The Lost Weekend is a 1945 American drama directed by Billy Wilder and starring Ray Milland and Jane Wyman. The screenplay was written by Wilder and Charles Brackett based on the novel by Charles R. Jackson. The cinematography is by John F. Seitz, and the music is by Miklos Rozsa.
New York writer Don Birnam (Milland), is packing for a
weekend vacation with his brother Wick (Philip Terry). Don, who is an
alcoholic, is desperately trying to get out of traveling out of town. When his girlfriend Helen St. James (Wyman) arrives
with gifts and two tickets to an afternoon concert, Don suggests that Wick go to the concert instead of him. Don’s goal is to get drunk and forget about
the weekend trip.
So begins a downward spiral into severe alcoholism, where Don
will do anything for a drink.
Will Don be able to claw his way back to sobriety and a
stable life with Helen?
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Ray Milland and Jane Wyman |
Billy Wilder (1906 - 2002) was an Austrian-born American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He won six Academy Awards for his writing and direction and was nominated twenty-one times over a career that spanned five decades. Wilder started his career as a writer, penning the screenplays for Ninotchka (1939), Ball of Fire (1942), Double Indemnity (1945), The Lost Weekend (1946), Sunset Boulevard (1951) Boulevard (1951), Sabrina (1955), Some Like it Hot (1960), and The Apartment (1961). As a director, he won Academy Awards for directing The Lost Weekend (1946) and The Apartment (1961). Wilder directed fourteen different actors in Oscar-nominated roles. He is considered one of the most versatile directors from Hollywood’s Classical period.
Ray Milland (1907 – 1986) was a Welsh-American
movie star and film director. He won a Best Actor Oscar for portraying an
alcoholic writer in Billy Wilder’s The Lost Weekend (1945).
Milland played bit parts at M-G-M and Paramount. While at Paramount, he was
loaned to Universal to for a lead in the Deanna Durbin movie Three
Smart Girls (1936). The success of the film led to him being cast in
leading roles. He became one of Paramount’s biggest stars, remaining there for
almost 20 years. Other films starring Milland include The Major and the
Minor (1942), Reap the Wild Wind (1942), where he had
top billing over John Wayne, the horror classic The Uninvited (1944), The
Big Clock (1948), and Dial M for Murder (1954). Later
in his career, he starred as Ryan O’Neal’s father in Love Story (1970).
Jane Wyman (1917 – 2007) was an American actress. Wyman
starred in movies and television and won a Best Actress Academy Award for her
performance in Johnny Belinda (1948). She received four nominations for
Best Actress between 1946 and 1954. She had a huge success with the primetime
soap opera Falcon Crest (1981 – 1990), where she play the conniving family
matriarch Angela Channing. Other Wyman films include The Lost Weekend
(1945), The Yearling (1946), Magnificent Obsession (1954), All
That Heaven Allows (1955), and Pollyanna (1960).
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Ray Milland |
The Lost Weekend trivia
- Billy Wilder claimed that the liquor industry offered Paramount $5 million not to release the film.
- Ray Milland checked himself into Bellevue Hospital with the medical staff’s approval so he could experience what a drunk ward was like.
- Ray Milland didn’t give an acceptance speech when he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. He acknowledged the applause and left the stage.
- Billy Wilder read The Lost Weekend on a train ride from New York to Los Angeles. He thought it would be the perfect material for his next film.
- Ray Milland was advised not to take the role, fearing it would damage his career. Many leading men of the day turned the role down.
- Jane Wyman was loaned to Paramount for her role as Helen St. James. Wyman called it a “miracle.” Her performance received good notices and she went for supporting player to major movie star.
Click HERE to join the online discussion on Monday, May 19,
2025, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an email and a
link to join the discussion on Zoom.
Click HERE to watch the movie on the Internet Archive.
Discussion questions
- How do you think audiences in 1945 reacted to this film?
- Does the impact of this film hold up in 2025?
- Was Ray Milland believable as an alcoholic?
- Did he and Jane Wyman have good on-screen chemistry?
- Was the film’s portrayal of alcoholism realistic?
- Did anything about the film surprise you?