I don't usually like movies that are told in flashbacks, but The Bad and the Beautiful is an exception. The start of the movie shows Lana Turner, Dick Powell, and Barry Sullivan, all successful in their Hollywood careers, refusing to take a call or speak to the character of Jonathan Shields. Walter Pidgeon summons all three to his office and one by one, we learn how each met, knew, and was influenced by Jonathan Shields-and of course, why they want nothing more to do with him. Jonathan Shields is played by Kirk Douglas, in an Oscar-nominated, fantastic performance. He wasn't nominated for the previous year's Ace in the Hole, and in one of the Academy's infamous travesties, the award for Best Actor of 1952 went to Gary Cooper for High Noon. If you haven't seen either movie, you don't know how ridiculous that is, but I urge you to rent both on a weekend and watch them back-to-back. Then feel free to lose a little respect for the Oscars.The cinematography, costumes, and screenplay were awarded that season, as was Gloria Grahame's mediocre performance. This was the first Kirk Douglas movie I saw, and it's one of his best. He's so charming and attentive to everyone's needs, but in the blink of an eye he can turn into a different, cruel person. I remember as a teenager, his chameleon persona was both frightening and terribly attractive. Each time I watch this movie, I'm reminded of why I'm a Kirk Douglas fan. If you've only seen him in Ulysses or Spartacus, you need to rent this one. No one makes bad look as good as Kirk Douglas-even the title of this movie agrees with me!

This movie won five Oscars including that for Gloria Grahame as Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Also, Kirk Douglas, perhaps in his prime years, was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role. Johnathan Shields (Kirk Douglas) is a Hollywood producer who seem to be very unpopular with three of the people that had worked with him in the past. They all refuse his phone calls to make another movie with him. When his co-producer, Harry Pebbel (Walter Pidgeon), calls them into his office to beg them to work with Shields again, their experiences with him are presented as flashbacks. In the first flashback, Fred Amiel (Barry Sullivan) is a want-to-be director who meets Shields at Shields' father's funeral. Both are broke and have to work together on bad B movies before they are able to strike out together to make the kind of movies that they want.In another flashback, Shields discovers Georgia Lorrison (Lana Turner) when she is a depressed alcoholic who hate the memory of her father, but can't seem to get beyond it. After Shields shows her that he believes in her by giving her screen tests, promoting and coaching her, and supporting her when she relapses into an alcoholic binge before her acting debut, she becomes a success. In the third flashback, Lee Bartholw (Dick Powell) is a college professor—an academic novelist—from Richmond, Virginia. When Shields discovers one of Barthlow's novels; he asks him and his wife, Rosemary (Gloria Grahame), to come to Hollywood to 'help' turn his novel into a movie script. After the couple comes to Hollywood, they never return to Richmond. In each of the flashbacks, masterfully presented as separate stories, Shields is a very supportive mentor and friend. So, why do they all hate him so much? Because he is tough to work for and demands more than they can give? In this rags-to-riches-to-rags story, Shields is far from a perfect person. Some even see him as 'a user.' However, when the three principal characters recount their experiences about him, it is really had to convince the audience—much less the characters—that he is not basically a good-hearted person. This is an entertaining movie, often described as 'a hard-hitting expose of Hollywood's tough look at itself.' If it is, in Vincent Minnelli's hands, its bark is worse than its bite. And, its neat three-in–one structure is cleverly woven to make the movie's whole larger than the sum of its parts. However, this structure was not original, it had been used by Joseph L. Mankiewicz in A Letter to Three Wives (1949), also featuring Kirk Douglas.

THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL is a film that deals with a specific theme of Hollywood myth. Amoral Hollywood producer intends to bring together the three former associates - actress, writer and director - for his new project. The plot through their flashbacks showing how it is mentioned producer during their careers mercilessly exploited. It is interesting to see what is actually happening in this "city of illusions". The story may not be true, but for a number of allusions can capture the imagination.The film is actually made up of three stories that are interconnected. The film does not talk exclusively about corruption one of the characters, but the immorality and misery of Hollywood. Maybe a little too hard, but Hollywood society is far from ideal. In this case, it served as a cold, spicy and sour dish at the same time. Through all the "innards", though the three rises. They become known and famous thanks to the immoral and ruthless producer. In this business there is no room for personal feelings. Film is only essential. It sounds scary, but I think there's quite a percentage of truth.Kirk Douglas as Jonathan Shields is arrogant and ruthless producer who hates Hollywood, but he loves movies. To be filled by everything that is related to the movie. He shows interest in people solely for the needs of the film. He was in the depths of the soul unhappy and filled with some bitterness. Movies are saving, or become his conviction. Due to past experiences Kirk Douglas is certainly the ideal choice for this role.Lana Turner as Georgia Lorrison She is convincing as a drunken intern, then she is as a star. In this case we are talking about the power of the will and the faith of one producer which is made of an failed alcoholic a star. Walter Pidgeon as Harry Pebbel, character who was run over by Hollywood practice. Unfortunately he only realized the essence. Dick Powell as James Lee is abused novelist. However, this abuse has freed him from "the shackles". Barry Sullivan as Fred Amiel is a talented young director who is dull fooled at the beginning of his career. However, this scam saved his career.All this is pretty well packed so it would seem more realistic. Certainly there is smoke.

Who is Jonathan Shields? That is the story Vincente Minnelli drama is trying to tell. There is a Orson Welles 'Citizen Kane' feel to the film, as there are three stories told about Jonathan Shields through eschews the traditional linear, chronological narrative and tells Shield's story entirely in flashback using different points of view, many of them from people that Shield done wrong to. The movie starts in Hollywood, screenwriter James Lee Bartlow (Dick Powell), movie star Georgia Lorrison (Lana Turner), and director Fred Amiel (Barry Sullivan) has been gather up by movie producer Harry Pebbel (Walter Pidgeon) to help Jonathan Shields (Kurt Douglas) with his newest movie, but each refuse, and tells Harry the reason why. The movie has a unreliable narrator to it, with each narrator recounts a different part of Shield's life, with each story partly overlapping follows a natural progression of events as Shields rises to fame. The movie is so like 'Kane', some critics are calling it 'Citizen Shields'. Each person's story is an act; so three people equal, three acts. The first narrator is the director that tells the story how Kurt Douglas launched his career with his help. The second act is told by the actress whom is the daughter of an also-failed father that become a strong and talented actress through Shields work. And the third act is taking a novelist and turning him into a credible and successful screenwriter. It's an amalgamation of so many stories that had been whirling around the industry for years. For some people, they believe Lana Turner's character is based on Diana Barrymore or Judy Garland. Kirk Douglas's Jonathan Shields is mixed with David O' Selznick, Darryl F. Zanuck & Val Lewton. Barry Sullivan's Fred Amiel on George Cukor of Gone to the Wind fame. For Dick Powell's character James Lee Bartlow, it's believe to be inspired by novelist Paul Eliot Green, William Faulkner or F. Scott Fitzgerald. Even the supporting cast might be based on real life characters such as supporting character Gilbert Roland whom play Gaucho might be a self-parody, but in my opinion I have a feeling it's based on Porfirio Rubirosa or better yet silent star Rudolph Valentino. Henry Whitfield (Leo G. Carroll) is mirroring Alfred Hitchcock. The three main actors (Turner, Powell, and Sullivan) are great in their roles. Everybody was outstanding in this film but Kirk Douglas stole the show. Kirk Douglas is great as the main role, playing the corrupt and amoral head of a major film studio in this Hollywood drama. For 1950's film, this movie has a lot of depth and comedy into it, that works. I was surprised to see the movie have women characters being alcoholic and sex addicts, rather than the charm roles they normally get in the films in those days. Supporting character Rosemary (Gloria Grahame) is one of those women characters. She was pretty funny in the role, but I don't agree that Gloria Grahame should have won the Oscar that year with her limited screen time,her ludicrous fake southern accent, as well, as the other actress who done better that year. Plenty of on-screen chemistry, tension and great casting make this film an outstanding drama. The only faults of the film are terms of its picture quality. We get a very nice, smooth looking transfer with much of the film grain and age related artifacts cleaned up. But there are moments where edge enhancement, shimmering and aliasing are so bad, you just can't help but get distracted away from the fine performances taking place underneath all that digital mess. When the image is free from these anomalies, contrast and black levels are superb. I also love the music. David Raksin, a marvelous composer as the film sports a jazzy and haunting tone similar to his later works in 'Laura'. Still this arrangement is over arranged and composer know his Jazz voicing but forgot a forceful melody line to add to it. Something like Cake decorations without the cake. Still, it's a cake worth eating. Check this movie out, for a great insight look at Hollywood.