A sublime film about the dark side of moviemaking
"The Bad and the Beautiful" is a double treat. Not only is it stunning entertainment with outstanding performances, colossal emotions, a compelling narrative, and gorgeous visuals, but it also offers a fun and insightful behind-the-scenes look at what it was like making movies at a Hollywood studio in the Golden Age of cinema. One of the greatest movies ever made about Hollywood, it presents a realistic portrait of an industry in which ambition knows no bounds and often shows no mercy. Winner of five Academy Awards (with six nominations), directed by the ingenious Vincente Minnelli, with an exciting star-studded cast headed by Lana Turner and Kirk Douglas, this is a movie I never tire of watching, and a must-see for lovers of classic Hollywood films.
“The Bad and the Beautiful” centers around “Jonathan Shields”, a charismatic Hollywood producer whose ruthless drive for success leads him to prominence. The film opens as he tries to contact three former colleagues – film director “Fred Amiel”, movie star “Georgia Lorrison”, and writer "James Lee Bartlow” – none of whom will speak with him. “Jonathan’s” partner, movie producer “Harry Pebbel”, gets the three together and informs them that the now washed-up “Jonathan” needs their help to produce a new film. As “Harry” puts it: “On the name ‘Johnathan Shields' it's impossible to raise five cents. But on ‘Fred Amiel’, ‘Georgia Lorrison’, and ‘James Lee Bartlow’, I can raise two million dollars by tomorrow noon".
While deciding if they'll work with him, the film unfolds through a series of flashbacks as each of the three recall their tumultuous relationship with “Jonathan”, who launched their careers while betraying their trust. Their emotionally charged, intertwined stories expose the price of ambition, the temptation of success, the sacrifices made for art, and the dark side of the Hollywood dream. It’s funny, dramatic, heartbreaking, and provocative all at the same time. A perfect melodrama.
“The Bad and the Beautiful” was based on two short stories by George Bradshaw about an unscrupulous Broadway director: "Of Good and Evil", published in Cosmopolitan magazine in 1948; and an expanded version, "Memorial to a Bad Man”, published in Ladies Home Journal in 1951. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) bought the screen rights and gave them to in-house producer John Houseman. This was at a time when Hollywood began making films that explored the shady side of show business with two stellar 1950 films, Best Picture Oscar winner “All About Eve” about Broadway, and nominee “Sunset Boulevard” about movies.
Houseman agreed to make "Memorial to a Bad Man” if the story was changed from a Broadway director to a Hollywood producer. MGM gave the go ahead, and Houseman hired screenwriter Charles Schnee (who previously wrote "Red River" and "Easy Living" among others) to write the script, which eventually became "The Bad and the Beautiful”. His fabulous screenplay with complex and sympathetic characters, a perfectly balanced tone of melodrama, cynicism, and humor, and sharp, intelligent dialogue (with memorable lines like "There are no great men buster, there's only men”), won Schnee a Best Screenplay Academy Award.
Another exceptional aspect of Schnee's screenplay is its candid depiction of Hollywood. Those who love movies will find “The Bad and the Beautiful” especially spellbinding, as it presents an insider look at the Hollywood studio system. Largely shot on MGM’s backlot (now Sony Pictures, where some of the film's locations remain), it shows actual soundstages, a studio warehouse filled with staircases, fittings at the costume department, a quick look inside the prop department, screening rooms, and many more fun real-life locations. As Lana Turner said in her autobiography, “Lana: The Lady, the Legend, the Truth”, “The sets were the very sound stages where I had spent so much of my working life. The conferences in the executive offices, the nerve-racking sneak previews – all of them had a familiar ring. Even the Hollywood party scenes were true to life”.
The film also pulls back the curtain on what’s involved in production and preproduction, showing screen-tests, how bit players are chosen, how a director or producer works with an actor, the process of writing, a crane shot in action, the huge crew behind the camera watching a scene being filmed, the use of preview cards, and so much more. It’s a fascinating and often humorous VIP look at the intricacies of moviemaking.
