover. It’s sick — but like a slow-motion car crash, you just can’t help but keep watching. And I also love the operatic ending — madness and murder? What’s not to love?

Academy Awards: Best Writing (Story and Screenplay); Art Direction, Music (Franz Waxman)

Oscar Nominations: Best Picture, Director, Actress (Swanson), Actor (Holden), Supporting Actress (Olson), Supporting Actor (Von Stroheim), Cinematography, Film Editing