No matter what the film is like, if Thelma Ritter is in it there will be something to love - she steals every scene she's in. She's wonderful in 'A Letter to Three Wives'
Bette Davis is a thrill to watch in movies. Really, that woman could communicate her character’s emotions in the single raise of an eyebrow or a single fleeting glance and you would understand every unspoken word. The complexity in the Macbeth-esque atmosphere of this film makes her performance untouchable and more than memorable. An incredible talent of the last era and honestly so missed in our own.
"Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night!" Fun Fact: Bette Davis fell in love with her co-star Gary Merrill during the shoot of this movie and the two married in July 1950, after filming was completed. They adopted a baby girl, whom they named Margot. Never Been Broken Fact: Holds the record for the most female acting Oscar nominations in a single film with four: Anne Baxter and Bette Davis' for Best Actress and Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter for Best Supporting Actress. Wardrobe Malfunction Fact: Margo Channing's famous cocktail dress was an Edith Head creation. To Head's horror, just as they were about to go film the cocktail party, she found that the dress didn't quite fit Bette Davis in the shoulders. There was no time to fix the dress, but fortunately Davis hit on the bright idea of simply slipping the dress off her shoulders.
It certainly holds the honors for the best screenplay based upon extended dialogue/narration. Other films may have more powerful images or camera techniques, but AAE stands firmly on the SPOKEN WORD. By that standard it should be judged the best of all Classic Hollywood screenplays. (1931-1970).
I remember first seeing this as a teenager. When Miss Caswell made her entrance, I thought, "Oh, she's doing Marilyn Monroe...that IS Marilyn Monroe!" Mankiewicz is a genius, Baxter a revelation, and Betty Davis a force of nature. Thanks for another great review! : )
The Women (1939) is such a verbal wonder, and while it’s set in the rarified air of upper crust Manhattan society, the man troubles and issues are universal and timeless.
Joan Crawford and what’s her face right? Affairs,divorce, horse ranch , am I right? I never watched the remake. Wasn’t there a Joan collins version? The Opposite Sex maybe. I watch so many old movies
Yes, "the Opposite Sex" starred June Alyson as Mary and there were male roles in that one. Also, Joan Collins play the Joan Crawford role as the "other" woman. It was a terrible remake, but the clothes were sensational. @@justinshelton5026
The off the shoulder dress worn by Betty Davis at the party was designed by Edith Head. In one of her books, I read, she talked about this dress. Head was upset because the straps on the dress were too loose and fell off the shoulders. Bette suggested that they be left to hang down slightly off the shoulders creating this iconic dress. So Betty Davis inadvertently helped design it. Head won an Oscar 8 times between 1949 through 1973 for Best Costume Design. This makes her the most Oscar awarded woman in the academy's history. Head was nominated for an Oscar 35 times. Her story is very interesting. She conned her way into her initial job, in Costuming, at Paramount. She borrowed sketches from other students at Chouinard Art Institute and passed them off as her own, in order to get her foot in the door.
Thelma Ritter always acted so earthy and real. You will love Thelma as a professional matchmaker in "The Model and The Marriage Broker" w the stunning Jeanne Crain or as the gorgeous Gene Tierney's new Mother in law , who she mistakes for her new maid in the funny "The Mating Season" She is truely wonderful character actress that improves every film she is in , much like the ubiquitous Mary Wickes and Ellen Corby!
i do believe this was before the marilyn persona was so realized and recognizable and this was when marilyn was using all her own tricks (before going to an acting studio) to get into character, in this movie she’s an actress trying to get in parts by using her beauty and the attentions of horny men so her presence and ‘marilyn’ look is appropriate imo bc shes also fully aware of how transactional the acting world can be
"Just score it as an incomplete forward pass" is one of the most underappreciated great lines from this movie! I knew you'd lose your mind over this one. It is so great and gets greater on multiple views!
Thelma Ritter's line "everything but the bloodhounds snapping at her rear end" is a reference to "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and the scene where the slaves are chased across the icy river by Simon Legree and his bloodhounds.
Yes to this! Celeste Holm's narration in that films is beautiful - she's got a distinct voice and her character's never seen. Letter to Three Wives is where Ritter's hot streak began. Her character in that film (service role/hired help) is so funny and her back-and-forth with Linda Darnell is priceless. The whole dinner scene is perfection! Another sharply written film from Mankiewicz which earned him an Oscar for writing and for directing. I believe he's one of the only people to ever accomplish that.
This is my favorite film. I was 14 when I saw it for the first time. We watched it in my high school drama class. It took two class periods to finish it. When the bell rang no one wanted to leave. The movie was all anyone wanted to talk about for days.
You might find this interesting: the elderly actor giving the award speech is Walter Hampden. He is, essentially, playing himself. He was a huge Broadway star in the early part of the 20th century especially known for his "Cyrano de Bergerac" and many Shakespeare plays.