Even some characters in “The Bad and the Beautiful” loosely mirror real Hollywood people. Producer David O’Selznick, director Orson Welles, and movie producer Val Lewton are each seen in the character of “Jonathan” at times, actress Diana Barrymore partially inspired “Georgia”, and John Barrymore somewhat parallels “Georgia’s” father, “George Lorrison”.
There are also faint nods to famous Hollywood hallmarks like “Gone with the Wind” (veiled as the fictitious movie “The Faraway Mountain”), “Cat People” (transformed into “The Doom of the Cat Men”), Rudolf Valentino's famous home Falcon Lair (“George Lorrison’s” home is Crow’s Nest), and even producer, director Ernst Lubitsch’s personal stamp on his films known as the “Lubitsch Touch” (echoed here as the “Shield’s Touch”). It’s a fun feast for movie buffs and makes the film feel very Hollywood-real.
“The Bad and the Beautiful” was brought to life by one of Hollywood’s leading movie directors, Vincente Minnelli. A massive talent at mixing artifice with reality, he turns the film into enthrallingly stylized melodrama that feels real. A golden example is the film’s most famous sequence of “Georgia” driving her car. In virtually one shot, Minnelli creates a hyper-realistic experience of a woman having an emotional breakdown and does so in a very unrealistic manner.
“Georgia” enters her car in the daylight, and once she’s driving, it’s dark and rainy. This expressionistic choice has us feel her doom and gloom. Minnelli then moves the camera in an unsettling manner around the highly distraught “Georgia”, producing an uneasy feeling as she becomes completely unhinged. Abstract headlights flashing by in the dark, the sounds of passing cars and horns, Minnelli’s other-worldly camera moves, and Lana Turner’s spectacularly heightened yet genuine emotion as “Georgia” combine to make this scene heart-poundingly hypnotic. It's a stellar example of a great director creating a truly memorable cinematic experience. It's become one of the most famous scenes in movies.
Minnelli was also skilled at generating emotion through camera moves, and another glorious example is when “Georgia” is filming her last scene in the film-within-a-film. Minnelli moves the camera past crew member after crew member all the way up to the grips on the rafters, with everyone completely mesmerized watching "Georgia" emote (this type of “floating” camera is a Minnelli trademark). Not only is the shot dazzling and attention grabbing, but it’s also emotional, as the crew’s reactions tell us “Georgia” is going to be a star. This is supreme cinematic storytelling by a director who had a complete understanding of film technique.
Under contract to MGM since 1940, Vincente Minnelli was now riding high, having directed many hits including the recent 1950 comedy blockbuster "Father of the Bride" and the 1951 Best Picture Oscar-winning musical "An American in Paris", which earned him his first of two Best Director Academy Awards (his second was for the 1958 Best Picture Oscar-winning musical “Gigi”). "The Bad and the Beautiful" followed on the heels of "An American in Paris" and earned Minnelli Directors Guild of America and Venice Film Festival Golden Lion Best Director Award nominations. Often mistakenly thought of as only a movie musical director, Minnelli directed a myriad of non musicals such as "Some Came Running", "Lust for Life", "Tea and Sympathy", and "The Sandpiper", and as you'll see with “The Bad and the Beautiful”, he did so with undeniable skill and creativity. You can read more about the life and career of the great Vincente Minnelli in my previous posts on "An American in Paris", "Meet Me in St. Louis", "The Band Wagon", and "Cabin in the Sky". Just click on the film titles to open those posts.
Minnelli always had a major hand in the look of his films and was known for his remarkable mise-en-scène, and the sets in “The Bad and the Beautiful” are rich with details that tell us volumes about the characters and locations, be it "Georgia's" run-down apartment with her shrine to her father, the dilapidated Crow's Nest, or a bustling movie set brimming with people and equipment. These extraordinary sets earned Cedric Gibbons, Edward C. Carfagno, Edwin B. Willis, and F. Keogh Gleason a Best Art Direction-Set Decoration Oscar.
