The Bad and the Beautiful

Name: The Bad and the Beautiful
Genre: Drama, Romance
Released: 1952-12-25
Duration: 118 min
Rating: 7.3

★ 7,3 /10 (305 Votes)

1952 EN 118 min

Overview

Told in flashback form, the film traces the rise and fall of a tough, ambitious Hollywood producer, Jonathan Shields, as seen through the eyes of various acquaintances, including a writer, James Lee Bartlow; a star, Georgia Lorrison; and a director, Fred Amiel. He is a hard-driving, ambitious man who ruthlessly uses everyone on the way to becoming one of Hollywood's top movie makers.

Stream

Rent

Buy

Release date

25/12/1952

Votes

305

Popularity

2.6

I took you out of the gutter... I can fling you back!

Genres

Drama Romance

Status

Released

Language

Runtime

118 min

Budget

$1,558,000

Revenue

$3,373,000

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

Leo G. Carroll

Henry Whitfield

Gilbert Roland

Victor "Gaucho" Ribera

Paul Stewart

Syd Murphy

Vanessa Brown

Kay Amiel

Elaine Stewart

Lila

Sammy White

Gus

Ivan Triesault

Von Ellstein

No photo

Lucy Knoch

Blonde Dancing with Gaucho (uncredited)

Jay Adler

Mr. Z (uncredited)

Stanley Andrews

Sheriff (uncredited)

No photo

Del Armstrong

Georgia's Makeup Artist (uncredited)

Ben Astar

Joe (Party Guest) (uncredited)

Barbara Billingsley

Evelyn Lucien (Costumer) (uncredited)

No photo

John Bishop

Ferraday (uncredited)

Madge Blake

Mrs. Rosser (uncredited)

Marshall Bradford

Man Outside the Club (uncredited)

No photo

Paul Bradley

Party Guest (uncredited)

No photo

Hadda Brooks

Piano Player (uncredited)

No photo

Ralph Brooks

Mourner (uncredited)

Robert Burton

McDill (uncredited)

Francis X. Bushman

Eulogist (uncredited)

Louis Calhern

Georgia Lorrison's Father (voice) (uncredited)

Marietta Canty

Ida (uncredited)

No photo

Robert Carson

Casting Director (uncredited)

No photo

Beulah Christian

Party Guest (uncredited)

No photo

Janet Comerford

Bobby-Soxer (uncredited)

No photo

James Conaty

Party Guest (uncredited)

Jonathan Cott

Assistant Director (uncredited)

Lillian Culver

Real Estate Woman (uncredited)

No photo

Alexis Davidoff

Priest (uncredited)

No photo

Bob Davis

Assistant (uncredited)

Sandy Descher

Little Girl Screaming on "Cat Man" Set (uncredited)

No photo

Helen Dickson

Symposium Guest (uncredited)

Phil Dunham

Pawnbroker (uncredited)

No photo

Steve Dunhill

Cameraman (uncredited)

Franklyn Farnum

Assistant on Set (uncredited)

No photo

James Farrar

Publicity Man (uncredited)

Bess Flowers

Joe's Friend at Party (uncredited)

No photo

Charles Fogel

Poker Player (uncredited)

No photo

George Ford

Club Patron (uncredited)

Steve Forrest

Actor in Georgia's Screen Test (uncredited)

Kathleen Freeman

Miss March (uncredited)

No photo

Rudy Germane

Party Guest (uncredited)

Frank Gerstle

Gabby Agent at the Party (uncredited)

No photo

Joe Gilbert

Party Guest (uncredited)

Ned Glass

Wardrobe Man (uncredited)

No photo

James Gonzalez

Party Guest (uncredited)

No photo

Phyllis Graffeo

Leading Lady (uncredited)

No photo

Herschel Graham

Party Guest (uncredited)

No photo

A. Cameron Grant

Assistant Director (uncredited)

No photo

Marion Gray

Symposium Guest (uncredited)

No photo

William E. Green

Hugo Shields (uncredited)

Dabbs Greer

Studio Lighting Technician (uncredited)