Perhaps the greatest film about women characters is _The Women_ (1939). Directed by George Cukor, with a screenplay by Anita Loos, Jane Murtin, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Donald Ogden Stewart, adapted from Clare Booth Luce's play, it stars Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Mary Boland, Paulette Godard, and Joan Fontaine. There are no male characters in either the play or the film.
The Women is certainly an interesting film, but I always found it unsatisfactory. It seems to me that if only female characters are to appear onscreen, then only female characters should be essential to the plot. But there are multiple male characters in The Women whose actions are just as crucial to the plot as those of the female ones, only we never get to see them on the screen, and the whole device just feels forced. For a perfect example of how to make a film that is primarily concerned with its female characters, may I recommend one called All About Eve?
@@richardzinns5676 I think leaving men completely out of the story would be a little unrealistic, though. Grown women who had kids and the lifestyle shown at this time almost always had men as a key element in their lives,. Leaving them out would be a bit surreal. Lawrence of Arabia had no women except in the background, but he was in a country where a woman speaking to a strange, white man, or any man, freely would of been taboo, so the ladies were left in the background. I do agree the movie feels "forced" to us now, because the roles of men and women have changed since then. The conventional wisdom of that time was a woman was incomplete without a man and kids. Her place was to charm a man into marrying her so he could be her mate and support the family. If he strayed, the advice was to ignore it, because he would come back to her if she always had a smiling face and a happy home for him to come back to. It was seen as abnormal and unfeminine for a woman to have a career before the 1970's. I have never seen the remake, but heard it was a disaster. I'm not surprised. Most of the culture so central to many of the plot points 1930's "The Women" has disappeared, thank goodness. But there are many relatable moments as well. Some things never change. One last thing. I'm not sure this film passes the Bechdel Test. Even though it's all women, all they ever talk about is men.
Did you know Lauren Bacall played Margo Channing in the musical version of All About Eve called APPLAUSE and when she left the production Anne Baxter took over the part.
@@MoviesWithMia Also, Bette Davis appeared in the pilot episode of the television primetime soap opera series _Hotel_ as hotel owner Laura Trent and publicity for the series indicated that Davis was to be a regular on the program. However, the onset of ill health forced Davis to withdraw from the series and Anne Baxter was brought in as Victoria Cabot, Mrs. Trent's sister-in-law.
I love Thelma Ritter, too! If you want to see her in a rare leading role, watch the romantic comedy "The Mating Season" (1951). Or if you want to see how great she could be playing a dramatic role, try "Pickup on South Street" (1953), Sam Fuller's skid-row noir masterpiece.
The Model and the Marriage Broker is a very charming movie. She's the main character but she's given second billing for some reason. She makes you feel empathy , like she's a real person.
Mmm. In "The Model and the Marriage Broker", also from 1951, Thelma gets a lead role and her own romance storyline. She elevates everything she's in of course.
YES! Finally!! Sanders' performance in this film is next level. Seeing 'Eve' fall was so worth the wait. If you want another film with great commentary and WAY ahead of its time, seek out 'A Face in the Crowd'. Whether you do it for the channel or for your own viewing, you will be amazed.
@@MoviesWithMia thanks!!! Regina Giddens is one of those "love to hate" kind of characters. lol Have you reacted to any other Bette Davis movies? You seemed very familiar with her during this reaction, but I couldn't find anything else on the channel!
Mankie could write women's parts brilliantly. Check out "A Letter To Three Wives" if you haven't already! But "All About Eve" outshines it. It's arguably The best film ever made. Simply flawless. No elaborate sets, no special effects, none of that. The dialogue and the acting is more than enough to carry the film.
Thelma Ritter is the bomb. Da bomb. You hear all these smooth finishing school New England accents, and then -- IN SHE DROPS like a Brooklyn longshoreman's wife, with a voice that cuts cuts cuts. Holy Ginsu, Batman! ------- Matched with a sharp tongue, too. "Everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end." 🤣🤣🤣
Rewatching and listening to Eve's initial sob story is hilarious. The gentle music cue especially is great, everything is driving home how immediately she's assuming her snake role and we're kicking ourselves for thinking it could possibly be genuine, in any universe. This was a very early classic I watched and because I wasn't familiar with the language of film back then a lot was lost on me, but I felt magnetized to it regardless because it is such an irresistible little bauble of a film and watching you watch it brought me back to that first time and retroactively heightened it, no matter how many times I've seen it since. Brava! Actually not my favorite with Davis, I think Now Voyager is. It doesn't feel semi-autobiographical the way Eve or Baby Jane might, but if you love transformations pulled off without a hitch it's the movie for you.
@@DanielOrme The makeover trope done right I swear. Not done to land anybody, but for the good of your own self-image, and *then* maybe you can open yourself up to love. It's such a grown-up film.
Thank you so much for watching! Yes I would love to watch more of Bette Davis! In fact I have included another one of her movies on a future poll on patreon!!
Fun fact: Bette Davis was well known for her smoking; she often used cigarettes as a prop in her films. The three movies where she smoked the most were "Now Voyager," "All About Eve," and "Dead Ringer" (1963)
In the scene in the foyer of the theatre Marilyn took so many takes to get her line right that Bette Davis ended up shouting at her. Marilyn's character isn't off. She's playing an ingenue and a genuine one unlike Eve who is just pretending.
