Fedora

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Fedora

PG,

1978,

1h 50m,

Drama

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Watchlist

Watchlist

69%

16 Reviews

Tomatometer

61%

500+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

69%

Tomatometer

16 Reviews

61%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

When movie legend Fedora (Marthe Keller) commits suicide, the world grieves, and no one more so than writer and old flame Barry "Dutch" Detweiler (William Holden). Two weeks prior, he had visited the reclusive celebrity on a remote Mediterranean island where she confessed she was effectively being held captive by a mysterious Polish countess (Hildegard Knef). Now, with too many lingering questions still on his mind, Barry resolves to find out what really happened to her.

Keith Phipps

The Dissolve

Nov 10, 2014

3/5

There's a lot of awkwardness to Fedora, from a sluggish pace to an awful bit of last-minute overdubbing that mars two performances, but there's a lot of fascination in it.

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

Sep 5, 2014

This one seethes with authentic nostalgia; Wilder's attempt not merely to eulogize earlier styles but to revive them feels somewhat embalmed.

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Melissa Anderson

Artforum

Sep 3, 2014

This wearying nostalgia for golden-age moviemaking aside, Fedora exposes, through a major plot twist I won't give away, the off-screen pathologies that constitute the nightmares of the dream factory.

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Jeffrey M. Anderson

Combustible Celluloid

Aug 10, 2025

3.5/4

'Fedora' is, in its way, even more deeply cynical than its cousin ('Sunset Boulevard'), much closer to the abyss. It looks in and sees the end.

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Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Sep 7, 2020

3.0/4.0

Satisfying for Wilder's fans.

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Jesús Fernández Santos

El Pais (Spain)

Aug 15, 2019

The plot illustrates more than it excites, and sits on the edges of the baroque or grotesque. [Full Review in Spanish]

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Finn R

Aug 18, 2017

Interesting mystery film directed and performed very well. All in all very good and I can find nothing to complain about about the execution. Only the story is not that good and therefore the movie is something you watch very happily but don't necessarily think much afterwards.

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Luke W

Apr 14, 2017

An homage to Sunset Boulevard that borders on straight imitation, but Fedora is still exceptional in every way.

Hermione W

Nov 29, 2009

Noir en los setentas. Wilder maestro!

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Billy Wilder

Director

William Holden

Barry 'Dutch' Detweiler

Marthe Keller

Fedora

José Ferrer

Doctor Vando

Hildegard Knef

Countess Fedora Sobryanski

Frances Sternhagen

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Synopsis

When movie legend Fedora (Marthe Keller) commits suicide, the world grieves, and no one more so than writer and old flame Barry "Dutch" Detweiler (William Holden). Two weeks prior, he had visited the reclusive celebrity on a remote Mediterranean island where she confessed she was effectively being held captive by a mysterious Polish countess (Hildegard Knef). Now, with too many lingering questions still on his mind, Barry resolves to find out what really happened to her.

Director: Billy Wilder
Producer: Billy Wilder
Screenwriter: Billy Wilder, I.A.L. Diamond
Production Co: Lorimar Film Entertainment, Bavaria Atelier, Société Française de Production
Rating: PG
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (DVD): May 26, 2009
Runtime: 1h 50m

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