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Sunset Boulevard, Directed By Billy Wilder: Film Analysis

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Sunset Boulevard in 1950, directed by Billy Wilder, was famous in its time for being one of the first films to show the darker side of Hollywood. Lighting is one of the important aspects of mise-en-scene in film noir. As we know film noirs are much on dark nature therefore the lighting uses on low key lighting and shadow to create moody atmosphere and the sense of danger and mystery that will occur. In the Sunset Boulevard (Billy Wilder, 1950) film, it is full of shadows in a very figurative way. It shows the shadowy world deception, greed, lust and jealousy. These are all strong characteristics of noir narrative. For instance, Norma is just delusional while Joe is caught in a moral battle of genuine love of another screenwriter and the wealth and pity of Norma. The film does use shadows most commonly when referring to Norma's past, particularly the scene where …show more content…

Visually we have a much more fantastical feel. The grandeur of the house, the many elaborate dresses worn by Norma and the many practical lights help to create the strong feelings of delusion Norma suffers from.
The film does use shadows most commonly when referring to Norma's past, particularly the scene where they are watching her old movies and she stands into the projection light, arm held high with very strong light contrast on her face. In contrast, whenever Norma is not on the scene the film looks almost normal. However, when Joe is visiting another scriptwriter in the night, secretly and against Norma's wishes the style becomes much darker and much more shadowy. This again helps to back up the point of Joe being the central noir figure.
An unusual noir in both style and content, much can be learned about the themes and styles of noir when viewing Sunset Boulevard in comparison to many other film noirs. One thing is for sure though, Sunset Boulevard remains just as enticing and fascinating and is truly one of the great

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