I agree with your analysis of Marilyn's brief, but showy performance in this high energy film. At the time of this movie release, nobody ever heard of "Marilyn Monroe"....it was this movie and Asphalt Jungle (released the same year) that 20th Century Fox (and MGM) were getting hundreds of letters a week asking "who's the blonde?". I have seen this movie 10-15 times and each time I see it, during the "party" scene, with all the "darkness" around - the shouting, the sarcasm, the insecurities, jealousy, manipulation....slowly rises from the staircase, this bright white light of innocence and vulnerability....knowing she can't compete with their talents... she uses what she has to get noticed (let's face it, her screen presence steals the scene) - you also can literally see her turn on her "MM persona" when she is asked to "entertain" Max.. Addison Dewitt's later comment to miss Caswell "Well done. I see your career rising in the East like the sun" is very prophetic and also quite chilling.
In BURNT OFFERINGS Karen Black said her 1st scene with Bette Davis wasn't going well and finally Davis took her aside to calm ber. Davis realized Black was so in awe of her Black couldn't concentrate and Davis saw that and reassured her so Black could do her best. Davis was a treasure.
So glad you like it. Thelma Ritter rules! I've seen most of her movies. She is one of my all time favorites. She was wonderful in Rear Window. She was also wonderful in The Model and the Marriage Broker. Really she's wonderful in everything.
"Giant" was James Dean's last film--in the event you want to review it. He died two weeks after his last scene, with the movie still filming when the cast got the devastating news. Excellent (and long) film.
@@MoviesWithMia This is a Hollywood legend, getting lost to time now... James Dean was driving his new sports car, nicknamed "Little Bastard" with a friend. He took for granted another car would yield to him. His last words were, "that guy's gotta stop, he'll see us." His friend was thrown from the car and lived. James Dean was crushed, his car was a flattened wreck. He was only 24. East of Eden is my favorite film of his. RIP James.
"I freakin' love me some George Sanders." Honey, me too!! 🥰 You still need to check out "The Picture of Dorian Gray", which is a classic George Sanders movie! And another lesser-known George Sanders movie that I would absolutely recommend you checking out is "The Strange Woman" with him and Hedy Lamarr. It's like a film noir set in the 1800s... very unique.
Yes is it! Fantastic movie. I'm so glad you're finally getting into Bette Davis' movies. She's just brilliant and one of my ultimate favorites. So many great movies! I can't wait to see your reaction to Rebel Without a Cause. Honestly, i hope you watch Giant and East of Eden as well, James Dean is awesome in them too.
Also Giant which was his last. There's so many classics. I love this channel and Mia's excellent analysis and joy. It's probably my top 2 or 3 RUclips channels.
One of the greatest lines delivered ever is "What a story, everything but the bloodhounds snapping at her rear end." Birdie knew she was bogus, she knew it early. However, there are so many great lines delivered by everyone, especially George Sanders.
I'd seen plenty of vintage SF, Fantasy, and Creature Features growing up, some in theaters and drive-ins when they were first released, but watching a showing of "All About Eve" in a college theater was my first deliberate step into the wider world of "classic cinema". When I first saw it, "All About Eve" was only about 22 years old, which kind of makes my head spin now, but it was a whole different scene before home video existed. I'm still taken aback that so many people have no interest in watching old media now that availability is so much greater than in the past. It's like not appreciating grocery stores. In a lot of ways, I think 1925-1975 was kind of a golden age for women on screen despite what people will tell you now, many of whom have hardly watched any movies from pre-1980.
A Letter to Three Wives is a criminally overlooked film with a great cast consisting of Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Southern, Celeste Holm, Kirk Douglas and Paul Douglas. Definitely worth you doing a reaction to.
A lot of what Mia loved with elevated feminine perspectives and a clashing of the sexes is cranked up to 11 with this one, it's definitely underrated and contains such frothy intrigue at that.
@@bespectacledheroine7292 "ALTTW" has long been high on my ultra-ultra fave list. Kirk Douglas's amazing speech about the dangers of radio and its "dumbing down" of America is just one highlight. Acting by all, and especially the writing and directing by "Mank" are easily on a par with "AAE". I've mentioned this film to Mia on Twitter. I hope she sees it.
@@epsteinisms1483 Ann Sothern's response to raising more boys with a chauvinistic mindset leading to more war and her kids will have no part of it is one of my favorite classic Hollywood burns. Such a sharp film.
You can't miss with "All About Eve".. Bette and Ann were brilliant. One of the best movies ever made. Thanks for bringing it back. I am so glad you watched it! iF you like James Dean, you have to watch "East of Eden".
In the scene where Eve confronts Karen and tells her she wants the part that was written for Margot -- and says "I'd do much more for a part that good" -- SHE imitates Bette Davis' voice perfectly!!!
