Sweet Smell of Success

Starring:Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison (II), Martin Milner, Sam Levene, Barbara Nichols, Jeff Donnell, Joe Frisco, Emile Meyer, Edith Atwater, The Chico Hamilton Quintet, William Forrest, David White (II), Harry Tyler, Buddy Clark (III), Carson Smith, Fred Katz, Lurene Tuttle, Jay Adler, Chico Hamilton
Director: Alexander Mackendrick
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
Product Type: DVD

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A classic of the late 1950s, this film looks at the string-pulling behind-the-scenes action between desperate press agent Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) and the ultimate power broker in that long-ago show-biz Manhattan: gossip columnist J.J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster). Written by Ernest Lehman and Clifford Odets (who based the Hunsecker character on the similarly brutal and power-mad Walter Winchell), the film follows Falco's attempts to promote a client through Hunsecker's column--until he is forced to make a deal with the devil and help Hunsecker ruin a jazz musician who has the nerve to date Hunsecker's sister. Director Alexander MacKendrick and cinematographer James Wong Howe, shooting on location mostly at night, capture this New York demimonde in silky black and white, in which neon and shadows share a scarily symbiotic relationship--a near-match for the poisonous give-and-take between the edgy Curtis and the dismissive Lancaster. --Marshall Fine

Description

A powerful film about a ruthless journalist and an unscrupulous press agent who'll do anything to achieve success, this fascinating, compelling story (The Hollywood Reporter) crackles with 'taut direction and whiplash dialogue (Time). Bristling with vivid performances by Curtis and Lancaster, this gutsy exposÃ(c) of big-city corruption is a timeless classic that cuts deep and sends a chilling message. It's late at night in the steamy, neon-lit streets of New York's Times Square, and everything's buzzing with nervous energy. But press agent Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) is oblivious to the whirlwind of street vendors, call girls and con men bustling around him as he nervously waits for the early edition of The Globe. Whose career did gossip columnist J. J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster) launch today...and whose did he destroy?

Customer Reviews:

Sweet Smell of Success.......2007-06-26

Turning from his comedic work at Britain's Ealing Studios to direct this noirish, all-American masterpiece about greed, ambition, and the perversity of power, Alexander MacKendrick relied on estimable playwright Clifford Odets and writer Ernest Lehman for their scripting talent. What resulted was one of the most cynical, caustic films ever made about the sleazy underbelly of Manhattan show business, featuring blistering performances from Lancaster and a young Curtis in his prime. "I love this dirty town," proclaims the Walter Winchell-esque Hunsecker, and you never once doubt him. Sinister, tawdry, and burnished with a tone-perfect jazz score by Elmer Bernstein, "Success" was never this twisted.

This Movie Needs to Settle Its Score.......2007-06-13

This is often cited as being a near-classic film, but I was a little disappointed when I viewed it again.

Tony Curtis does turn in a brilliant performance as a desperate, toadying press agent whose last-gasp career depends on getting his clients' names into the papers. But Burt Lancaster as New York's ruling gossip columnist seems improbably over the top in villainy. Although his portrayal may have been loosely based on the reputed ruthlessness of real-life columnist Walter Winchell, no such talk-of-the-town writer could be quite so overtly red in tooth and claw. Most gossip columnists had to maintain at least a glad-handing, amiable façade in order to encourage scoops and rumors to come their way. They had to at least appear to be more about human interest than about their own lust for power.

But the main problem with this picture isn't any one-dimensional character study. The main problem here is the score. The blaring music drowns out the actors. It rakes down New York's skyscraper canyons. It tells us what to think, what to feel at every turn, rather than letting us react to the movie on our own terms. That sort of intrusive score might have been the style in movies of the period. And this score's volume may have been additionally turned up to reflect the clash of wills, the brutal power plays taking place on the screen. But I just wanted the movie to be over in order to get away from those deafening, raw crescendos.

If the film could be re-mastered with a more muted score, maybe viewers could appreciate its performances more, and find the greatness in its themes.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do. That gives you a lot of leeway.".......2006-11-19

Alexander Mackendrick's "Sweet Smell of Success" is one nasty little film. When it finally ends after 96 minutes, you will be running for the shower to wash off the stench left behind by its two main characters.

J.J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster) is a powerful New York gossip columnist whose words can make or break careers. When he finds himself with a problem on his hands, he seeks out publicity agent Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) to do some dirty work for him. Hunsecker is not enamored of the jazz musician who is romancing his younger sister, Susan (Susan Harrison), so he tells Falco to break up the romance. Desperate to remain in Hunsecker's good graces, Falco agrees to carry out the task. However, matters do not go smoothly as Susan decides to stand up to her brother's meddling.

There is essentially nothing redeeming about Hunsecker and Falco. Watching them scheme makes you realize the cutthroat maneuvering and vicious backstabbing that is so common today is not a recent development. Men deluded by their power and men desperate for success have never shied away from treating others cruelly in order to further their aims. This was true in the Fifties when this film was made and it is true today. Lancaster and Curtis are outstanding in their roles with the latter's performance being especially impressive. Those familiar only with Curtis' more lighthearted works will be stunned at the tenacity and viciousness of his Sidney Falco. While it is difficult to watch, "Sweet Smell of Success" is nonetheless fascinating due to its insight into the darker aspects of human nature.

Great Acting, Great Script, Great...Everything.......2006-11-09

"Sweet Smell of Success" is a film from 1957, commonly called one of the greatest films ever made. It's pushing 50 years old, but even now doesn't feel dated for one second and features two great actors in their most memorable roles. These actors are Tony Curtis and Burt Lancaster starring as Sidney Falco and J.J. Hunsecker. Hunsecker is one of the most powerful newspaper columnists in New York, who is capable of ruining people with his column. Falco is a press agent, who works with Hunsecker by digging dirt up on people. Early on in the movie we learn that Hunsecker has shut Falco out, mostly due to the fact that Hunsecker hired Falco to break up a romance between Hunsecker's sister Susan (Susan Harrison) and a jazz guitarist named Steve (Martin Milner). Falco has failed to do so. The rest of the film is, for the most part, built on the foundation of this; With Falco and Hunsecker trying to create a smear ad to get Susan away from Steve. The acting is extraordinary. This is probably Tony Curtis' best performance aside from "The Boston Strangler." I'd never seen Lancaster in a movie, so imagine my surprise about how good an actor the man was. This is a very memorable movie; Most movies I see nowadays, I've forgotten the characters name within minutes. It's doubtful you'll forget the name Sidney Falco quickly, it's one of those names that just sticks with you. This is a legendary movie, Roger Ebert called it "One extraordinary American noir."
That's accurate enough, it's superb.

GRADE: A-

Great acting, great writing. A great movie........2006-11-08

As a New Yorker, I really appreciate this film. It is so true to the time and the place. I hung around Broadway and dined at 21. This film captures it all. This is in my opinion the best thing Tony Curtis has done. He and Lancaster play off each other in such a deadly way. Such a pleasure to watch this film.

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