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The Making of "Sunset Boulevard"

 It's no wonder that Sondheim was drawn to "Sunset Boulevard." The story of a queen without a crown is also the story of "Gypsy." But "Gypsy" doesn't end with a blood bath -- and Sondheim accepted Billy Wilder's argument that "Sunset" is really an operatic tragedy, not fit for a Broadway stage.


(Unless "Sunset" is a comedy? One critic observes that a comedy ends with the protagonists getting what they want. Norma wants a closeup--and Joe wants a swimming pool. Both dreams are fulfilled.)

The biggest treat in David Lubin's new book is its discussion of Billy Wilder. As a child in Vienna, Wilder learned that his father had a secret family; this was never "brought to the light." Wilder had a talent for storytelling but not for the English language--so he began listening obsessively to radio dramas. He wanted to train himself. Then, the dazzling highs: "Ninotchka," "Double Indemnity," "The Long Weekend." (Fred MacMurry had no issue with playing the venal criminal in "Indemnity," but he wouldn't touch the role of Joe Gillis. He thought the image of "gigolo" sex would ruin his career.) In Hollywood, you're only as successful as your last picture--and Wilder followed "Weekend" with two flops. "Sunset Boulevard" was a comeback for Wilder. ("Not a COMEBACK. I HATE that word.")

When "Ace in the Hole" failed, Wilder decided he would make only "less challenging" films. But even this resolution didn't fully tarnish his artistic genius. He was still able to release "Some Like It Hot," "The Apartment," "Irma la Douce." One error Wilder made was to swear off Charles Brackett after "Sunset." The collaboration with Brackett had been inspired, because Brackett kept Wilder's cynicism under control. (This makes me think of Fosse and Schwartz working on "Pippin." One mindset was "darker" than the other, but the friction was actually helpful; the friction lent an interesting sense of tension to the story.)

Lubin's book is just really fun.
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