History Film / TheLostWeekend

->''"Most men lead lives of quiet desperation. I can't ''take'' quiet desperation!"''

An alcoholic writer, Don Birnam (Milland), leads a tough existence in New York City. His girlfriend, Helen (Creator/JaneWyman), is one of the few people out there who can hopefully lead him on the straight and narrow. However, Don's personal life has been at a crossroads due to his insecurities. After ditching his brother's suggestion for a weekend in the country, Don begins a long drinking binge, the titular "lost weekend". Of course, the more he drinks, the closer it may be to his last one...

A 1944 novel by Charles R. Jackson, ''The Lost Weekend'' entered into PopCulturalOsmosis once [[TheFilmOfTheBook the film version]] was released the following year. Directed and co-written by Creator/BillyWilder and starring Creator/RayMilland, the film won four [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including Best Picture. Music/MiklosRozsa provided the film's score, notable for its prominent use of {{Theremin}}.

''The Lost Weekend'' won [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] for Best Picture, Best Director for Billy Wilder, Best Actor for Milland, and Best Adapted Screeplay for Wilder and Charles Brackett. The film also took the Grand Prix at Cannes (forerunner to the UsefulNotes/PalmeDOr) and is on the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry.

* PinkElephants: A particularly terrifying use of this trope, as Don hallucinates a bat swooping in and eating a mouse in the wall. Unlike many films, which have people seeing their Pink Elephants during their drunken binges, this one gets it right, and has Don seeing his mice and bat ''after'' his spree, when he's going through withdrawal.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* OneSceneWonder: Bim, a nurse who gives a monologue mocking Don and laying out the dangers of alcoholism.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Gloria, the girl at Nat's Bar who likes Don, is strongly implied to be a prostitute. She keeps meeting total strangers at Nat's for dates, and she tells Don that she broke "a business date" to see him.

* UnfamiliarCeiling: Don awakes at the alcoholic ward after his StaircaseTumble, wondering where exactly he is. The first thing he sees is the unfamiliar ceiling.

* {{Bookends}}: The film opens with a shot of the Manhattan skyline and then pans over to Don's apartment window. The last scene is an exact reversal of that sequence.

''The Lost Weekend'' won [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] for Best Picture, Best Director for Billy Wilder, Best Actor for Milland, and Best Adapted Screeplay for Wilder and Charles Brackett. It also took the Grand Prix at Cannes (forerunner to the UsefulNotes/PalmeDOr) and is on the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry.

''The Lost Weekend'' won [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] for Best Picture, Best Director for Billy Wilder, Best Actor for Milland, and Best Adapted Screeplay for Wilder and Charles Brackett. It also took the Grand Prix at Cannes and (forerunner to the UsefulNotes/PalmeDOr) and is on the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry.

''The Lost Weekend'' won [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] for Best Picture, Best Director for Billy Wilder, Best Actor for Milland, and Best Adapted Screeplay for Wilder and Charles Brackett. It also took the [[UsefulNotes/PalmeDOr Grand Prix]] at Cannes and is on the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry.

''The Lost Weekend'' won [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] for Best Picture, Best Director for Billy Wilder, Best Actor for Milland, and Best Adapted Screeplay for Wilder and Charles Brackett. It is on the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry.

->''"Most men lead lives of quiet desperation. I can't take quiet desperation!"''

* StaircaseTumble: Don loses his ballance on the stairs to Gloria's apartment and tumbled all the way down.

** Lampshaded by "Bim", the nurse at the Bellevue drunk ward:

* BattleaxeNurse: "Bim" is a rare male example. He's openly contemptuous of Don and the other patients, and takes a sadistic delight in describing what he has to look forward to from the [=DTs=].

* BattleaxeNurse: "Bim" is a rare male example. He's openly contemptuous of Don and the other patients, and takes a sadistic delight in describing what he has to look forward to from the DTs.

* AmbiguouslyGay: "Bim", the male nurse at the alcoholic ward.

-->'''"Bim"''': You know that stuff about pink elephants? That's the bunk. It's little animals! Little tiny turkeys in straw hats. Midget monkeys coming through the keyholes. See that guy over there? With him it's beetles. Come the night, he sees beetles crawling all over him.

An alcoholic writer, Don Birnam (Milland), leads a tough existence in New York City. His girlfriend, Helen (Jane Wyman), is one of the few people out there who can hopefully lead him on the straight and narrow. However, Don's personal life has been at a crossroads due to his insecurities. After ditching his brother's suggestion for a weekend in the country, Don begins a long drinking binge, the titular "lost weekend". Of course, the more he drinks, the closer it may be to his last one...

* GrayRainOfDepression: It's pouring out when Don, hitting bottom, steals Helen's coat, which he pawns. For a gun.

* BathroomStallOfOverheardInsults: Don overhears Helen's father talk unfavorable of him in the hotel lobby. Cue INeedAFreakingDrink.

A 1944 novel by Charles R. Jackson, ''The Lost Weekend'' entered the PopCulturalOsmosis once [[TheFilmOfTheBook the film version]] was released the following year. Directed and co-written by Creator/BillyWilder and starring Creator/RayMilland, the film won four [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including Best Picture. Music/MiklosRozsa provided the film's score, notable for its prominent use of {{Theremin}}.

* MostWritersAreWriters: Don is a frustrated author with writers' block. Whether the inability to write has exacerbated his drinking or his drinking has robbed him of the ability to write is unclear.

* MoralGuardians: On both ends: the liquor industry tried to sway Paramount from releasing the film, allegedly even going as far to bribe Billy Wilder. On the other hand, the more traditional folks tried to keep it from release for fears it would encourage drinking.

A 1944 novel by Charles R. Jackson, ''The Lost Weekend'' entered the PopCulturalOsmosis once [[TheFilmOfTheBook the film version]] was released the following year. Directed and co-written by Creator/BillyWilder and starring Ray Milland, the film won four [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including Best Picture. Music/MiklosRozsa provided the film's score, notable for its prominent use of {{Theremin}}.

* ExtremelyShortTimespan: The title isn't random; the whole movie, minus the flashback sequence, takes place as Don goes on a bender over a long weekend, starting on Thursday afternoon.