Sunset Boulevard and Cabaret

At home: When Norma met Sally

Forgotten silent film star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) remains one of the most enduring characters in cinematic history, more than 60 years after Billy Wilder's Oscar-winning Sunset Boulevard (Paramount) premiered. She's been parodied by Carol Burnett and allowed to sing in an Andrew Lloyd Weber musical. Additionally, some of her most famous lines in the movie ("All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up") have become part of the (gay) vernacular.

In black and white, Sunset Boulevard, now on Blu-ray, begins with the discovery of the dead body of a young man, struggling movie writer Joe (William Holden), found floating in the pool of an old-time Hollywood star's mansion. Dead Joe, who narrates the story, takes us back six months earlier to when it all began. Behind in his rent and on his car payments, Joe fears he's lost his writer's touch. His fears are confirmed when a pitch meeting at Paramount goes south. Although he does get to meet young script reader Betty (Nancy Olson), girlfriend of his pal Artie (Jack Webb).

With no prospects in sight, a flat tire and repo-men in pursuit, Joe turns into the driveway of what he thinks is an abandoned, "grim Sunset castle." Of course, it's far from abandoned and once his mistaken identity situation (he's not the expected animal mortician) is cleared up and it's revealed that he's a writer, he finds himself politely trapped in the web of the aforementioned Desmond and her manservant (and ex-husband) Max (Erich von Stroheim). The kind of silent film goddess who could say anything she wants with her eyes, Norma is desperate to make a return (don't call it a "comeback"!) to the silver screen. With Joe in her clutches, she puts him to work revising her dismal original Salome screenplay and keeps him wrapped in vicuna and doused in champagne.

Alternating between film noir moodiness and May/December mash note, Sunset Boulevard is the ultimate camp classic. Swanson, who was herself a silent movie queen in need of a return (she hadn't been seen onscreen for almost 10 years before the release of Sunset Boulevard), gave the performance of a lifetime in the film. Holden, sort of sexy in a shirtless poolside scene, holds his own against Swanson. What makes Sunset Boulevard relevant today is that aging actresses still struggle to find film roles of significance (both Swanson and the character she portrayed in the film were in their early 50's and considered washed up) in Hollywood. Blu-ray special features include a plethora of featurettes (such as one paying tribute to Swanson by her granddaughter and an actress), a deleted scene and much more.

Like Sunset Boulevard, another Oscar-winner, 1972's Cabaret (Warner Brothers), has made its way to Blu-ray for the first time. Also, like "Sunset Boulevard," a multitude of memorable lines (not to mention songs) from Cabaret have made their way into daily (gay) life. Based on the book by gay writer Christopher Isherwood (A Single Man), which was the basis for both the play I Am A Camera by John van Druten (Bell, Book & Candle) and the subsequent Kander & Ebb musical, Cabaret was the darling of the Academy Awards 40 years ago, taking home eight trophies including statuettes for lead actress Liza Minnelli (in the most momentous role of her career), supporting actor Joel Grey and director Bob Fosse. The thing that qualifies Cabaret as an even more special achievement is that it came out at a time when the movie musical had all but been written off as dead.

In Fosse's groundbreaking version of Cabaret, set in early 1930s Berlin, the musical numbers take place in the Kit-Kat Club, the nightclub where divinely decadent "international sensation" Fraulein Sally Bowles (Minnelli), an American singer/actress, is on the bill. Residing in a boarding house, Sally meets newcomer Brian (Michael York), a Brit looking to rent a room and give English lessons to pay the rent. In spite of her "ancient instincts," Sally falls for him and they become fast friends.

Initially, Brian doesn't share Sally's feelings, but they eventually become lovers. Soon, their circle of friends grows to include Fritz (Fritz Wepper), Jewish department store heiress Natalia (Marisa Berenson) and flirtatious, well-to-do baron Maximilian (Helmut Griem). The club performances and the budding relationships are set against the rise of Nazism in Germany. This element adds to Cabaret non-traditional musical aspect. Throw in subjects ranging from bisexuality to abortion to parental abandonment to anti-Semitism, as well as the juxtaposition of the action on stage with what is occurring in the streets, and you have the timeless musical experience that is Cabaret.

Still as powerful and relevant as it was when it was first released, it's easy to understand why Cabaret did as well as it did at the Oscars (beating The Godfather in a few categories). The visionary direction, trendsetting choreography and staggering performances combine for the ultimate invitation to come to the cabaret, old chum. In addition to a 40 page book, Blu-ray bonus features include an array of featurettes, such as Cabaret: The Musical that Changed Musicals (narrated by Neil Patrick Harris).