Judy Holliday ended up winning Best Actress that year, supposedly due to the split vote between Davis and Baxter--and undoubtedly Gloria Swanson for Sunset Boulevard.
Whilst not as god as 'All About Eve" and "Sunset Boulevard", I had a soft spot fot Brando's performance in "The Men". The quality of films back then was off the charts.
Such an amazing film! I'm so happy you finally got to see it. So many quotable lines, so many memorable scenes! Another Bette Davis film I very much recommend is Now, Voyager. Wonderful reaction!
"Now Voyager," one of my favs. Love the scene when you get the first glimpse of her coming down the gangplank after her transformation, both physically and mentally.
The Sarah Siddons Award was a theater in-joke. (There are a lot of these in the screenplay. George Sanders' character's name -- de Witt -- is another.) Siddons was an 18th century actress famous for playing Lady Macbeth.
The Sarah Siddons Award, established in 1952 two years after _All About Eve_ , is presented annually to an actor for an outstanding performance in a Chicago theatrical production. During the Sarah Siddons Society Anniversary Gala in 1973, an honorary Sarah Siddons award was presented to Bette Davis, even though she didn't appear in a Chicago play that year. Celeste Holm, had previously won the award in 1968. Lauren Bacall, who played Davis' role in the Broadway musical version, _Applause_ , has also won in 1972 and 1984.
@@RaymondHng Too bad Anne Baxter never got the award. I saw her in the national tour of NOEL COWARD IN TWO KEYS at the Blackstone with Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn circa 1975. I heard she was better than Bacall in APPLAUSE.
In an era of re-makes, they've never dared to remake this, as it can't be done. The story has been re-worked and re-imagined, notably in 1988's "Working Girl" and 2006's "Devil Wears Prada", but nobody, not even the Devil herself, could play Margo Channing.
I appreciate all the research you do for these films. I’m a big fan of DVDs because many of them include commentary which gives you additional behind the scenes insight. I love all the extras.
"I find that there's something I don't believe in her character." - Very perceptive. You saw it from the beginning. Thelma Ritter was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Birdie. It really was an excellent performance, although for some reason Birdie disappears halfway through the movie. A local film critic whom I won't name here wrote that the movie would have been better with Claudette Colbert in the role of Margot Channing. He said that Bette Davis was too old for the part, and as evidence he used the scene where Margot is dressed in a sort of Bo-Peep costume. He said it made her look ridiculous. Setting aside the fact that Colbert was older than Davis, he completely missed that she was *supposed* to look ridiculous in that outfit. Margot's insecurity about her age was a big part of the story, and putting her in a costume appropriate for someone younger was a way to emphasize that. It was one of the stupidest, most ill-informed opinions I've ever read from a professional film critic. Thank you for this excellent reaction!
Yes it was in her eyes! I could just see it! And yeah, there are plenty of professional film critics out there who make crappy opinions on movies 😂 believe me I have seen some crazy ones!!
@@MoviesWithMia My favorite film from the classic era is 1933's Heroes for Sale. It has Loretta Young and Richard Barthelmess starring as the leads and it's directed by William Wellman. I hope you can do a reaction to the film.
44:00 "That would be cool if she looked into the camera!" Nah, that would be veering too close to the ending of "Sunset Boulevard," which was also released the same year and sharing some of its themes.
Bette Davis, when interviewed by Dick Cavett I believe, was asked why she got the reputation for being difficult Bette said that she stood up to the director and writers on films if they weren't up to snuff. She contrasted it to the script of All About Eve and said - it was ALL RIGHT THERE, I didn't need to change anything.
This may be mentioned elsewhere in the comments but I haven't seen it. So if you liked this movie so much, you may be interested in checking out Mankiewicz's film from 1949; "A Letter To Three Wives". Completely different plot, but the same kind of underlying emotional struggles for the protagonists.
I agree with others suggesting "Now, Voyager". It's shamelessly soapy, but in all the best ways, also with incredible dialogue and performances. An ugly duckling story with Bette Davis and romance is comfort food. Bette Davis did three films with director William Wyler - Jezebel (which earned her an Oscar) and two which are classics in their own right: The Letter (a noire with beautiful cinematography) and The Little Foxes, two of her great villainous roles, roles which she did not shy away from. She often set aside glamour if the part called for it, something not all actresses did.
If you are going to do the incredible Bette Davis, then you must give equal time to her arch enemy, Joan Crawford. Mildred Pierce (1945) may be her most memorable movie and she won the Oscar for it. It’s part film noir and part melodrama. But how about Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, a neo-horror that stars them both! Their feud was so palpable that A+E did a whole miniseries about it.
The one film that I believe is better from BD is "Now Voyager". She is truly outstanding, and her transformation in the movie will leave you star struck over how good she was at her craft.
I saw Anne Baxter play the Margo Channing role in Applause!, the musical version of the story, back in the 70's (the part was originally played by Lauren Bacall, by the way). She was wonderful in that part , too.
I appreciate that you also found Eve a bit hard to believe from the beginning. I did too, but people tend to get defensive when I say that, like I'm insulting Anne Baxter's performance. I think she's brilliant, and she's making a brilliant choice.
