The Bad and the Beautiful (1953)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Bruce B

  
  A Kirk Douglas film, has to be based or meant to base a director that played a part in his career, just to factual to be a made up story. Its about a director that is pretty much ruthless, shows the story of three people who basically were made famous thru his ruthless actions. A good… More
  A Kirk Douglas film, has to be based or meant to base a director that played a part in his career, just to factual to be a made up story. Its about a director that is pretty much ruthless, shows the story of three people who basically were made famous thru his ruthless actions. A good ole Black & White. 4 stars.

• Lewis C

  
  "Will you help him get started again? Will you work with him just this once?" Three people: a Pulitzer Prize winning writer (Dick Powell), a beloved actress (Lana Turner), and an Oscar winning director (Bernard Sullivan) ; all connected by one man (Kirk Douglas). A… More
  "Will you help him get started again? Will you work with him just this once?" Three people: a Pulitzer Prize winning writer (Dick Powell), a beloved actress (Lana Turner), and an Oscar winning director (Bernard Sullivan) ; all connected by one man (Kirk Douglas). A charismatic, volatile, unknowable movie producer (with some serious daddy issues) who in the past brought all three of them great success in their careers, before selfishly taking actions that caused them all to vow to never work with him again. But now, it's years later and he needs all their help to make a movie (and a comeback). Will they help him, or are the scars of the past to painful to forgive? The Bad and the Beautiful grew on me as it went along, and I found myself really enjoying it. The three self-obtained stories that make up the movie were very interesting, and Kirk Douglas and the rest displayed some fantastic acting (especially in the second story, which was my favorite). This was my first exposure to Douglas and Turner, and they were both absolutely great. As were the rest of the cast. The Bad and the Beautiful is a must-see for those who like films about the movie industry. It's dramatic, captivating, and just very satisfying in that ageless, old school kind of way. Recommended.

• AJ V

  
  A good movie about the movie industry, and with a good cast. I liked it.

• First L

  
  In Hollywood, where the producer is king, it's kind of hard to make a film about what complete bastards movie producers are. The Bad and the Beautiful attempts to tackle this precarious subject matter, but it still feels kind of tame. Witness other "insider" films of… More
  In Hollywood, where the producer is king, it's kind of hard to make a film about what complete bastards movie producers are. The Bad and the Beautiful attempts to tackle this precarious subject matter, but it still feels kind of tame. Witness other "insider" films of the era: All About Eve, or Sunset Boulevard. They both went after their respective subject matter with no holds barred, and no attempts to pretty up the ugliness. Kirk Douglas plays Jonathan Shields, a scumbag producer who uses more talented people and then throws them aside when they've served their purpose. The film takes the approach that Shields is simply doing what must be done in order to get the films made, that these creative individuals (a director, an actress and a writer, respectively) would never see their projects come to fruition without his guiding forceful presence to get things done. It's a bit of a stretch to suggest there's anything heroic about what Shields does, as he could give some credit to those who helped create his career. In any event, I'm not entirely sure the film wasn't supposed to try (and fail) to generate sympathy for Shields. Our sympathies are meant to be torn, but Shields is so loathsome it negates the conflict of emotion we in the audience are supposed to feel. What goes on in Hollywood, what ugliness goes into the pictures that make us laugh and smile? The Bad and the Beautiful is a nice attempt at exposing hollywood's dirty secrets, but it's too wishy washy to be really effective.

• xGary X

  
  An actress, writer and director recount their experiences with uncompromising movie producer Kirk Douglas when he comes back to them, cap in hand wanting help to get back on top. The Bad And The Beautiful is a film by Hollywood about Hollywood done in the warts and all style of the… More
  An actress, writer and director recount their experiences with uncompromising movie producer Kirk Douglas when he comes back to them, cap in hand wanting help to get back on top. The Bad And The Beautiful is a film by Hollywood about Hollywood done in the warts and all style of the likes of Sunset Boulevard and The Sweet Smell Of Success, although it is done with nowhere near the bitterness or cynicism of those films. Kirk Douglas' central character was not the hateful asshole I was expecting, rather more a slightly cold, single-minded man who would let nothing get in the way of his own vision. This is highlighted by Walter Pidgeon's pragmatic studio exec who shows that the success the three had subsequently enjoyed was due largely to his interference and it was in fact their own indignance and ego that was fuelling their hatred. The cast are all excellent but I felt it missed the darker satirical edge of the aforementioned films and occasionally dipped a little too far into melodrama for my tastes, but it's considered a bit of a classic of the genre and is an interesting window onto the studio system of the golden age of hollywood.

• Jeremy S

  
  Jonathan Shields: "Georgia, Love is for the very young." Great movie about the business of making movies

