CWC Classics: “Sunset Boulevard”

Directed by Billy Wilder, Sunset Boulevard (1950) is a landmark Hollywood noir and an incisive portrait of the film industry. The film follows Joe Gillis (William Holden), a struggling screenwriter who stumbles into the decaying mansion of Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), a forgotten silent-era icon clinging to the illusions of her past fame and determined to stage an impossible comeback. Caught between desperation and opportunity, Joe becomes increasingly entangled in Norma’s fever dream world of fading Hollywood grandeur. Wilder’s decision to cast actual silent-era luminaries collapses the distinction between real and fictional versions of the film industry. The film endures as an unflinching examination of the Hollywood cycle of ambition and obsolescence.

To celebrate the film’s 75th anniversary, Paramount Pictures commissioned a team to restore Wilder’s masterpiece in 4K using a surviving 35mm duplicate negative and an exceptional new 5.1 audio mix. The Carsey-Wolf Center is proud to present this stunning new restoration to our UCSB and local filmgoing community. Charlotte Barker (Director of Film Restoration and Preservation at Paramount Pictures) will join moderator Kelsey Moore (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of Sunset Boulevard.