The Bad and the Beautiful
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The Bad and the Beautiful is a 1952 melodramatic film which tells the story of a film producer who alienates all of those around him. It stars Lana Turner, Kirk Douglas, Walter Pidgeon, Dick Powell, Barry Sullivan, Gloria Grahame, Gilbert Roland and Leo G. Carroll.
The movie was written by George Bradshaw and Charles Schnee. It was directed by Vincente Minnelli.
It won Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Gloria Grahame), Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White, Best Cinematography, Black-and-White, Best Costume Design, Black-and-White and Best Writing, Screenplay. Kirk Douglas was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role.
In 2002 the United States Library of Congress deemed the film "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry.
Synopsis
Screenwriter James Lee Bartlow (Powell), actress Georgia Lorrison (Turner), and movie director Fred Amiel (Sullivan), shown at work in different locations in Hollywood, each get a phone call from someone named Shields in Paris--and each refuses to talk to him. They soon get called by movie producer Harry Pebbel (Pidgeon), begging them to help Shields out. Jonathan Shields (Douglas) is the "bad" man of the title. Originally the title did not include "beautiful," which refers to Turner, who was eventually given top billing.The backstory of their involvement with Shields unfolds. Each made it in the film industry through Shields, and each was betrayed by him. Shields is the son of a notorious old filmmaker who had himself been dumped by the film industry, and Shields couldn't have risen without using his three associates in turn.
Shields finally directs a film himself, instead of producing it by manipulating others -- and botches it! Every worker in the studio does his or her part admirably, but the result isn't a watchable story with a build-up, just a series of scenes that are all of the same intensity. This causes the studio to dump Shields and make him try asking for help at the beginning of the movie.
All three characters show up in Pebbel's office to reject Shield's offer again--and then listen in on the phone as Shields describes his movie.
Featured cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Lana Turner | Georgia Lorrison |
| Kirk Douglas | Jonathan Shields |
| Walter Pidgeon | Harry Pebbel |
| Dick Powell | James Lee Bartlow |
| Barry Sullivan | Fred Amiel |
| Gloria Grahame | Rosemary Bartlow |
| Gilbert Roland | Victor 'Gaucho' Ribera |
| Leo G. Carroll | Henry Whitfield |
| Vanessa Brown | Kay Amiel |
| Paul Stewart | Syd Murphy |
| Sammy White | Gus |
| Elaine Stewart | Lila |
| Ivan Triesault | Von Ellstein |
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