The Hollywood You Never See

Hollywood You Never See, The (1934)

*** (out of 4)

Decent documentary-short starts off at the world premiere of Cecil B. DeMille's CLEOPATRA and then flashes back to when the film first went into production. DeMille then takes us through the steps of what it takes to make a movie. The entire concept of this film is to show people what all goes on before the final product is finally put together and on the screen. We see DeMille picking out the right way to frame a shot, picking the right costumes and then going through the music score to make sure it's right for a scene. One would think that this Paramount short would just be a promo for the film but it's actually not as it appears DeMille really wants folks to know how much work goes into the making of a film. DeMille certainly comes off at ease and he appears to be having fun "teaching" the viewer what all goes on. The short runs 11-minutes and will be most appreciated by film buffs who want to see the legendary director at work.

Meant to be a behind-the-scenes look at the making of Cleopatra (1934), a film I adore, but really has so very little content that it comes off as more of a mini vanity project for Cecil B. DeMille. There's some interest in seeing him give actors and the crew instructions, but it all seems pretty canned.