• Cindy I

  
  This is a racy, mud-slinging look at the dark underbelly of the movie business, and it is YUMMY!. Kirk Douglas is at the top of his game as the backstabbing self-absorbed A-hole producer Jonathan Shields. The story is told in flashback by the people Shields has screwed over -- Barry… More
  This is a racy, mud-slinging look at the dark underbelly of the movie business, and it is YUMMY!. Kirk Douglas is at the top of his game as the backstabbing self-absorbed A-hole producer Jonathan Shields. The story is told in flashback by the people Shields has screwed over -- Barry Sullivan as the screenwriter with a dream that Shields stole from him, Lana Turner as the troubled starlet Shields pretends to love (or WAS it pretend?) in order to get what he wants out of her, Dick Powell as the author whose writing talents Jonathan uses to his own ends, where even tragedy doesn't soften his selfish, "win at any cost" attitude, and Walter Pidgeon as the studio head that Shields befriends and steps on up the ladder of success. There is so much I liked about this, but two things stand out. Dick Powell I'm just liking more and more. I'm not a fan of his musicals, but between this and his role in Murder My Sweet, I'm interested in looking into more of his films. Ditto for director Vincente Minnelli. A nod should also go to Gloria Grahame, who won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Powell's star-struck Southern Belle wife. This film holds a mirror up to Hollywood, and I'm not sure it liked what it saw. BTW -- did anyone else suspect that Douglas' character was based on David O. Selznick? Just wondering... UPDATE: AHA! I was right. I just read a critique of this film by Roger Ebert in his book The Great Movies. He says that the character of Jonathan Shields is loosely based on Selznick, with nods to Orson Welles and Irving Thalberg as well.

• Greg S

  
  A director, an actress, and a writer tell the story of a cutthroat Hollywood producer in flashback. Oscar caliber perfs by Kirk Douglas (as the charismatic but self-serving producer) and Lana Turner (as a boozy, slutty starlet-turned-star).

• Stella D

  
  a great 'inside hollywood' story by vincente minelli. i'm not usually a fan of douglas or turner but both are pretty good here and gloria grahame is charming in a small role.

• Michael G

  
  A great story based in Hollywood historical roots.

• Eric H

  
  Playing a hybrid of Val Lewton and David O. Selznick, Douglas delivers arguably his greatest performance. When Pidgeon acts on his behalf in attempting to reunite him with Turner, Powell and Sullivan they flat out refuse at first, recounting stories of how his professional obsession… More
  Playing a hybrid of Val Lewton and David O. Selznick, Douglas delivers arguably his greatest performance. When Pidgeon acts on his behalf in attempting to reunite him with Turner, Powell and Sullivan they flat out refuse at first, recounting stories of how his professional obsession screwed them over personally. The irony of course is that none of the three would have their success without him. He may lack social skills but anyone who ever dreamed of making a movie can fully understand his immersion in the world's largest train set. He never sets out to hurt anyone, they just expect more from him than he can give. Sullivan is really the only member of the trio you can sympathise with when his ideas for adapting a troublesome novel are gifted to an established director by Douglas. Turner falls for Douglas but he lets her know from the beginning his work is all he has time for so it should be no surprise when he rejects her approaches. Powell's writer tries to stick to his artistic guns but allows himself to be seduced by Hollywood. His tragedy is the result of an accident which certainly had no direct relation to Douglas, though he does seize on it to immerse Powell in his work. The other great performance comes from Turner, shaking off the blond sex symbol tag in her portrayal of a boozehound actress, haunted by the spectre of her father, a once respected actor. Pidgeon is charismatic as an old school producer whose motto is "Give me a picture that ends with a kiss and black ink on the books". It's quite bizarre how the cast member awarded an Oscar was Grahame as her performance seems particularly hammy compared to the others on display here. Minnelli always worked with the best cameramen and here it was Robert Surtees, best known for his widescreen work on "Ben Hur". As to be expected it's a beautiful looking film with brilliant use of shadow and light which plays up the Jekyll and Hyde nature of Douglas' character. Usually Hollywood producers are portrayed as philistines who have no clue about the creative process but Douglas is the exception. He seems to genuinely know more about making a movie than the people he hires, dispensing acting, writing and directing tips which serve to elevate his material. With his "less is more" attitude he recalls the great B-movie producer Val Lewton who changed the horror genre by keeping the monsters in the shadows. There's a great scene where he demonstrates with a desk lamp to Sullivan just how effective this technique can be. Powell receives some wise instruction too when Douglas crosses out lines of unnecessary dialogue from his script, telling him the audiences imagination will be far more powerful than anything he could possibly write. If only today's overly verbose screenwriters could receive such guidance.

• Brian R

  
  A soap oprish picture about a Hollywood Producer(Kirk Douglas) who uses people who helped him to be at the top. What I admire about this picture is Minnelli's way of showing me the reality of making Hollywood industry. One has to have their eyes, ears, and brain open otherwise… More
  A soap oprish picture about a Hollywood Producer(Kirk Douglas) who uses people who helped him to be at the top. What I admire about this picture is Minnelli's way of showing me the reality of making Hollywood industry. One has to have their eyes, ears, and brain open otherwise people in the industry can easily chew one up and spit them out. There are a lot of "Punks" and "Users" in Hollywood and it's fascinating Minnelli isn't afraid to visualize it in his picture. Just like with any job in the world, everyone wants to play the "Boss" and take advantage of those who are seen as weak. The Bad and The Beautiful" is a great example of the manipulative games people play.

• Anastasia B

  
  Here is one of the best films ever directed on the subject of making films. It stands close behind "Sunset Boulevald" and it's just a step ahead of "Paris when it sizzles". I will never be a fan of Kirk Douglas but I must admit his filmography is filled with a… More
  Here is one of the best films ever directed on the subject of making films. It stands close behind "Sunset Boulevald" and it's just a step ahead of "Paris when it sizzles". I will never be a fan of Kirk Douglas but I must admit his filmography is filled with a long series of important collaborations. Here, under the hand of Vincente Minelli and next to Lana Turner, the camera works wonders on him. A really good film, by all means and by any measure.

• David S

  
  One of the best films about Hollywood. Kirk Douglas is brilliant. They don't make them like this anymore. Watch 'All About Eve' after this to learn all you need to know about showbusiness.

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