IMDb > The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)
The Bad and the Beautiful
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The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) More at IMDbPro »

Videos (see all 2 NEW)
The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) -- Moviesbox.us - Trailer (Flash)
The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) -- AllTrailers.net - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
7.7/10   4,039 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 13% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Vincente Minnelli
Writers:
Charles Schnee (screenplay)
George Bradshaw (story)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Bad and the Beautiful on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
9 February 1953 (Brazil) more
Genre:
Drama | Romance more
Tagline:
I took you out of the gutter . . . I can fling you back! more
Plot:
An actress, a director, and a writer are asked to help revive the career of ruthless Hollywood studio bigwig Jonathan Shields. However, all three are reluctant because they have all been used and betrayed by him in the past. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Won 5 Oscars. Another 1 win & 6 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(5 articles)
Broken Embraces - Poster
 (From LateFilmFull. 28 July 2009, 11:16 AM, PDT)

Thirty Five Seconds of Bliss: Broken Embraces Teaser
 (From ioncinema. 20 February 2009)

User Comments:
2 Out Of 3 Ain't Bad more (72 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Memorial to a Bad Man (USA) (working title)
Tribute to a Badman (USA) (working title)
more
Runtime:
118 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Certification:
Canada:14A (Ontario) | UK:A (original rating) | USA:Approved (certificate #16017) | UK:PG | Canada:PG (video rating) | Argentina:16 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The photograph of King Douglas' detested studio-head father, which Barry Sullivan straightens on the wall in this MGM film, looks exactly like Jack L. Warner, the head of Warner Bros. - MGM's competitor. more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: When Jonathan is shining the flashlight at the girl up the roof, at one point he aims it away from her, but the light remains steadily focused on her legs. more
Quotes:
Jonathan Shields: When an audience pays to see a picture like this, what are they paying for?
Fred: To get the pants scared off of 'em.
Jonathan Shields: And what scares the human race more than any other single thing?
[crosses to wall switch and turns out the light]
Fred: The dark!
Jonathan Shields: Of course. And why? Because the dark has a life of its own. In the dark, all sorts of things come alive.
Fred: Suppose... suppose we never do show the cat men. Is that what you're thinking.
Jonathan Shields: Exactly.
Fred: No cat men!
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Lana Turner... a Daughter's Memoir (2001) (TV) more
Soundtrack:
Don't Blame Me more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
23 out of 34 people found the following comment useful.
2 Out Of 3 Ain't Bad, 9 December 2005
6/10
Author: ccthemovieman-1 from Lockport, NY, United States

A bit of a soap opera, this film was divided into three segments as people recalled their experiences with "Jonathan Shields," played well by Kirk Douglas.

"Shields" was a guy interested in making movies and he used people to get to the top. Three of these people tell of their dealings with him, and none of them have too many good things to say.

I liked the first and third segments but didn't care for the middle one with Lana Turner simply because Turner became so melodramatic, too hysterical for me. Barry Sullivan was excellent in the first part and helped get me into the story. He was the director who got "screwed" by Douglas.

Turner was the unknown actress whom Douglas turned into a star while the last part dealt with the key screenwriter for Douglas, played by Dick Powell. I thought Powell was the best of the four main characters of the film but his segment was the shortest, unfortunately. As good as he was, his wife was equally as annoying. She was played by the normally entertaining and alluring Gloria Grahame, who was anything but that in this role. She sounded ludicrous with her fake southern accent. How she won an Academy Award for this role is mind- boggling.

Some classify this movie as film noir, but I dispute that. It's simply a straight drama with soapish overtones. It's well-written, however, and keeps one's interest all the way, so I am not knocking this movie. It has a good things going for it.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
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The Ending....? meredity13
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Ending of 'The Bad + The Beautiful Woodie
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