Analysis

Analysis


Symbols and Tropes

Hero's Journey

Ever notice that every blockbuster movie has the same fundamental pieces? A hero, a journey, some conflicts to muck it all up, a reward, and the hero returning home and everybody applauding his or...

Setting

New York CityDon Birnam had Big City dreams when he first moved to The Big Apple, but like many a dreamer, he quickly came down with a case "little fish in a big pond" syndrome. As such, he spends...

Point of View

A Six-Day CycleBecause it's set over a long weekend, The Lost Weekend has an easily definable narrative structure: that of a long weekend. Within this structure, however, there's a notable use of c...

Genre

Drama; Film Noir; Cautionary TaleOn its most basic level, The Lost Weekend's a drama. It deals with heavy subject matter, including alcoholism and infidelity, and the plot is deadly serious outside...

What's Up With the Title?

The Lost Weekend takes place over a weekend (check) and follows a man who's lost in the throes of alcoholism (check). Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy.It's also the name of the book that this film is bas...

What's Up With the Ending?

After his freaky experience with the DTs, Don's finally given up on life. He steals Helen's leopard print coat, trades it at a nearby pawnshop for a gun, and prepares to end his suffering once and...

Shock Rating

PGAlthough the actual subject matter of the film (read: one man's descent into alcoholism) is pretty intense, censorship standards of the 1940's prevent the film from depicting anything that would...