Sunset Boulevard
1950 · Movie · NR · 110 min · ★ 8.3 · 96% critics
A struggling screenwriter flees trouble and stumbles into the mansion of a fading silent film star living in Hollywood obscurity. She draws him into polishing her screenplay for a comeback, but their uneasy arrangement blurs work, power, and obsession.
Also known as Sunset Blvd. · Sunset Blvd
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Details
- Years
- 1950
- Release date
- 1950-08-10
- Language
- English
- Rated
- NR
- Runtime
- 110 min
- Critic score
- 96/100
- TMDB rating
- 8.3/10 (2,941 votes)
- Box office
- $5,000,000
- Budget
- $1,750,000
About
You’ll likely enjoy Sunset Boulevard if you love classic Hollywood drama and dark wit, but Not for you if you dislike black-and-white classics or want a straightforward, sympathetic romance like All About Eve.
Pros: sharp Hollywood satire; standout performances; tense, unsettling mood | Cons: slow middle pace; some divisive writing
Themes
- new year's eve
- jealousy
- loss of sense of reality
- screenwriter
- butler
- delusion
- diva
- film noir
- hollywood
- los angeles, california
- black and white
- madness
- +10 more
Awards & recognition
- Academy Award — Best Writing, Original Screenplay · 1951
- Academy Award — Best Art Direction, Black and White · 1951
- Academy Award — Best Original Dramatic or Comedy Score · 1951
- National Board of Review Award — Best Film
- National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
Show all 16 awards →
- Academy Award — Best Film Editing · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Picture · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Writing, Original Screenplay · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Director · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Supporting Actress · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Cinematography, Black-and-White · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Art Direction, Black and White · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Supporting Actor · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Actor · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Actress · 1951 · nominated
- Academy Award — Best Original Dramatic or Comedy Score · 1951 · nominated
Cast & crew
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
Franklyn Farnum
as Undertaker
Larry J. Blake
as 1st Finance Man
- CD
Charles Dayton
as 2nd Finance Man
Directed by Billy Wilder