Evaluation methods and frameworks

Unity and Disunity: "Singin' in the Rain," "Sunset Boulevard," and "Psycho"

Both the films "Singin' in the Rain" and "Sunset Boulevard" begin and end with the same images. "Singin' in the Rain" begins with a movie premier. In the first premiere, the falsely 'polished' silent film actor Don Lockwood is seen waxing poetic about his privileged upbringing, when the 'reality' is shown through flashbacks, that he comes from a poor background that does not mesh with his artificially constructed, studio screen image. His beautiful blonde co-star Lina Lamont is not allowed to speak during the movie press conference because her voice is so piercing. This disunity of image and reality in Hollywood is resolved at in the final sequence and press conference, when sound is successfully brought to silent films. The final sequence shows that the once-silent and dull costume drama has been brought to life. The musical roots of the actors, which are paradoxically more 'real' than their roles in silent dramas can enliven the stories of cinema and the 'true' harsh voice of the lovely Lina Lamont is likewise revealed. The more realistic image of the voice of the image on the screen comes to light, again ironically through the means of a musical theater production number so that Kathy Seldon, Don's real love, can show her talent and lovely voice and gain the career that is rightly hers.

The image of coming full circle, of the opening image reflecting the final image, is more darkly rendered in "Sunset Boulevard." The expectation of the explanation of why the body floating in the swimming pool is narrating the film requires this kind of circular arc. The open-ended 'teaser' sparks the viewer's interest and then is finally satisfied at the end, although the viewer is confronted with the same image of the same corpse. It is not only the image of Joe Gillis, however, who comes 'full circle' over the course of the film. Norma Desmond began her career as a famous actress of great renown. Most of the film chronicles her thwarted desire to return to the screen. Norma's craziness is reflected in her belief that silent films can make a comeback, that she can say "everything with her eyes" even in 1950s Hollywood (the perceived gulf between the more innocent 1920s and the cynical 1950s is a thematic resonance with "Singin' in the Rain"). However, because she murders her young lover Joe, at the end of "Sunset Boulevard" Norma once again finds herself "ready for her close-up," facing the flashing lights of hungry fan magazine photographers who are demanding her image, and demanding her story -- but with a difference. She has killed the modern wordsmith Joe, the representation of young Hollywood, and resurrected her reputation, but in an ugly, negative way.

Psycho," like "Sunset Boulevard," ends with an image of the character that has thoroughly unraveled. While the image of the young Joe Gillis opens "Sunset Boulevard," the image of the insane, older Norma closes the tale, and in "Psycho," the image of the sane Marion Crane opens the film, while the image of her murderer, Norman Bates, closes the film. Even more so than the domineering Norma, Norman Bates takes over the narrative of "Psycho," transforming it into what should have been Marion's tale of liberation and escape into a story of her murder. Likewise, what should have been a story of Joe's success in Hollywood instead becomes a story about Norma, even though Joe is a professional screenwriter.