The Lost Weekend (1945)

Country of Origin: USA
Year of Production: 1945
Running Times: 101 mins
Length: 2788 metres
Format: black and white     35mm
Ratio: 1.37:1
Sound: mono

CREDITS

PRODUCTION
Production Company: Paramount Pictures
Producer: Charles Brackett

SCRIPT
Script: Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder
Novel: Charles R. Jackson

DIRECTION
Director: Billy Wilder

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: John F. Seitz

EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Editorial Supervision: Doane Harrison

MUSIC
Music: Miklos Rozsa

SOUND
Sound Recordists: Stanley Cooley, Joel Moss
Sound System: Western Electric Recording

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up Supervisor: Wally Westmore
Costume Designer: Edith Head

VISUAL EFFECTS
Special Photographic Effects: Gordon Jennings
Process Photography: Farciot Edouart

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Art Directors: Hans Dreier, Earl Hedrick
Set Decorator: Bertram Granger

LOCATIONS
Locations: Bellevue Hospital, First Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA; New York City, New York, USA; Shrine Auditorium, W. Jefferson Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

CAST
Ray Milland (Don Birnam)
Jane Wyman (Helen St James)
Phillip Terry (Wick Birnam)
Howard Da Silva (Nat)
Doris Dowling (Gloria)
Frank Faylen ('Bim' Nolan)
Mary Young (Mrs Deveridge)
Anita Bolster (Mrs Foley)
Lilian Fontaine (Mrs Charles St James)
Frank Orth (opera cloak room attendant)
Lewis L. Russell (Charles St James)

PLOT SUMMARY

Failing writer Don Birnam has hit the bottle big time. With the help of his brother Wick and girlfriend Helen, he manages to stay sober for ten days and a recovery seems likely. But when Wick and Helen are away for a long weekend, Birnam gives in to temptation. As he suffers terrifying hallucinations, he struggles with his past and his addiction.

Brazil
DVD Distributors: ClassicLine

UK
Television Distributors: TCM

USA
Theatrical Distributors: Paramount Pictures
Video Distributors: MCA/Universal Home Video
DVD Distributors: Universal (21153)

CENSORSHIP HISTORY

Argentina
Rating: 16

Australia
Rating: PG

Finland
Rating: K-16

Sweden
Rating: 15

USA
Rating: Approved

AWARDS

1945
National Board of Review, USA
Best Actor (Ray Milland) - winner

1946
Academy Awards, USA
Best Actor in a Leading Role (Ray Milland) - winner
Best Director (Billy Wilder) - winner
Best Picture (Charles Brackett) - winner
Best Writing, Screenplay (Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder) - winner
Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (John F. Seitz) - nominated
Best Film Editing (Doane Harrison) - nominated
Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture (Miklós Rózsa) - nominated

Cannes Film Festival, France
Best Actor (Ray Milland) - winner
Grand Prize of the Festival (Billy Wilder) - winner

Golden Globes, USA
Best Motion Picture: Drama - winner
Best Motion Picture Actor (Ray Milland) - winner
Best Motion Picture Director (Billy Wilder) - winner

New York Film Critics Circle Awards, USA
Best Actor (Ray Milland) - winner
Best Director (Billy Wilder) - winner
Best Film - winner

TIMELINE

1944
October
1: USA - production begins

December
30: USA - production ends

1945
August
10: USA - copyright granted (LP13636)

November
16: USA - theatrical premiere in New York City, New York
29: USA - theatrical premiere in Los Angeles, California

1946
September
Day Unknown: France - shown at the Cannes Film Festival
3: Sweden - theatrical release

October
11: Finland - theatrical release

1947
February
14: France - theatrical release

1948
February
Day Unknown: Germany - theatrical release

April
21: Denmark - theatrical release

1973
June
8: Finland - theatrical re-release

2001
February
6: USA - DVD release (Universal (21153))

2005
May
7: UK - television broadcast (on Sky Cinema 1 (shown twice))
8: UK - television broadcast (on Sky Cinema 2 (shown twice))

POSTER TAGS

The Screen Dares To Open The Strange And Savage Pages Of A Shocking Best-Seller!

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

Días sin huella - Argentinean / Spanish title
Farrapo Humano - Brazilian / Portugese title
Forspildte dage - Danish title
Förspillda dagar - Swedish title
Giorni perduti - Italian title
Le poison - French / French Belgian title
Tuhlattuja päiviä - Finnish title
Het vergift - Flemish Belgian title
Das Verlorene Wochenende - Austrian / German title

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
The 75th Annual Academy Awards (2003)
AFI's 100 Years, 100 Laughs: America's Funniest Movies (2000)
The American Film Institute Salute to Billy Wilder (1986)
The Celluloid Closet (1995)
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982)
Precious Images (1986)
The Screen Writer (1950)
Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey (1994)

OTHER SOURCES

screen
credits

alcoholism, bars, bartenders, book into film, drunkenness, flashbacks, hallucinations, hospitals, hotels, manhattan, milkmen, mice, new york, opera, pickpockets, typewriters, writers

Last Updated: 15 October, 2008