sunset boulevard

[kevin]

this is not only my favorite wilder film, but probably my favorite film from the 1950s. i was seriously almost shocked at how good it was when i first saw it a few years ago. amazing performance from gloria swanson, and probably one of my favorite acting jobs ever. please see this movie. thank you.

[brancely]

yeah this movie is incredible, you can't oversell it. the shot of the body in the pool is iconic, and the butler/exhusband is such a creepy yet awesome character.

[Jamie]

they made a musical out of it and it's like the streetcar episode of the simpsons except real

[Roarke]

i do not think this is as good as Double Indemnity, though it doesn't take it out of the best movie of the 1950s running.

[Lady Lou]

Sunset Boulevard . . . hm, I know the musical a bit. I got the soundtrack in german on CD.
Norma Desmond is an interesting character. . . .

[jim]

What an awesome film. One cannot praise Gloria Swansons performance highly enough. And that final scene, so iconic.

Anyone else find the scene where Norma is playing cards with other washed up, faded stars (played by real life faded stars) a little creepy?

[brancely]

the entire movie is a little creepy, dude.

[jim]

True. But that scene stuck in my head for some reason.

[bmac]

i need to see this

[kevin]

yes erich von stroheim is fucking great as well...again one of my favorite supporting performances.

the whole movie has such a great creepy feel to it. it's really easy to get caught up in the characters and the story. and yeah some iconic moments that are completely deserving of their iconic status

[America: Fuck Yea!]

i still haven't seen this. i'll shoot for march 09.

[shhbly]

I've seen this movie several times and love it. A couple of years ago (5 maybe) I got it for Christmas (and Roman Holiday)
both are still in plastic, I need to watch them again - it's time.

[brancely]

haha i love the lawnboy and kevin role reversal in this thread.

[BeyondBeyond]

Along with Double Indemnity this is my favourite Wilder's film. It's just perfect all around and probably the best film about Hollywood ever.

[America: Fuck Yea!]

the reason I haven't seen it is b/c the plot synopsis sounds incredibly boring.

[BeyondBeyond]

It's really about the execution in this case. It's film noir, character drama and biting satire all at once, with great camera work, memorable script and superb acting. Really, it's just, eh, full.
"You're Norma Desmond. You used to be in silent pictures. You used to be big." "I am big. It's the pictures that got small." etc :)

[aoife]

I really like Sunset Boulevard...I just think it's cute that Kevownn is the one who had such passion for this movie. :D

[shhbly]

jiggles, you an come over to my house and watch it with me - bring popcorn!

[brancely]

come on lawnboy, that's a really dumb reason not to see a pretty much universally acclaimed american classic.

[America: Fuck Yea!]

come on lawnboy, that's a really dumb reason not to see a pretty much universally acclaimed american classic.


I'm not saying "I'll never see it though". I'm open to seeing it.

[brody]

whoa, i saw this before lawnboy?

definite favorite wilder movie, all of his movies are near-perfect. favorite parts have always been the opening and closing shots.

[Chuckles Manson]

I still haven't seen this one. It's on my "must see" list as both a nior fan and as a Wilder fan, but I still haven't gotten around to it. :(

[kuumuus]

never saw it, never plan on doing so

[kevin]

yeah, fuck this movie

[brancely]

another amazing kuumuus contribution

[billi vanilli]

fuck, kuumuus stole my post

never got the hype for this movie. don't plan on seeing it anytime soon although if it comes on TBS i might give it a shot.

[brancely]

you never got the hype... of a movie you've never seen? i'm not surprised. seriously people, i can understand the "never gonna see it" mentatlity if you're not a fan of good movies, but sunset blvd is pretty widely praised as one of the best american movies of all time.

[billi vanilli]

yeah i was just shooting for a kevin-esque joke post.

seen it and loved it. it's actually in my favorite movies on myspace

[brancely]

ah, sorry.

i get jokes.

[kevin]

"kevin-esque"

nice

[America: Fuck Yea!]

so, I saw this over the weekend...while I still like Double Indemnity better, this was pretty fucking great. thanks for the recommendation. lot's of references in pop culture I finally get of course.

and now, this finally makes sense:

TWaL1XnUPN0

[bmac]

i need to see this

yea, so i watched this tonight. i was a bit underwhelmed honestly. i liked the screenplay and the acting was pretty great (especially swanson) but i didn't feel attached to anything going on. by the end of the film i was wondering why i didn't care about anything that had happened.

this is actually the first billy wilder film i've seen. might i like some of his others a bit more?

[brody]

i fucking love billy wilder. haven't been exposed to many of his comedies besides some like it hot. but ace in the hole, stalag 17, double indemnity, and the lost weekend are all phenomenal.

[Gatorgod]

they made a musical out of it and it's like the streetcar episode of the simpsons except realActually there is a "American Dad" episode thats more like Sunset than "A Streetcar named Marge". (A dead Steve floating face down in a pool full of jello)

Now that I know of this film,.. All the comedy sketches, quotes & parodies make sense now. ... like in the movie "Cats Dont Dance" .. the mean little child actress and her menacing man servant Max!
and the Nora Desmond skits done by Carol Burnett makes more sense now.

[kuumuus]

i watched this a couple weeks ago and loved it a lot. the dialogue is so wonderfully noiry.

[America: Fuck Yea!]

Bmac,

I would go with double indemnity. I think it is much better than this.