I can’t imagine why people would get defensive about finding Eve hard to believe! I think that’s the essence of Eve’s character! She’s supposed to be too perfect that she’s a bit off! I would get defensive if people were trying to defend her 😂 And I agree that Anne Baxter is making EXCELLENT choices!! She was amazing in this film!
It's hard to imagine anyone but Bette Davis as Margo, but I would have loved to see what Claudette Colbert would have done with the role--I think she'd have brought some self-deprecating humor to it and a wry recognition of what was happening. Anne Baxter was cast because of her resemblance to Colbert. The 1934 Academy Awards, where Colbert won Best Actress for It Happened One Night and Bette Davis hadn't been nominated for Of Human Bondage (prompting a write-in campaign), apparently always stuck in Davis's craw. At a tribute to Frank Capra in the 1980s, Colbert and Davis ran into each other. Davis said something to the effect of "well, we're even now. You got the Oscar but I got All About Eve." Colbert was bewildered and just stepped into the elevator and said "have a good evening, Bette." Afterwards she said "can you imagine? She's been holding on to that for 50 years."
Found your channel yesterday, watched your video on Rebecca, LOVED IT, and now I am here for it all. All About Eve is one of the greats and one of my favorites. So darn good. I loved your insight into it and I really love how much fun you have with these movies! Keep up the good work!
Mankiewicz was phenomenal, no doubt about it. Writer/Director of this gem (and Cleopatra) he did the impossible. Battle between men and women characters that gets audiences to understand where both are coming from. The guys aren't shown as stupid to build up intelligent female characters or vice versa. Favorite line (among 1,000s) was "What I go after I want to go after. I don't want it to come after me." Boom! Mic dropped on her wigged head!
One of the greatest films of all time. Davis, at the time, was facing exactly what Margo was facing: her career was in a slump because she had reached 40. Although she was nominated for the Oscar for playing Margo, it didn’t revive her career. Celeste Holm’s performance is often overlooked, but her acting is amazing. Playing against the more high-energy Davis and Baxter, Holms underplays, and I think she’s great in the part. I wanted to point out that early on in the film, when Margo tells Bill to stoo calling Eve “kid,” it’s not just that it’s inappropriate; Margo’s sensitive to the fact that no one calls her “kid” anymore.
It would be surprising to the audience to know that Celeste is the one who shocked audiences playing Ado Annie in "Oklahoma!" on Broadway with the song, "I'm Just A Girl Who Can't Say No"
Smart, sophisticated and devastating funny, all about eve is a Hollywood classic that only improves with age, ALL ABOUT EVE (1950) 99/100% Certified Approved ☑️ Margo Channing: "FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS. IT'S GOING TO BE A BUMPY NIGHT."
You should watch Pillow Talk with Doris Day, Thelma Ritter and Rock Hudson. Absolutly a comedy classic. They did a kind of remake in 2003 called Down with Love.
One of the few times the best film of the year actually won Best Picture, though you also have Sunset Blvd. and Rashomon coming out that year, which I think are equally great.
When it comes to Sunset Boulevard vs All About Eve I gotta go with the former. (They frequently get compared because they were released in the same year, competed for a lot of Oscars against each other, and were both centered around the delusions and struggles of women in show business). I just love film noirs and love Gloria Swanson’s performance. But both films are indeed brilliant.
Excellent reaction! For October, please watch HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE (1964). Stars Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Mary Astor, and Agnes Moorhead. All top actresses from Hollywood’s golden age, way past their prime and bitchy AF. It’s a great murder mystery, with plenty of gore, suspense, twists, and fantastic dialogue. IMO it’s superior to Baby Jane (same director). I guarantee you’ll love it and perfect for Halloween season. 🎃 👻 🤓
Whether she is playing Nefertiti in The Ten Commandments, or Sophie in The Razor's Edge (a role that won her Best Supporting Actress Oscar) Anne Baxter is wonderful. In her scenes opposite the great Bette Davis, she holds her own--if you want to see a contrast pull up the pilot of the 1980s TV series which stars Bette Davis and Morgan Fairchild. In the scenes between these two you can see that Miss Fairchild simply does not hold up.
Im loving your reactions to these scenes!! @31:12 ...first watched this movie when i was 15 and took me many times to watch the movie to fully understand the full scope of who Eve was... a narcissist. You got it right on the first watch! But no one would have understood this at the time. Great movie and performances! Im suscribing to your channel btw. Loved your review
BEST Screenplay EVER written!!!! If you want to see another brilliant Oscar winning screenplay- check out 1968's 'The Lion In Winter' Katharine Hepburn (her 3rd Oscar win) and Peter O'Toole and King Henry II and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine. They spar like a 12 round heavy weight championship! Film debuts for Anthony Hopkins and Timothy Dalton. AMAZING Film!
