Sunset Boulevard (1950), The Gold Rush (1925)

Emily Kubincanek returns to Extra Milestone at last, and in no small fashion! We're diving headfirst into the most Classic of Cinema with two brilliant films that connect to the Silent Era! First up is Charlie Chaplin's The Gold Rush, a dramatic comedy featuring Chaplin's 'Little Tramp' that cemented many dramatic traditions while simultaneously telling a heartfelt and humorous story! From there, we jump forward to Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard, which examines the world of showbusiness, the remnants of the Silent Era, and the widespread sacrifices found in Hollywood living through a melancholy lens steeped in Film Noir tradition.
SHOW NOTES:

• 00:02:25 - The Gold Rush
• 00:28:44 - Sunset Boulevard
• 01:14:35 - Recommendations of similar films to seek out
MUSIC IN THIS EPISODE: "Dance of the Rolls/Auld Lang Syne" from The Gold Rush, "Interview with DeMille" from Sunset Boulevard composed by Franz Waxman, trailers for The Gold Rush and Sunset Boulevard
CINEMAHOLICS IN THIS EPISODE: Sam Noland ( / nolandsam ) and Emily Kubincanek ( / emilykub_ )
NEXT WEEK: Jon Negroni returns once again to discuss two enormous classics: Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas and Sidney Lumet's Dog Day Afternoon!
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[@kevind4850]

"But what about the gold - it's in the title?" - great comment and point! So many special effects that are still used today were pioneered during the silent era (traveling matte, stop action, fixed camera shooting rotating sets, etc.) and still in use today. One can do a lot without computers, and some of those old effects still hold up. I'm still impressed by the effects in _Ben_ _Hur_ (1925 and better IMO than the 1959 remake), _Intolerance_ (1916), and _The_ _Thief_ _of_ _Bagdad_ (1924). My grandmother had a bulky old projector in her basement with a bunch of silents many decades ago, including _The_ _Gold_ _Rush_ and it still is one of my favorite Chaplin films. It is tragic that an estimated 75-90% of all silent films have been lost to neglect
And definitely the 1954 version of _A_ _Star_ _Is_ _Born_ is the superior version - Garland should have won Best Actress for that year.
_Sunset_ _Blvd_ is also on my list of favorites - great writing and performances. I think the dark tone was much aided by having the film begin with a dead Joe Gillis (both for the pool version or the morgue preview version). You know from the start that this is not going to end well, and it was masterful by Wilder to make the ending still fairly a shock. There are no truly pure characters in this tale, perhaps with the exception of Artie/Jack Webb. Its theme of Hollywood treats people like disposable commodities is still relevant today (and _All_ _About_ _Eve_ of the same year that I'd recommend as a pairing for one that has a similar message about the Broadway stage). Although some female stars from the silent era kept acting into old age (e.g., Lillian Gish and Swanson herself), older women much less often than men get picture-carrying major roles even today. Nancy Olsen, at 96, is still alive - the only actor from _Sunset_ with a speaking part who is still with us. Loved the Garbo recommendation(s), to which I'd add _Singin_ _in_ _the_ _Rain_ (1952) just because it is a more lighthearted look at the transition from silent to sound films. Great conversation and a good pair to discuss!