“The Bad and the Beautiful” features and all-star cast, and top-billed is Lana Turner as alcoholic tramp turned movie star “Georgia Lorrison”. In what is largely considered one of her finest performances, Turner brings an enormous emotional depth and vulnerability as we watch “Georgia” grapple with self-worth, love and loss, and transform from insecure woman to confident movie star. She also captures the pain and strength that come with surviving in Hollywood. Turner has so many wonderful scenes, adding a different nuance to each, such as her weary despair cloaked in cynicism telling "Jonathan", “I drink what I want, see who I want… who knows, someday I may even get married to a nice, upright assistant assistant”. There’s her genuine sincerity and sensitivity when drying off from a dip in the pool and asking “Jonathan” to marry her, or her shattering insecurity in her dressing room, telling “Ida”, “I feel like I'm gonna scream and I can't help myself”.
And of course there’s Turner’s genuine anguish and hysteria in the aforementioned car scene, which rings so true, she turns what could easily have been just an over-the-top outburst into earth-shattering heartbreak. Because of technical complications in rigging the car, the scene was filmed months after the rest of the film was completed, and Turner worried she might not be able to recapture her character’s feelings after so long. Turns out she was more than able, as Minnelli recalled in the book “The Celluloid Muse”: “In the scene when [Turner] storms out of Douglas’s house after finding him with a floozy and breaks down in the car in the middle of the traffic, we had to have the car revolving around the camera, and we explained the action to her much as you might explain choreographed movements to a dancer. We went over it once mechanically, and then she did the entire thing in one take. She was excellent for the part”. All throughout the film, Turner exhibits a visible inner life that makes this character take shape as a fascinating flesh and blood woman.
In 1952, Lana Turner was a major movie star and sex symbol also known for being a party girl who was on her fourth marriage. MGM had groomed her as a beauty queen, and as such, hadn’t given her a lot of roles that showcased her acting talent, so almost no one thought she could play as complex a role as “Georgia”. As she said in her autobiography, “As MGM’s glamour star I wouldn’t have had a chance at the dramatic role of ‘Georgia Lorrison’ except that John Houseman and Vincente Minnelli… had asked for me… When the script reached me I knew right away that I understood this character – a film star who is seen at first as a soggy mess and then is resuscitated by an unscrupulous producer. I could believe in her. Moreover, the screenplay was a much better one than those I usually received”. Turner’s performance is sensational and a highlight in her extraordinary career, and you can read more about the life and career of Lana Turner in my post on “The Postman Always Rings Twice”, in which I also explain how she was groomed for stardom. Be sure to check it out.
Minnelli was clear there was only one actor who could play “Jonathan Shields”, and that was Kirk Douglas (MGM wanted Clark Gable, who turned it down). Douglas’ imposing screen presence and strength are perfect for portraying a manipulative and ambitious producer who does anything to get what he wants, and Minnelli knew that only Douglas could bring so much likable charm to such a dubious man. As we watch “Jonathan” do the most despicable things, Douglas’ humanity and charisma keep us from hating him. It seems like “Jonathan” never intends to do wrong – he just can’t help himself. When he backstabs “Fred” outside “Harry’s” office it doesn't read as malice but as ego and ambition, with a hint of awareness that he’s hurting “Fred”. And when he betrays “Georgia”, his anger and biting words appear to cover up a frustrating love for her, imbuing his screams for her to “Get out!” with a chilling sadness. He can be tender, as when "Georgia's" just out of the pool, and even endearing, as in the moment when “Georgia’s” agent “Gus” begins crying and he snaps, “‘Gus’, pull yourself together” with faint amusement. It’s a powerhouse performance that earned Douglas a Best Actor Academy Award nomination (the film’s only nomination not to take home a statue).