Have you reviewed The Bad Seed? When I watched as a kid, scared the living daylights out of me. It would be a great movie to add y to o your classic collection. Another Betty Davis gem is The Corn is Green
First this is one of my favorite films ever. Great cast great script. I love the narration that it switches from the various characters. I will say this about Eve, the fact that they actually fell for her often says that people who bullshit sometimes fall for other peoples bullshit, even though there’s that lovely saying, never bullshit of bullshiter.
That last shot in which Phoebe carrying the award is shown replicated endlessly in the mirrors was such a good choice to portray that this cycle of backstabbing and being replaced by the next young thing will repeat itself forever and ever! It remains one of the best movies on the brutality of the star system and on how female actresses are crushed and judged harsher and harsher as they get older...
Love your chsnneel. I began watching movies of the 1930's and 40's when i was about 9 in 1956 and have loved them ever since. I have lots of recommendations for you.
Mia love the Your channel and the films you have selected are all of my favorites. Just to let you know about the opening scene in Sunset Blvd. with Bill Holden face down in the pool. If you don’t know this by now a mirror was placed at the bottom of the pool to achieve that shot. Keep up the good work with your selections, which are most of my all time favorites.
The line at 19:00 where Bette Davis refers to Gary Merrill as being 32 and will look 32 , 20 years from now is very telling how men and women are viewed as they age .
I just found your channel and I love it! All about Eve is one of my all time favorites. Now Vorager is my other all time favorites. Thank you for your commentary. Please keep up the great work and I'll keep tuning in. 😎👍
My favorite line, "You can always put that award where your heart ought to be."
Me too!
My fave scene is when Addison nails Eve in the hotel room. EVERY line is quotable. Such a great revelatory scene!
Definitely agree!! "Why I should want you at all suddenly strikes me as the height of improbability."
@@rabrab3 She sure got the "Comupance" she so well deserved.
That appeared be a very real slap on her face as well.
ShE wAs a LiAr! SHe wAs a LiAr 😂
Addison's take-down of Eve is one of the most glorious scenes in cinema.
😢yes Addison
No matter what the film is like, if Thelma Ritter is in it there will be something to love - she steals every scene she's in. She's wonderful in 'A Letter to Three Wives'
Agreed. She could deliver a quip like nobody's business. And she's great in films such as "Pickup on South Street."
Ritter and Eve Arden were the best at wicked line delivery.@@Mooseman327
Bette Davis is a thrill to watch in movies. Really, that woman could communicate her character’s emotions in the single raise of an eyebrow or a single fleeting glance and you would understand every unspoken word. The complexity in the Macbeth-esque atmosphere of this film makes her performance untouchable and more than memorable. An incredible talent of the last era and honestly so missed in our own.
"Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night!"
Fun Fact: Bette Davis fell in love with her co-star Gary Merrill during the shoot of this movie and the two married in July 1950, after filming was completed. They adopted a baby girl, whom they named Margot.
Never Been Broken Fact: Holds the record for the most female acting Oscar nominations in a single film with four: Anne Baxter and Bette Davis' for Best Actress and Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter for Best Supporting Actress.
Wardrobe Malfunction Fact: Margo Channing's famous cocktail dress was an Edith Head creation. To Head's horror, just as they were about to go film the cocktail party, she found that the dress didn't quite fit Bette Davis in the shoulders. There was no time to fix the dress, but fortunately Davis hit on the bright idea of simply slipping the dress off her shoulders.
yeah and when it failed she said the problem was that he married Margot Channing, not Bette Davis.
Could All About Eve have the best screenplay ever? It’s so damn well written and quotable it’s annoying
If I was forced to choose one, I would say, yes, it's the greatest screenplay.
It already is billed as one of the greatest English language screenplays of all time.
Also one of the best, if not perhaps THE best, film ever made.
It certainly holds the honors for the best screenplay based upon extended dialogue/narration. Other films may have more powerful images or camera techniques, but AAE stands firmly on the SPOKEN WORD. By that standard it should be judged the best of all Classic Hollywood screenplays. (1931-1970).
@@tombialkowskiitotallyagree1413 Classic Hollywood ended in 1967
I remember first seeing this as a teenager. When Miss Caswell made her entrance, I thought, "Oh, she's doing Marilyn Monroe...that IS Marilyn Monroe!" Mankiewicz is a genius, Baxter a revelation, and Betty Davis a force of nature. Thanks for another great review! : )
OMG so pleased you are reacting to this. Still must do 1939's 'The Women'! and not the Meg Ryan remake.
Yes! I would love to see The Women!!!
The Women (1939) is such a verbal wonder, and while it’s set in the rarified air of upper crust Manhattan society, the man troubles and issues are universal and timeless.
