A tour de force for Swanson and one of Wilder's better efforts.
Overview
A hack screenwriter writes a screenplay for a former silent film star who has faded into Hollywood obscurity.
Director and cast
- Billy Wilder Director
- William Holden as Joe Gillis
- Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond
- Erich von Stroheim as Max von Mayerling
- Nancy Olson as Betty Schaefer
- Fred Clark as Sheldrake
- Lloyd Gough as Morino
- Jack Webb as Artie Green
- Buster Keaton as Himself
- Franklyn Farnum as Undertaker
- Cecil B. DeMille as Himself
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
...They rate a nod for daring, as well as credit for an all-around filmmaking job that, disregarding the unpleasant subject matter, is a standout.
One of Wilder's finest, and certainly the blackest of all Hollywood's scab-scratching accounts of itself.
Still the best Hollywood movie ever made about Hollywood.
What's not recognized enough is the indelible, self-sickened performance of William Holden as Desmond's boy-toy/hired hack.
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