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What Price Hollywood?

Play trailer Poster for What Price Hollywood? 1932,  1h 28m,  Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist 83% 6 Reviews Tomatometer 64% 100+ Ratings Popcornmeter
83% Tomatometer 6 Reviews 64% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
When pretty waitress and Hollywood hopeful Mary Evans (Constance Bennett) serves drinks to famous director Max Carey (Lowell Sherman), a Tinseltown cliché becomes reality, and he offers her a bit part in his new film. Almost blowing her chance due to nerves and inexperience, Mary finally clicks as an actress and becomes an overnight star. But after she marries a polo player (Neil Hamilton) who has no interest in the movie business, Max feels betrayed and descends into an alcoholic depression.

Critics Reviews

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Sean Axmaker Stream on Demand Apr 26, 2025
... one of the wittiest and most interesting Hollywood movies about Hollywood culture ever made. It’s a shame it’s not better known. Go to Full Review
David Nusair Reel Film Reviews May 24, 2021
2.5/4
...Cukor has peppered the proceedings with several engrossing sequences... Go to Full Review
Pare Lorentz Vanity Fair Jun 5, 2019
That they are not lovely people does not detract from the fact that they were ingenuously presented to us. Go to Full Review
Tim Brayton Alternate Ending Nov 19, 2018
4/5
A great character piece lying just atop a great snapshot of a particular place in a particular moment. Go to Full Review
Fernando F. Croce CinePassion Jul 7, 2012
A swirl of Tinseltown anecdotes peopled by spirited sketches of dyspeptic bosses and smirking gossip-peddlers, safe but piquant Go to Full Review
Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Apr 4, 2011
B
Cukor's well acted melodrama (especially by Constance Bennett) precedes by five years the first version of A Star Is Born; it's basically the same story. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Theodore S Jul 28, 2017 There are some really nice moments in this film, which mixes a 'behind the scenes' look at the film industry, romantic comedy, and drama. Lowell Sherman, in the role of an alcoholic director, turns in a great performance, and scenes with him towards the end are excellent, though I won't spoil them. Constance Bennett, on the other hand, is hit and miss: she sizzles in a nightclub scene where she croons in French, channeling Marlene Dietrich, but in other scenes she's overly shrill. I'm not a huge fan of movies depicting the inner workings of filmmaking and the difficulties those in the industry face, including early version of the paparazzi here, and the concept of the 'waitress who is discovered' in Hollywood is pretty cliché. Unfortunately, the script is rather shallow, and it's surprising to me that story was nominated for an Academy Award. There are some funny scenes, such as when an interviewer asks if their marriage was for the "thoughtful, reasoning" kind of love, or the "blind, passion, ummph" kind, and when the director pulls the maid into the pool when she too tries to get a few moments with him to audition. There are also some cringe-inducing scenes, such as when Bennett's suitor (Neil Hamilton, who you may recognize as the commissioner from the 'Batman' TV series, 30+ years later) literally force-feeds her on a date, after having carried her to the table (wow, way to get the girl :( Net, it's a mixed bag, not horrible, but not amazing either. See more
Anakin S Jul 2, 2017 A Star Is Born template. George Cukor directed. Did not recognize any of the cast.
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What Price Hollywood?

My Rating

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Movie Info

Synopsis When pretty waitress and Hollywood hopeful Mary Evans (Constance Bennett) serves drinks to famous director Max Carey (Lowell Sherman), a Tinseltown cliché becomes reality, and he offers her a bit part in his new film. Almost blowing her chance due to nerves and inexperience, Mary finally clicks as an actress and becomes an overnight star. But after she marries a polo player (Neil Hamilton) who has no interest in the movie business, Max feels betrayed and descends into an alcoholic depression.
Director
George Cukor
Screenwriter
Gene Fowler, Rowland Brown, Adela Rogers St. Johns, Jane Murfin, Ben Markson
Production Co
RKO Pathé Pictures
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 24, 1932, Wide
Release Date (DVD)
Feb 18, 2014
Runtime
1h 28m
Sound Mix
Mono
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