Budapest Classic Film Marathon 2025: Gilda

One of the most iconic scenes in film history is when Gilda, played by Rita Hayworth, whose name adorned a detonated atomic bomb, seductively pulls off her black gloves while dancing. But the scene in which Johnny glimpses Gilda throwing her hair back has equal wow factor. They way they gaze at each other tells us exactly where this story is heading. There can be no question that audiences were enraptured first and foremost by the dancing and singing of Gilda, not the screenplay by the incredibly talented writer Ben Hecht. The film’s director of photography was Rudolf Maté of To Be or Not to Be fame, and its director was another Hungarian, Károly Vidor, by then known as Charles Vidor.