Vincente Minnelli's "The Bad and the Beautiful" is an 'inside Hollywood' film in the vein of "Sunset Blvd.". The film recounts the story of how three Hollywood A-listers came by their success under the guidance of producer Jonathon Shields (Kirk Douglas). However, unfortunately for Shields, he now finds himself a pariah following his numerous betrayals. Can former business partner Harry Pebbel (Walter Pidgeon) convince the three to reunite for the project that Shields hopes will vault him back into the spotlight?<br /><br />The cast is admirable. Kirk Douglas fit well in the role of a manipulative Hollywood producer and he found himself rewarded with an Oscar nomination for his performance. Lana Turner was the other headliner and she delivered the goods as well (while looking wonderful, I might add). Gloria Grahame somehow managed to snag an Oscar for her relatively minor role, though I must admit that she is memorably fetching. The rest of the cast is uniformly solid with no weak links.<br /><br />Minnelli's direction is lively while the film's Oscar wins for cinematography, costume design & art direction show that the film is easy on the eyes. The David Raksin score admirably supports the visuals, running the gamut from bouncy to foreboding.<br /><br />All in all, the film is a memorable 'inside Hollywood' yarn mixing soapy melodrama with a somewhat noirish approach. While not as satirically cutting as "Sunset Blvd." it is bolstered by an Oscar-winning script. Throw in the fine cast and technical polish and you've got a film that's definitely worth watching.