...

Help me! i'm languishing in all this supposed knowledge!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Sunset Blvd and why i don't like William Holden.

I recently watched the 1950 movie Sunset Blvd, i thought it was a great movie with an entertaining script and a well thought out character in Norma Desmond (played with precision by Gloria Swanson). BUT, i never warmed up to the William Holden character, perhaps I've never been a fan of him, I've seen him in a few other movies and it never seems like he plays anyone differently, or even that well, i'd even go so far as to say that he was a wooden actor. Of course this is just an opinion, he may seem wooden to me but may seem absolutely wonderful to someone else.
I suppose he wasn't meant to be the greatest actor in the world nor the best looking (don't get me wrong he wasn't ugly) but in Sunset Blvd i found that i didn't like him at all, he couldn't 'hold'a scene, you know how the actors back then  (and now) had to be able to dominate a scene and have a presence? You know, like Bogart, Clift, Dean and Brando? Well Bill Holden didn't have that, his scenes were easily stolen by Gloria Swanson, Erich Von Stroheim and the trees in the background. I hope it doesn't come off as though i hated his character, his character had really good lines and Holden delivered them well, but i simply didn't warm to him and the parts where Holden had to show emotion were fails on his part. Overall the movie was pretty good and i'm even considering buying it, maybe i'll change my opinion about him the next time i watch it.
There are some great cameos from Buster Keaton, Cecil B Demille and Hedda Hopper as well, which makes this movie a treat for any classic film buff.
It is also extremely quotable, i had a hard time choosing which line to end the post with, everyone knows the 'pictures that got small' line and the infamous 'close up' line. so In the end i went for a memorable and perhaps even tragic line that (to me) sums up how delusional the character of Norma is.

"The stars are ageless aren't they?" Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) Sunset Blvd.

2 comments:

  1. I'm hoping to change your mind about Holden as I always found him to be a very good actor. Have you seen Stalag 17, The Wild Bunch, Network or Bridge on the River Kwai among many others? I rarely comment like this but I assume you are very young and I congratulate you on being interested in classic movies-I know some people who think movies made before 2000 are not worth watching and as for black and white, well, not a chance.

    ReplyDelete
  2. yeah i'm pretty young (15) and i'll search up those movies, thanks.

    ReplyDelete