Sweet Smell of Success (2010)

One of the most daring films of the 1950s, the dark satire Sweet Smell of Success, took on McCarthyism at a time when film studios were cringing under the repressive eye of the censors and an equally intimidating political and media environment. Starring Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis, this film was the first of its kind to take on the Hollywood system as it served up a dose of revenge for the left against the suffocating cultural atmosphere of the period. James Naremore’s insightful study offers new information about the many revisions of the screenplay, negotiations with censors, and the tense circumstances under which the film was shot and received by critics and the public. He also provides a detailed commentary on the finished product, analyzing the important contributions of its several talented creators.