Appearing in movies since 1946, Kirk Douglas quickly rose to prominence, finding stardom and scoring his first Best Actor Oscar nomination as a selfish boxer in 1949’s “Champion”, which cemented his screen persona as an anguished, morally ambiguous, volatile, and intense tough guy. Known also for his fiery energy, “The Bad and the Beautiful” saw a more subdued Douglas, as Minnelli explained in “The Celluloid Muse”: “Up to that time, Kind Douglas hadn’t played anything as restrained as the producer and I like to have him restrained; he’s enormously vital, and you have to keep a tight rein on him at all times”. Douglas and Minnelli worked together very well, and their next film collaboration, 1956's "Lust for Life" (in which Douglas played Vincent Van Gogh) earned Douglas his third and final Best Actor Oscar nomination. They worked together one last time in 1962's "Two Weeks in Another Town", and Minnelli said Douglas was his favorite actor. Read more about the life and career of the legendary Kirk Douglas in my previous post on “Out of the Past”.
The third name above the title in “The Bad and the Beautiful" is Walter Pidgeon, who plays Hollywood studio executive producer “Harry Pebbel”. Pidgeon’s gentlemanly manner and authoritative charm fit “Harry” like a glove, and his warmth makes this character very engaging. In a role with no arc, Pidgeon tells us more about “Harry” with his inflections than his words, such as when talking about “Jonathan's” films and saying “And I was with him when he made them” with a beautiful wistfulness. Pidgeon's performance is an example of how gifted actors can make even the most undramatic characters come to life.
A star in the early 1930s who blossomed into a distinguished leading man and A-list star in the 1940s, Walter Pidgeon began starring in character roles in the 1950s in very notable films such as "The Bad and the Beautiful". Pidgeon reportedly wanted to play “Harry Pebbel” but Minnelli didn’t want him, thinking he was too suave. According to Alicia Malone in a "Turner Classic Movies Spotlight", Pidgeon showed up in Minnelli’s office in a poorly fitted suit and unflattering wig, which was enough to convince Minnelli he could play “Harry". An actor who’s appeared in many classic films, you can read more about the life and career of Walter Pidgeon in my previous posts on “Funny Girl”, “Forbidden Planet”, his star-making turn in “How Green was My Valley”, and "Mrs. Miniver”.
The fourth name above the title in this star-studded masterpiece is Dick Powell, who plays Pulitzer Prize winning, best-selling author-turned-screenwriter “James Lee Bartlow”. Not one to be swept up by Hollywood, “James” doesn’t mince words, and his banter with "Jonathan" when they first meet is highly amusing ("I'm flattered you want me and bitter you've got me"). But he learns to like "Jonathan", and in a brilliantly underplayed, unassuming way, Powell shows us a rocky evolution from naive and talented writer to disillusioned Hollywood success. It's another of the film's outstanding performances.
"The Bad and the Beautiful" came at the end of Dick Powell's illustrious film career,. A major movie musical star of the 1930s, Powell transformed into one of the screen's tough guys in the 1940s, and in "The Bad and the Beautiful” we get to see a nice blend of the likable musical star (sans the music) in his lighthearted narration or when stealing kisses from his wife “Rosemary”, and his tough guy, seen by his unflinchingly rigid demeanor. Powell only made one film after "The Bad and the Beautiful" (1954’s “Susan Slept Here”) before turning exclusively to television. You can read more about the life and career of the talented and enterprising Dick Powell in my post on "42nd Street”. Be sure to check it out.
Barry Sullivan is the next name above the title, and he plays movie director “Fred Amiel”. An under appreciated man trying to become a Hollywood director, Sullivan gives "Fred" all the drive and excitement of someone starting out in movies, and shows how jaded they can become even with success. It's another finely underplayed performance, topped by his superb chemistry with Douglas.