No photo

Robert Haines

Mourner (uncredited)

No photo

Sam Harris

Party Guest (uncredited)

Dick Johnstone

Mourner (uncredited)

Ted Jordan

Assistant Director (uncredited)

No photo

Joseph Keane

Assistant Director (uncredited)

Kenner G. Kemp

Mourner (uncredited)

Peggy King

Singer at Party (uncredited)

Mike Lally

Preview Ticket Taker (uncredited)

No photo

Louise Lane

Party Guest (uncredited)

George J. Lewis

"Far Away Mountain" Test Actor #2 (uncredited)

Wilbur Mack

Party Guest (uncredited)

Paul Marion

Spanish Actor in Screen Test (uncredited)

Paul Maxey

Man Talking to Gabby Agent at the Party (uncredited)

May McAvoy

Pebbel's Secretary (uncredited)

Harold Miller

Mourner (uncredited)

No photo

Hans Moebus

Party Guest (uncredited)

No photo

Patrick J. Molyneaux

Studio Electrician (uncredited)

Roger Moore

Cigar Clerk (uncredited)

No photo

Ellanora Needles

Reporter (uncredited)

No photo

Richard Norris

Leading Man (uncredited)

William H. O'Brien

Waiter at Party (uncredited)

Pat O'Malley

Man Outside the Club (uncredited)

Christopher Olsen

Amiel's Boy (uncredited)

Dorothy Patrick

Arlene (uncredited)

William Phillips

Assistant Director (uncredited)

No photo

Murray Pollack

Theatre Worker (uncredited)

No photo

Paul Power

Theatre Manager (uncredited)

No photo

Kathy Qualen

Bobby-Soxer (uncredited)

No photo

Anthony Redondo

Crew Member (uncredited)

Jeff Richards

Studio Props Department Man (uncredited)

Loretta Russell

Symposium Guest (uncredited)

Jeffrey Sayre

Waiter (uncredited)

Frank J. Scannell

Reporter (uncredited)

No photo

Perry Sheehan

Pebbel's Secretary (uncredited)

No photo

George Sherwood

Cameraman (uncredited)

Reginald Simpson

Poker Player (uncredited)

No photo

Mabel Smaney

Heavy Woman (uncredited)

No photo

Norman Stevans

Theatre Worker (uncredited)

William Tannen

Reporter (uncredited)

Dee Turnell

Linda Ronley (uncredited)

Harry Tyler

Man (uncredited)

Kaaren Verne

Rosa (uncredited)

Ray Walker

Cameraman (uncredited)

No photo

Harte Wayne

Judge (uncredited)

No photo

Lawrence A. Williams

Poker Player (uncredited)

No photo

Eric Wilton

Butler (uncredited)

No photo

Wilson Wood

Man on Movie Set (uncredited)

No photo

Douglas Yorke

Leading Man (uncredited)

No photo

Helen Young

Georgia's Hair Stylist (uncredited)

Original Soundtrack

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The Bad and the Beautiful is sort of like Old Hollywood’s Rashomon. Three characters appear before a fourth to tell a story about a fifth; the three stories are different but interrelated, and the moral of each is the same: studio chief Jonathan Shields (Kirk Douglas) is a major a--hole and to know him is to hate him. Each tale is bookended by film producer Harry Pebbel (Walter Pidgeon) sarcastically condoling with the teller, pitying them for their blindness to the fact that Shields was a blessing in disguise. Without him, movie star Georgia Lorrison (Lana Turner) was "a drunk and a tramp …

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It all starts with poor old Walter Pidgeon ("Harry") assembling "Georgia" (Lana Turner), "Fred" (Barry Sullivan) and "Bartlow" (Dick Powell) in his office so he can persuade then to write, direct and star in one last picture for their nemesis "Jonathan Shields" (Kirk Douglas). They loathe him - with a passion, and "Harry" knows he has his work cut out if he is convince them. His preferred method is to remind each of them, whilst introducing us to their characters and stories, of how they alighted on the visionary, enigmatic and profoundly selfish "Shields", and of how his selfishness and deter…

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