Unpacking the Femme Fatale in ‘Sunset Boulevard’

‘Sunset Boulevard’ is an iconic film noir, produced in the 1950s by director Billy Wilder. While this may sound like an old and boring time period, there were actually quite a lot of interesting things happening. And we can use these to help us interpret ‘Sunset Boulevard’ more holistically. Things like the introduction of women into the workforce, the rising popularity of television and the increased wealth of Hollywood all contributed to the role ‘Sunset Boulevard’ played for its 1950s audience.

Actresses Gloria Swanson and Audrey Young with filmmaker Billy Wilder.

The Golden Age of Cinema (1927-1948) and The Great Depression

So, what was happening in the 1950s?

Well… the short answer is, a lot. From the transition to talking films to the start and end of World War II. The 1950s were quite a revolutionary period. We can begin by focusing on ‘The Golden Age of Cinema’, a period in film history when the industry experienced a peak in creativity, production, popularity, and influence. This ‘Golden age’ is said to have happened between the 1920s and the 1960s.

One of the biggest changes that happened during this time period was the introduction of sound into film, which meant that audiences could finally watch ‘talkies’ (‘talking’ films)! Because of this massive upgrade in cinema, it meant that the film industry (including Hollywood) was largely THRIVING. However, the rest of the world was not…

The Golden Age of Cinema coincided with other major events like the Great Depression and World War II.

What did this mean for women?

Longing Won't Bring Him Back Sooner...Get a War Job!,

Lawrence Wilbur, 1944, Records of the Office of Government Reports

While men were off at war, major industries (like Hollywood) were forced to adapt, and women began entering the workforce in revolutionary numbers!

For the first time in possibly centuries, women were able to experience some independence; they were no longer solely reliant on men for income, food or shelter, and instead they were able to provide for themselves and their families. The impacts of this were felt globally. Women were more confident and had a greater sense of purpose and belonging.  

1954

Mrs. Dorothy Langohr introduces her newest son, three-day-old Douglas, to his brothers, all eight of them, in their Detroit home.

However, this newfound freedom did not stick around for very long as men returned from war, and society was attempting to find a new normal after the devastation that was World War II. A new kind of effort targeted women whereby now, they were to quietly return to a life of domesticity in attempts to return society to a norm that existed pre-war. These efforts, in part, resulted in a steep incline of birth rates which led to the ‘baby boom.’ Sounds familiar? That is where the term ‘boomer’ originates from; those born after WWII until about 1964 were a part of this boom in birth rates.

The rise of the Femme Fatale

Gloria Swanson and William Holden, Sunset Boulevard. Paramount Studios, 1950

Change is scary, and for a historically male-dominated society, women working and leading was unknown; people didn’t know what to expect. This contributed to the rise in tropes like the ‘femme fatale’, meaning ‘fatal woman’. These films portrayed women as manipulative, seductive and dangerous. As people who defied traditional gender norms and caused distress or disaster to the men they were involved with. We can see this translated in ‘Sunset Boulevard’ through Norma’s character arc. After being given the opportunity to work and act in Hollywood, she gained a significant amount of financial power. This leveraged her over Joe and ultimately, in some ways, led to Joe’s death. On the other hand, Betty was largely overlooked by the Hollywood machine, had no power or influence and thus posed no threat to Joe and many of the other men around her.

These kinds of films reflected (and perpetuated) societal fear around women’s newfound independence, suggesting that instead women should be kept at home, and that there were fatal consequences to female independence. These types of tropes justified and excused patriarchal ideologies, positioning them as necessary for the safety of society.

Hollywood’s double standards

During the 1950s (and let’s be honest, today), big industries like Hollywood held their workers to unrealistic beauty standards. However, these standards were much crueller and stricter towards women. If a woman wasn’t deemed as conventionally attractive by Hollywood, it was highly unlikely that she would land a role or be given an opportunity on set.

As if this wasn’t harsh enough, Hollywood also tended to abandon their female actresses once they were no longer young, desirable or conventionally attractive. For men, these standards were significantly more lenient.

We see this context contribute to the film several times, for example…

“There's nothing wrong with being a woman of 50, not unless you’re trying to be 25”.

Well, of course, for Joe, there’s nothing wrong with aging; Sheldrake and Cecil B Demille are both successful old men in the film. Joe doesn’t need to fear the loss of his youth because Hollywood never especially tied men’s worth to their beauty and desirability. For Norma and most women at the time, youth coincided with worth and without youthfulness, beauty and desirability, women were essentially deemed worthless by the Hollywood machine.

Norma during her beauty treatment montage

When Norma believes she will play the role of ‘Salome’, an “army of beauty experts invade her house” and she goes through “a series of merciless beauty treatments”.

Norma goes through these in a desperate attempt to restore her youth and beauty because she knows that’s what Hollywood craves and values. She knows that her beauty and desirability determine her success in ‘Salome’ even more so than her retired acting skills do. We never see Norma trying to polish up her acting skills before ‘Salome’, because she knows this isn’t what’s important for success in Hollywood.

Betty telling Joe about her slanted nose that she fixed

Betty, when attempting to apply for a role on set, was told by the judges to fix her nose as it was “slanted a little”. When she did get it fixed and reapplied for the role, the judges “didn’t like [her] acting”.

This goes to show that Hollywood is so caught up in the aesthetics of women that this was the first thing they came to assess when judging Betty’s suitability for the role. Women’s ability to act or do their job well was completely outcast by their beauty and youthfulness, positioning them merely as objects of male desire.

‘Sunset Boulevard’s’ binary roles

Hollywood as a whole was a largely male-dominated industry and therefore reflected a very ‘male-perspective’ on women, portraying them in very restricted binary roles, like the innocent, virtuous and passive woman in need of protection; in the film, Betty likely fulfils this trope. Or the ‘femme fatale’, the manipulative, seductive and dangerous woman; in the film, Norma likely fulfils this trope. Most women in films had little depth beyond their relationships with the men around them.

Norma Desmond - Femme Fatale

Norma, despite relying on the approval of the men around her, is largely positioned as a fatally powerful figure. Early in the film, we are introduced to her pressuring Joe to stay in her home for the night. For a large portion of the film, Joe replaces Norma’s chimp and lives under her rule and power. When he tries to escape, he is killed at Norma’s residence, ultimately keeping him under Norma’s authority even after his death.

Betty Schaefer - Innocent Maiden

Betty works under the authority of Sheldrake and the only way she can escape this to achieve her dream of writing is through Joe Gillis. We see her practically begging Joe to work on a script with her, because without a man, Betty knows she is unlikely to be a successful writer.

During this time, women were rarely behind the camera (in producing or directing roles) and instead were often cast for acting roles, in front of the camera. This reflects Hollywood's views towards women, positioning them as mere objects of beauty and desire rather than intelligent, creative people capable of producing and directing major films.

Through Norma and Betty, ‘Sunset Boulevard’ reveals the double standards women faced in 1950s Hollywood. A system where beauty often outweighed talent, and independence was seen as a threat. When we view the film through its historical and social context, like the rise of women in the workforce and the rigid gender roles of the time, we can better understand that these characters reflected deeper societal anxieties and ideologies. Understanding this context helps us view the film as not just a dramatic story, but also a sharp commentary on gender roles, power, and the cost of fame.