IMDb > Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
Sweet Smell of Success
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Sweet Smell of Success (1957) More at IMDbPro »

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Sweet Smell of Success (1957) -- Trailerfan.com - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

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8.2/10   8,183 votes
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Up 11% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Writers:
Clifford Odets (screenplay) and
Ernest Lehman (screenplay) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for Sweet Smell of Success on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
27 June 1957 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
They know him - and they shiver - the big names of Broadway, Hollywood and Capitol Hill. They know J.J.- the world-famed columnist whose gossip is gospel to sixty million readers! They know the venom that flickers in those eyes behind the glasses - and they fawn - like Sid Falco, the kid who wanted "in" so much, he'd sell out his own girl to stand up there with J.J., sucking in the sweet smell of success! This is J.J.'s story - but not the way he would have liked it told! more
Plot:
Powerful but unethical Broadway columnist J.J. Hunsecker coerces unscrupulous press agent Sidney Falco into breaking up his sister's romance with a jazz musician. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 2 nominations more
User Reviews:
Burt Lancaster is scary! more (82 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Burt Lancaster ... J.J. Hunsecker

Tony Curtis ... Sidney Falco
Susan Harrison ... Susan Hunsecker
Martin Milner ... Steve Dallas (as Marty Milner)
Jeff Donnell ... Sally
Sam Levene ... Frank D' Angelo
Joe Frisco ... Herbie Temple
Barbara Nichols ... Rita
Emile Meyer ... Lt. Harry Kello
Edith Atwater ... Mary
The Chico Hamilton Quintet ... Themselves
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Additional Details

Runtime:
96 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Westrex Recording System)
Certification:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
In 2000, on their self-titled album, rock band Kitty Kat Stew released a song called "Cookie Full Of Arsenic". The song's lyrics relate to the movie and incorporates a snippet of its actual dialogue, featuring the famous line. more
Goofs:
Continuity: In first scene in Sydney's office, secretary picks up a stack of magazines and newspapers, that change position and height of stack from shot to shot. more
Quotes:
J.J. Hunsecker: Son, I don't relish shooting a mosquito with an elephant gun, so why don't you just shuffle along? more
Movie Connections:

FAQ

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58 out of 61 people found the following review useful.
Burt Lancaster is scary!, 28 December 2003
Author: bregund from San Francisco

Remember how scary Robert Mitchum was in Night of the Hunter? Or Darth Vader in the first Star Wars movie? Well Burt Lancaster as J.J. Hunsecker is right up there with them. With his clipped words, ice-cold gaze, rigid neck and steel-rimmed glasses, he looks like he's ready to break people in half with just the power of his voice. He drifts through the film like an unstoppable barge, commanding every scene with just the turn of his head. Seldom is there such a powerful screen presence.

Lancaster's performance alone is worth seeing this film, but the writing cracks like a whip. This is some of the best writing I've ever seen in any film, recalling the brilliant writing of All About Eve or Citizen Kane: "Come back Sidney, I want to chastise you some more", "turn around and look: is she still standing there?", "you're a cookie full of arsenic", "I see your brother's words coming out of your mouth like a ventriloquist's dummy", "I would never use an elephant gun to shoot a mosquito". Over and over, the witty dialogue slices through the scenes like a razor. You have to see this film to believe it.

Tony Curtis was never better as a sleazy PR guy as he pimps his secretary, slobbers at J.J.'s heels like an obsequious mutt, and colludes with the crooked cops to frame people. Within this maelstrom of cynicism and anger are two young lovers, driven apart by J.J.'s overbearing presence.

The photography is excellent, you can almost smell the wet NYC streets. Black and white never looked better.

This is an excellent film, and highly recommended. I wish they still made movies like this.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
the Coat as metaphor... lorene-lavora
Questions *spoilers* deadman1206
Anybody else sympathized with Falco? Aqquila89
soundtrack sleazerama
i feel the ending to this movie wastes a lot of potential... *spoilers* wilky37
No Academy Awards nominations? platinumwindow7
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