New York City-born Barry Sullivan was a solid actor who worked for over 40 years in many leading and major roles, yet never quite became a major movie star. Starting in the theater, he made his Broadway debut in 1936's "I Want a Policeman”, and began appearing in short films that same year. After a series of Broadway flops, he moved West and started his Hollywood film career with an uncredited bit part in the 1940 serial film "The Green Hornet Strikes Again!". In his long career, Sullivan acted in nearly 200 films and TV shows, sometimes as the star, often as the second lead opposite the biggest stars in the business. Some of his other films include "Forty Guns", "A Life of Her Own", "Earthquake", “The Candidate”, "Kung Fu", "Light in the Piazza", and "Planet of the Vampire". Sullivan appeared in all types of TV shows (particularly Westerns and crime dramas), with starring roles in the 1950's series "The Man Called X" and "Harbourmaster", and the 1960’s Western series "The Tall Man" and "The Road West". He also appeared in the 1970’s miniseries "Rich Man, Poor Man", and was nominated for an Emmy Award for a 1956 episode of "Ford Star Jubilee” titled "The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial". His final role was in the 1987 film "The Last Straw". He was married and divorced three times. Barry Sullivan died in 1994 at the age of 81.
The next name above the title is Gloria Grahame who plays “Rosemary Bartlow”, the coquettish wife of “James Lee Bartlow” who continually interrupts his writing. Grahame's girlish charm provides a lot of the film’s humor, whether trying to get "James" to agree to go to Hollywood on the phone with "Jonathan", her excitement at seeing "Georgia Lorrison", or coyly saying, "James Lee, you have a very naughty mind... I'm happy to say". Grahame supplies deliciously subtle nuances, as with the humorous way she fixes her hair after kissing "James" before returning to her women’s club meeting, how she fixes her hair when she’s angry with “James” after a party, or the way she excitedly models her new fur coat. She also shines in her dramatic scene reprimanding "James" for being jealous. Though not a big part (she’s only on screen for a total of 9 minutes and 32 seconds), Grahame's impact is huge and it earned her a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award (the third shortest Oscar-winning performance to date) and a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe nomination. Grahame appeared in four hit films in 1952, the others being "Sudden Fear", "Macao", and Best Picture Oscar winner "The Greatest Show on Earth”. You can read more about the life and career of the fabulous Gloria Grahame in my previous posts on "It's a Wonderful Life” and “Crossfire”.
The last name above the title belongs to Gilbert Roland who plays "Latin Lover" “Victor ‘Gaucho’ Ribera”, a Hollywood movie star. Roland doesn’t have a lot to do, but when onscreen, he makes it clear that “Gaucho” is a full-fledged star. Even the way he sits and reads a script with his sunglasses reeks of stardom. As with Grahame, Roland makes the most out of a little screen time, and he too earned a Golden Globe nomination (Best Supporting Actor).
Mexico-born Gilbert Roland was going to follow in his father's footsteps and become a bullfighter until moving to the United States during the Mexican Revolutionary War at the age of six. Immediately infatuated with movies, at the age of thirteen he jumped on a train to Hollywood to become a movie star. He changed his name from Luis Antonio Dámaso de Alonso to Gilbert Roland, which he formed by combining the names of his two favorite actors, John Gilbert and Ruth Roland. After working various jobs, he began getting extra parts in silent films starting with 1923's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", and with the 1926 version of "Camille", the handsome Roland became a matinée idol and soon one of the screen's biggest "Latin Lovers". With the coming of sound, Roland's rich accented voice enhanced his popularity, and he became a suave and dashing leading man in various genres such as adventure, drama, and Westerns.
