Sunset Boulevard

Billy Wilder’s film, Sunset Boulevard (1950), showcases the illusion of Hollywood.  From the start of the 40’s, society slowly began obsessing over the idea of Hollywood and those involved in the sphere.  Celebrity was a glamorous idea, perpetuated by glamorous outward appearances.  Not only were people obsessed with those who were famous, but also they began longing for a similar type of fame for themselves.  The lure of Fame and famous celebrities (actors and actresses) created delusions of grandeur.  Those not involved in the circle of Hollywood were unable to realize the harshness of the system.  Wilder’s film could potentially be interpreted as an exposé of the Hollywood industry’s dark side and the dangers fame revolves around.

The illusion of Hollywood is most clearly embodied in the character of Norma Desmond.  Wilder very nearly creates a documentary about the life of someone who was once famous and now must deal with being thrown from the Hollywood scene.  In the 50’s, numerous once-famous actors experienced a decline in fame when the transition away from silent film to talkies occurred.  While this happened to both male and female actors, Wilder wisely chooses to let the victim of this be a woman.  By focusing on a female character, Wilder may be even further commenting that female celebrity declines more sharply than the fame of a male.  Actresses are expected to be at their prime at all times (although there are a handful of exceptions).  As soon as this idealized sense of “beauty” declines, they find difficulty with maintaining acting work.  Women are forced into this mold of beauty, which becomes nearly impossible to live up to.  This takes a toll on someone both mentally and emotionally.  The house Norma lives in happens to be quite dilapidated on the outside, but the inside is lavish and grand.  This creates a parallel between the setting and Norma’s mental health: on the inside, Norma thinks she is still famous.  But on the outside, Norma’s fame is not recognized and relatively ignored by the rest of the world.  Outsiders no longer recognize her beauty, but Norma fails to see this as true.  This break with reality represents the dangers of having fame and what happens when that fame is lost.

Billy Wilder wanted to show the rest of the world that being a part of Hollywood is not necessarily something that people should strive for.  He showcases just how corrupt the entire “system” actually is.  It’s mostly a system based on vanity and lies.  When Norma desperately tries to make a comeback, she begins applying more and more makeup.  In fact, Gillis even mentions that she was wearing about “half a pound of makeup” when they are on their way to see the director.  And when Norma finally gets to meet with DeMille, he doesn’t want to tell her the truth about her screenplay.  This just continues to further the idea that everyone in the industry feeds into the lies.  Even Max cannot handle telling Norma the truth and writes her fake fan mail in order to boost her ego.

----Bonnie Hance

The Maltese Falcon

In The Maltese Falcon (1941) the characters in the film are very dynamic. The two main characters Brigid O’Shaughnessy and Sam Spade have characteristics that make the audience question their actions. Are they the hero or are they the villain?

 Brigid O'Shaughnessy exhibits very interesting personality, which leads the audience members watching the film to have very different impressions. The viewer’s impression of her transform quickly from the start to the end.  Upon Brigid walking in to Sam’s office in the first scene, we see her as an innocent young woman who needs help. The way she is perceived is as someone you seems helpless. Although Sam and his partner can tell that she is lying and very untrustworthy.  However, as an audience member is was difficult to see this detail upon the first scene. The first clue to the audience that she was not telling the truth was the fact that she was talking fast. This signaled that she was not being honest. She also plays games with the men in the movie—mostly with Sam. Brigid manipulates the people in her life, which ends up hurting her in the end. Most people are fooled by her personality. For example, Mr. Spades secretary Effie was fooled into thinking she was a polite woman. In reality, she is a murderer—she killed Mr. Archer. Everything that Brigid does is for her own personal gain. She wants the find the Maltese Falcon. She will do anything in her power to find it. For example, she says that she is in love with Sam. This is hard for him, as well as the audience to believe because she has already done so much lying. Brigid even calls Sam to tell him that she is in danger. When actually she is trying to get him to leave his office. Brigid is using Sam to save herself. Even though she committed the crime, she wants someone else to take the blame. By the end of the film the audience has seen a quick transformation of a young innocent girl, to a woman who is deceitful—she is clearly portrayed as one of the villains in the film.

Another important character in the film is Sam Spade. Who, in my opinion is the hero of the story. However, he is not the traditional hero that we see in films today. He does what he wants and has a tough personality. He almost doesn’t have a warm heart, and shows very little emotion. For example, he didn’t seem to show any sadness of sorrow for his partner that had been killed. He also knew that Brigid had killed Archer from the beginning, but didn’t let the audience know until the very last scene. Sam is also playing a game. He puts up with Brigid’s lies and drama all in order to solve the mystery of the murder. The relationship between Brigid and Sam is also out of the ordinary. Did Sam actually like or love Brigid? Or was he just playing with her emotions to get the truth about Archer? In my opinion this film leaves the audience with many unanswered questions.

