Eavesdropping At The Movies

Stardom, beauty, the machinery of Hollywood, madness, age - 1978's Fedora sees Billy Wilder occupying much of the same thematic territory of his 1950 classic, Sunset Boulevard. William Holden's has-been film producer attends the funeral of Fedora, a reclusive former film star, and thinks back on the recent trip he took to Corfu, attempting to track her down and coax her out of retirement. What unravels is a mystery, a conspiracy, a twisted mother-daughter relationship, and another in Mubi's strand of "perfect failures". Wilder's struggle to finance Fedora is apparent, José suggesting that in every part one can imagine a superior actor. Though that's perhaps scant defence of the tedious visual design - Dutch angles don't cost money, and the film is crying out for more visual expression than it offers. Mike explains his problem with the plot structure and particularly his dislike of "two weeks earlier" hooks, and we consider the way in which we're asked to believe in Fedora's incredible stardom while not reall