Review of Sunset Boulevard (1950) by Kevin R — 07 Jun 2015

The poor dope. He always wanted a pool. Well, in the end, he got himself a pool.

Norma Desmond is an aging silent film movie star in her fifties and delusional and believes she can become a star again and has a movie in her future. She has a butler that feeds into her fantasies. She meets a struggling screen writer and moves him in to writes her next big picture. He plans to doom her plot and live lavishly in the process; until he meets a girl and falls in love. His world quickly tumbles as he balances these two lives.

"You used to be big.".

"I am big. It's the pictures that got small.".

Billy Wilder, director of The Apartment, Some Like it Hot, Sabrina, A Foreign Affair, Double Indemnity, Stalag 17, Whiteness for the Prosecution, and The Lost Weekend, delivers Sunset Blvd. The storyline for this movie is amazing. Everything about it is perfect. The script, the settings, and acting, everything is perfect. The cast delivers epic performances and includes William Holden, Nancy Olson, Fred Clark, and Gloria Swanson.

"I'm a star. Stars are ageless, aren't they?".

I came across this on Netflix and had to add it to the queue. At the time, I did not realize this was one of the highest regarded films in American film history. After seeing this, I had to read all the details on this film. This really is an all time great that is a must see like Psycho.

"I thought she was dead.".

Grade: A+.