Molly Koplos 

Citizen Kane

In Citizen Kane, Charles Foster Kane exhibits an unusual obsession with statues, which represents his desire to control and possess people and objects. He collects statues and fills his home and office with them. Because Kane’s own mother abandoned him at such crucial age, he was never able to form normal relationships with other people. He could never let anyone in and was always closed off, even in his marriages. He uses these statues to fill the void in his life. He pretends that by having all these statues, it is as if they are all his friends and family. Even his closest friend, Jed Leland, is put on the same level as the statues in the scene where Leland is alone in the office surrounded by tons of statues. It shows that Kane will not even let in his closest friend but instead wants to be able to have power over him. Kane has always strived to have control over every aspect of his life, but he often fails to control other people. For example, he first introduces Emily to the movie as a big diamond, a piece of beauty he can buy and possess. But he soon realizes he can no longer control her. So instead, Kane buys statues, which he has complete power over. He can possess these statues in a way that he can never possess friends or family. In the whole palace that he built, no people live there besides him and Susan. He does not have friends in his life so he fills his palace with meaningless things in their absence. As seen in the shot where Kane is sitting all the way across the huge room from Susan, she is miniscule compared to the massive statue that completely overshadows her, illustrating the extremity of their marital problems. Susan comments that her playing with puzzles “makes a lot more sense than collecting statues.” Which shows the distance in their relationship, as well as his inability to actually love her. The quote illustrates how Kane alienated Susan and she simple does not understand him. You can see how nonsensically he collected things in his house when they pan over all of his belongings in Xanadu. Many of the items that Kane has bought have never even been touched or unwrapped. Kane gets to the point where he begins to buy duplicates of his statues. When scanning through his belongings, they note that he has two statues of Venus, the goddess of physical beauty. This shows his desire to possess something beautiful. The final scene pans over Kane’s life collections of meaningless junk and you can see just how much stuff he has filled his house with. Yet only one item among all of the junk has any real meaning—Rosebud. Rosebud, a cheap little sled, holds more meaning to Kane than all of the other thousands of objects he collected over his lifetime. Rosebud represents his childhood innocence and naivety before he was exposed to the cruelty of the world. Kane’s sentiment towards his old sled over all his expensive goods reinforces the old cliché money cannot buy happiness. 

--Haley Gray 

"The Gold Rush"

The Gold Rush was unlike any movie I have ever seen before.  Charlie Chaplin was a great actor, in his own way, and for the time period.  His character, a Lone Prospector, was awkward and not really socially involved.  Throughout the film, he tried to “fit in” and make friends however difficult it may have been.  Unlike other men at the time, Chaplin’s character was not really interested in gold, wealth, or popularity.  Upon meeting Georgia, the prospector did not try to win her over with massive amounts of wealth or gold.  He did not really try to impress her at all. In fact, he did not have much of anything to impress her with except for his witty charm.  There is some significance to The Gold Rush being a silent film.  Chaplin’s character doesn’t really know how to express himself through words, only by his actions do we get a sense of what he is thinking or feeling.  For example, when the women asked him to give a speech during his dream, the prospector instead entertains them by dancing the “oceana roll.”  The women get a good laugh out of it; however the scene is all a dream.  The Lone Prospector never really gets a chance to show who he really is.  The women, and other residents of the town, never get to really know who exactly the Lone Prospector is.   

When Big Jim McKay enlists the Lone Prospector into helping him re-find his gold, the prospector is hesitant.  He is trying to get to Georgia in the dance hall to show her that he too loves her.  However, this is not necessarily a true statement.  The note that he received was actually not for him.  Again, he is not interested in gold or wealth; he is more interested in forming a relationship with Georgia, which she may or may not want.  At the end of the film, when Georgia offers to pay his fare (thinking he is the stowaway) she doesn’t realize that he is extremely wealthy.  Georgia came to love the Lone Prospector for who he was as a person, not because he had, or did not have, a lot of money. Money can’t buy everything.  Maybe that is why the prospector always seemed happier than the other characters. He didn’t have the fanciest clothes, the best shoes or even a nice coat.  But he did have a positive attitude and outlook on life.

One of my favorite scenes was after the storm and the cabin ended up balancing on the edge of a cliff.  This scene was not only funny to watch, but it was also a huge accomplishment filming wise.  The skill and the amount of time that it must have taken to accomplish such a scene, with such fluidity, is amazing.  To be able to make it actually look like the cabin is balancing on the edge of a cliff was a big task for the film directors and producers at that time.  In today’s society, with all the special effects and computer editing software, this would not be that hard.  The Gold Rush truly defied gravity in creating this film.  

--Rachel Kintner