Ep.171 - Sunset Boulevard

[@kevind4850]

Love it - more than any other, this is the film that got me to explore the vanishing remnants of silent film. Still relevant in today's "But what have you done lately" business model that is still present in today's media culture that views people as disposable commodities. A kudos to Billy Wilder for his writing - weird that a movie about silent cinema has such great dialog - almost as great as _All_ _About_ _Eve_ from the same year. Swanson delivers a master-class in all the acting techniques from early film, too, that somehow competes with the gripping script (eyes, mouth, hands, body positions - fascinating how they set the mood and move the story along. The cult of celebrity reached full-fledged maturity during the early 1920s with newspapers and radio carrying regular columns and pages of movie star coverage, as well as tons of magazines devoted to film celebrities. Swanson was a top-tier star who received all that kind of attention. And yeah, $10k was worth a LOT more than today - for comparison, her $20,000 1928-9 Isotta Fraschini limousine was the most expensive auto of its time (although what happened to it is unknown, a similar one is exhibited in Turin Italy). I believe the actress who played Betty Schaefer (Nancy Olsen) is still around and perhaps the last living member of the cast. She was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in this film. Nice to sit in on your conversation!

[@cultofcinemaknowledge8530]

Thanks for the comment. I always love getting some extra information about the movies we watch. Especially this amazing classic.