Joan Crawford and what’s her face right? Affairs,divorce, horse ranch , am I right? I never watched the remake. Wasn’t there a Joan collins version? The Opposite Sex maybe. I watch so many old movies
And, yet there were not male characters in the movie! @@Divamarja_CA
Yes, "the Opposite Sex" starred June Alyson as Mary and there were male roles in that one. Also, Joan Collins play the Joan Crawford role as the "other" woman. It was a terrible remake, but the clothes were sensational. @@justinshelton5026
Whenever I hear George Sanders' voice, I am reminded of his voiceover acting as the tiger Shere Khan in Disney's The Jungle Book.😉
The off the shoulder dress worn by Betty Davis at the party was designed by Edith Head. In one of her books, I read, she talked about this dress. Head was upset because the straps on the dress were too loose and fell off the shoulders. Bette suggested that they be left to hang down slightly off the shoulders creating this iconic dress. So Betty Davis inadvertently helped design it. Head won an Oscar 8 times between 1949 through 1973 for Best Costume Design. This makes her the most Oscar awarded woman in the academy's history. Head was nominated for an Oscar 35 times. Her story is very interesting. She conned her way into her initial job, in Costuming, at Paramount. She borrowed sketches from other students at Chouinard Art Institute and passed them off as her own, in order to get her foot in the door.
Thelma Ritter always acted so earthy and real. You will love Thelma as a professional matchmaker in "The Model and The Marriage Broker" w the stunning Jeanne Crain or as the gorgeous Gene Tierney's new Mother in law , who she mistakes for her new maid in the funny "The Mating Season" She is truely wonderful character actress that improves every film she is in , much like the ubiquitous Mary Wickes and Ellen Corby!
YES! She was HILARIOUS in "The Mating Season"... I hollered laughing when said the line: "I stepped on things cleaner than that man."
And don't forget her hilarious role in "A Letter to Three Wives"
And don’t forget, miracle on 34th St.
Loved Thelma best in the Misfits.
@@tombialkowskiitotallyagree1413 Yes The Misfits, she is the best ( ...ya know, they still haven't found that vacuum!) and All About Eve!
i do believe this was before the marilyn persona was so realized and recognizable and this was when marilyn was using all her own tricks (before going to an acting studio) to get into character, in this movie she’s an actress trying to get in parts by using her beauty and the attentions of horny men so her presence and ‘marilyn’ look is appropriate imo bc shes also fully aware of how transactional the acting world can be
Don't forget Pillow Talk.
My favorite Bette Davis movie is "Now, Voyager." Bette Davis's character development is incredible!
"Just score it as an incomplete forward pass" is one of the most underappreciated great lines from this movie!
I knew you'd lose your mind over this one. It is so great and gets greater on multiple views!
Thelma Ritter's line "everything but the bloodhounds snapping at her rear end" is a reference to "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and the scene where the slaves are chased across the icy river by Simon Legree and his bloodhounds.
Oh wow. Thank you for that fun fact.😉
More great lines from this movie than any other.
"A milkshake?" - is one of my favorites.
Yes!! When speaking about some of my fave quotes from it, I often quote the milkshake line! Haha 🙌👏
“A Letter to Three Wives” is another Mankiewicz near masterpiece. Ann Sothern, Kirk Douglas, Linda Darnell etc. Dialogue crackles in that one too.
I love that movie. Also with the amazing Thelma Ritter.
Yes to this! Celeste Holm's narration in that films is beautiful - she's got a distinct voice and her character's never seen. Letter to Three Wives is where Ritter's hot streak began. Her character in that film (service role/hired help) is so funny and her back-and-forth with Linda Darnell is priceless. The whole dinner scene is perfection! Another sharply written film from Mankiewicz which earned him an Oscar for writing and for directing. I believe he's one of the only people to ever accomplish that.
This is my favorite film. I was 14 when I saw it for the first time. We watched it in my high school drama class. It took two class periods to finish it. When the bell rang no one wanted to leave. The movie was all anyone wanted to talk about for days.
You might find this interesting: the elderly actor giving the award speech is Walter Hampden. He is, essentially, playing himself. He was a huge Broadway star in the early part of the 20th century especially known for his "Cyrano de Bergerac" and many Shakespeare plays.
Perhaps the greatest film about women characters is _The Women_ (1939). Directed by George Cukor, with a screenplay by Anita Loos, Jane Murtin, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Donald Ogden Stewart, adapted from Clare Booth Luce's play, it stars Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Mary Boland, Paulette Godard, and Joan Fontaine. There are no male characters in either the play or the film.
Ahh! I have been meaning to get to that one!!
Not only that, all the animals in the film are also female!
Love the film, but thankfully, it also illustrates how times have changed.
The Women is certainly an interesting film, but I always found it unsatisfactory. It seems to me that if only female characters are to appear onscreen, then only female characters should be essential to the plot. But there are multiple male characters in The Women whose actions are just as crucial to the plot as those of the female ones, only we never get to see them on the screen, and the whole device just feels forced. For a perfect example of how to make a film that is primarily concerned with its female characters, may I recommend one called All About Eve?
@@richardzinns5676 I think leaving men completely out of the story would be a little unrealistic, though. Grown women who had kids and the lifestyle shown at this time almost always had men as a key element in their lives,. Leaving them out would be a bit surreal.
Lawrence of Arabia had no women except in the background, but he was in a country where a woman speaking to a strange, white man, or any man, freely would of been taboo, so the ladies were left in the background.
