Review of Sunset Boulevard (1950) by Mirko B — 28 Nov 2010

Billy Wilder is one of my favorite directors, and "Sunset Boulevard" is his coup de force. This is, primarily, a film about illusions and the people who dwell in them. Also, it's a brilliant story about how Hollywood works. It's very simple. One day you're at the top of your game, the second day you're yesterday's news. Everybody knows that. Except for Norma Desmond(Gloria Swanson), the aged queen of the silent-screen era who lives in a sparkling bubble of former fame, fueled by her servant Max(Erich von Stroheim), her faithful assistant. One night, the unsuccessful scriptwriter Joe(William Holden), on the run from his creditors, crashes into her garage, believing the house to be deserted. Like a bug that accidentally ends up in a spiderweb, Joe ends up entangled in Norma's net. She hires him to help her edit the script for her great comeback, "Salome". Eventually, the old diva falls for the unsuspecting Joe and spoils him with expensive presents. At the same time, Joe starts working on a promising new script with Betty(Nancy Olson), the reader from Paramount Studios. When he recognizes it as his big breaktrough, he tries to ditch the deluded Norma, but nobody leaves Norma Desmond unpunished...

William Holden's background narrative gives the film a remarkably modern tone with its ironic remarks on the American dream, fame and money. With his resolute ways and lines, he's the perfect contrast to Von Stroheim's gloomy and secretive Max, who goes do incredible lengths to persuade Norma she's still the great star she used to be a long,long time ago. However, while both Von Stroheim's and Holden's performances are stunning, they're overshadowed by Gloria Swanson, who seems to have been born to play Norma Desmond. Not just because she put so much theatrical and emotional over-exaggeration into it, but also because her own biography kind of mirrors the tragic fate of so many silent film biggest stars, one of which she certainly was.When the "talkies" made their debut-and subsequent success-these actresses found themselves suddenly on thin ice and not all of them managed to adapt to the new medium. Everything had changed, almost overnight. This caused former superstars to end up as deluded nutjobs locked up in their Hollywood mansions which simulated their former glory. Norma is surrounded by the splendor of her former career which she refuses to believe it's over. Her only companions are other silent film stars which gather at her opulent house for bridge and reminiscing on the good old times whom Joe calls "wax figures". But their game is over and it has been, long ago: the swimming pool in which Hollywood's creme de la creme used to swim is now empty; the dance hall in which Rudolph Valetino used to dance is now covered with dust.

Norma's pathetic obsession with the past echoes Charles Dicken's Miss Havisham from "Great Expectations", who, already an old woman, still waits for her groom in her wedding dress which is already in rags. Of course, the groom never comes, just like Cecil B. DeMille never intended to shoot "Salome" with Norma. Only, unlike Miss Havisham, Norma doesn't set herself on fire in her desperation. Instead, she kills Joe when he confronts her with the truth. Gloria Swanson made Norma Desmond into a monument to a time in Hollywood when stars seemed to have super-human abilities, or at least, a super-human appeal. The role earned her an Oscar nomination, but she unfortunately lost. Which was highly unjust since I didn't see a leading actress performance this convincing for a long time now.

I can understand Max in his effort to support Norma's life built on illusions and lies. Sometimes it's necessary to do it, if you care about someone, and if it makes his/hers life easier. Like with my mom. I pretended her severe-and terminal-illness was the most common thing that can happen to you for more then 19 years because it helped her face the gloomy facts. We did the best to feed her illusion that she was still an active participant of our family life instead of a passive bystander, which she was by the logic of her illness. And I can say that it's way better like this, because you don't see how fake everything is. Or you do, but you choose not to acknowledge it. Because it hurts too much. I'm sure Norma would agree.