S.B - appearance ideas + quotes Flashcards
Motif of Norma’s mansion representing her mental state:
“ big mansion that looked run-down and deserted.”
Ghost of a tennis court
> ghost of who she once was
“The whole place seemed to have been stricken with a kind of creeping paralysis, out of beat with the rest of the world, crumbling apart in slow motion …”
“A neglected house gets an unhappy look. This one had it in spades.”
Norma self obsession with her appearance stems from the fact that appearance was the main aspect of silent movie acting
We didn’t need dialogue. We had faces.
Delusion belief that she is still as young and beautiful as she was at the prime of her career:
Resulting from Hollywood’s unattainable expectations that to remain relevant you must still fit into unattainable beauty standards:
“And you’ll play Salome?”
“Who else ?”
“There’s nothing tragic about being fifty - not unless you try to be twenty-five.”
“How could she breathe in that house, crowded with Norma
Desmonds?”
“More Norma Desmond and still more Norma Desmond.”
“there arnt any faces like that anymore”
“More Norma Desmond and still more Norma Desmond.”
> joes repetition highlighting just how severely self-obsessed Norma is
Contradicts her delusional belief that she is still ageless:
She must be a million years old.
People referring to Norma as a Child:
“childish scrawl of hers”
“childish scrawl of hers”
Mr Demille helping Norma into the chair as you would a young child
> showcasing how shes still stuck in the past unable to move on from being the 17 year old star
Hollywood’s unattainable expectations that to remain relevant you must still fit into unattainable beauty standards:
“An army of beauty experts invaded her house”
“Merciless series of treatments”
Norma’s delusion being her final show (big finale/always putting on an act) DECEIVING HERSELF:
i.e powerplay scene
“Oh sure if it would make a good scene”
“She got the razor from your room.”
- always wearing makeup
Touching up in mirror before confronting Joe
people changing for hollywood
Well, they didn’t like my nose - slanted, this way a little. So, I went to a doctor and had it fixed.
the hpouse
a great white elephant of a house