After serving in Air Force intelligence during World War II, Roland appeared in six films in the 1940s as the “Cisco Kid”, a Mexican Robin Hood-type character. To fight stereotypes, he made sure the “Cisco Kid” came across as civilized, even having him read Shakespeare at one point. As he told the Los Angeles Times: “I wanted to be sure the Mexicano was not portrayed as an unwashed, uneducated, savage clown". Roland appeared in over 100 films and over 30 TV shows in the course of nearly 60 years, and his other films include "The Sea Hawk", "She Done Him Wrong", "Captain Kidd", "The Furies", "The Gay Cavalier", "Around the World in 80 Days”, "Cheyenne Autumn” (which earned him a second Best Actor Golden Globe nomination), and his final, 1982's "Barbarosa". He was married twice, including his first brief marriage to actress Constance Bennett. There is much talk that he was bisexual – enough to have me mention it in this post. Gilbert Roland died in 1994 at the age of 88.
Because “The Bad and the Beautiful” features a cavalcade of familiar actors in supporting roles, I must at least briefly point out a few:
Leo G. Carroll plays film director “Henry Whitfield”, the director of the film that made “Georgia” a star. Undoubtedly a recognizable face to classic movie goers, Carroll appeared in 80 films and TV shows, and you can read more about him in my posts on "Strangers on a Train", "Rebecca", and “North by Northwest”.
Ivan Triesault plays film director “Von Ellstein”, who walks off the set, telling “Jonathan” to direct. Triesault appeared in over 130 films and TV shows, and watchers of the films on this blog will recognize him as Nazi conspirator "Eric Mathis” in “Notorious”.
Barbara Billingsley plays “Evelyn Lucien”, the costumer who complains that “Georgia” doesn’t know how to properly walk in her dress. Billingsley appeared in nearly 100 movies and TV shows and became immortal as mother “June Cleaver” in the TV series “Leave It to Beaver” from 1957 to 1963.
Madge Blake plays “Mrs. Rosser”, the woman to whom “James” autographs his book. Blake appeared in over 120 films and TV shows (mostly TV), including the movies "An American in Paris", "Singin' in the Rain", and "The Band Wagon", and is most recognizable as "Aunt Harriet Cooper" on the cult 1960s TV series "Batman".
Marietta Canty plays "Ida", "Georgia's" helper. Candy appeared in 40 films, including "Father of the Bride", a bit part in "A Streetcar Named Desire", and most famously, her final, as "Plato's" maid/nanny in "Rebel without a Cause”.
Kathleen Freeman is "Miss March", assistant to director "Henry Whitfield". Freeman appeared in a whopping 304 films and TV shows, perhaps most memorably as the diction coach in "Singin' in the Rain", and you can read more about her life and career in my post on "The Fly”.
Ned Glass plays the wardrobe man trying to outfit the Cat Men. A veteran of over 230 films and TV shows, perhaps his most recognizable role is that of "Doc" in the 1961 Best Picture Oscar-winning musical "West Side Story".
In addition to a Best Actor Oscar nomination and wins for Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Art Direction-Set Design, "The Bad and the Beautiful" also won Academy Awards for Best Cinematography (Robert Surtees) and Best Costume Design (Helen Rose). It was the biggest Oscar winner of the year, taking home five statues.
While writing this post, “The Bad and Beautiful” happened to be playing in a nearby movie theater and I went to see it. Though I’ve seen this film many times and had just watched it again, seeing it on the big screen made it feel like I’d never seen it before. I saw details, nuances in performances, and even lines of dialogue I never noticed, and the famous car scene was so intense, people audibly gasped (someone even exclaimed “wow!”). It was quite extraordinary. As I’ve said in other posts, these films were crafted for a big screen, and if you ever get the opportunity to watch classic films in a theater, GO. There's nothing like seeing them larger than life in a darkened theater with others reacting to them at the same time. It’s why movies were the 20th century's most popular form of entertainment.
This week’s classic is first-rate entertainment all the way. It’s funny, moving, and tragic, while presenting a titillating backstage view of the Dream Factory. A stellar film made by stellar filmmakers. Enjoy the fantastic “The Bad and the Beautiful”!
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