I do agree the movie feels "forced" to us now, because the roles of men and women have changed since then. The conventional wisdom of that time was a woman was incomplete without a man and kids. Her place was to charm a man into marrying her so he could be her mate and support the family.
If he strayed, the advice was to ignore it, because he would come back to her if she always had a smiling face and a happy home for him to come back to.
It was seen as abnormal and unfeminine for a woman to have a career before the 1970's.
I have never seen the remake, but heard it was a disaster. I'm not surprised. Most of the culture so central to many of the plot points 1930's "The Women" has disappeared, thank goodness. But there are many relatable moments as well. Some things never change.
One last thing. I'm not sure this film passes the Bechdel Test. Even though it's all women, all they ever talk about is men.
Did you know Lauren Bacall played Margo Channing in the musical version of All About Eve called APPLAUSE and when she left the production Anne Baxter took over the part.
HAHA NO WAY! Talk about irony 😂
@@MoviesWithMia Also, Bette Davis appeared in the pilot episode of the television primetime soap opera series _Hotel_ as hotel owner Laura Trent and publicity for the series indicated that Davis was to be a regular on the program. However, the onset of ill health forced Davis to withdraw from the series and Anne Baxter was brought in as Victoria Cabot, Mrs. Trent's sister-in-law.
I love Thelma Ritter, too! If you want to see her in a rare leading role, watch the romantic comedy "The Mating Season" (1951). Or if you want to see how great she could be playing a dramatic role, try "Pickup on South Street" (1953), Sam Fuller's skid-row noir masterpiece.
The Model and the Marriage Broker is a very charming movie. She's the main character but she's given second billing for some reason.
She makes you feel empathy , like she's a real person.
Mmm. In "The Model and the Marriage Broker", also from 1951, Thelma gets a lead role and her own romance storyline. She elevates everything she's in of course.
Thelma Ritter was a fine actress.Especially enjoyed her in "Rear Window" and "The Misfits".
@@richardscanlan3167 Me too.
I'm so glad you all shared these titles. I'm going to try and watch.
YES! Finally!! Sanders' performance in this film is next level. Seeing 'Eve' fall was so worth the wait. If you want another film with great commentary and WAY ahead of its time, seek out 'A Face in the Crowd'. Whether you do it for the channel or for your own viewing, you will be amazed.
Yes, Andy G. in his meanest in FACE .... reminds me of someone in politics but I won't say...
Loved George Sanders.
You will see an Andy Griffith you WILL NOT like!
What an amazing surprise!! Bette Davis is my queen and this is one of my favorite films ever!
Yes!!! And I LOVE your YT picture!!
@@MoviesWithMia thanks!!! Regina Giddens is one of those "love to hate" kind of characters. lol Have you reacted to any other Bette Davis movies? You seemed very familiar with her during this reaction, but I couldn't find anything else on the channel!
Absolutely agree this is a masterpiece!! My close 2nd for Bette Davis movies is "Now Voyager". I love her transformation in that film!!
Also love her earlier movies from the 30's.
Omg yes. That over control mother yes
Mankie could write women's parts brilliantly. Check out "A Letter To Three Wives" if you haven't already! But "All About Eve" outshines it. It's arguably The best film ever made. Simply flawless.
No elaborate sets, no special effects, none of that. The dialogue and the acting is more than enough to carry the film.
Thelma Ritter is the bomb. Da bomb. You hear all these smooth finishing school New England accents, and then -- IN SHE DROPS like a Brooklyn longshoreman's wife, with a voice that cuts cuts cuts. Holy Ginsu, Batman! ------- Matched with a sharp tongue, too. "Everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end." 🤣🤣🤣
Your enthusiasm for these classic movies is heart warming. 🙏
Thank you so much! And thanks for watching 😁
1950 -- between this (Broadway) and "Sunset Blvd." (Hollywood) -- what a year!
Rewatching and listening to Eve's initial sob story is hilarious. The gentle music cue especially is great, everything is driving home how immediately she's assuming her snake role and we're kicking ourselves for thinking it could possibly be genuine, in any universe. This was a very early classic I watched and because I wasn't familiar with the language of film back then a lot was lost on me, but I felt magnetized to it regardless because it is such an irresistible little bauble of a film and watching you watch it brought me back to that first time and retroactively heightened it, no matter how many times I've seen it since. Brava!
Actually not my favorite with Davis, I think Now Voyager is. It doesn't feel semi-autobiographical the way Eve or Baby Jane might, but if you love transformations pulled off without a hitch it's the movie for you.
Now Voyager is one of my all-time favorites.
@@DanielOrme The makeover trope done right I swear. Not done to land anybody, but for the good of your own self-image, and *then* maybe you can open yourself up to love. It's such a grown-up film.
Thank you so much for watching! Yes I would love to watch more of Bette Davis! In fact I have included another one of her movies on a future poll on patreon!!
Fun fact: Bette Davis was well known for her smoking; she often used cigarettes as a prop in her films. The three movies where she smoked the most were "Now Voyager," "All About Eve," and "Dead Ringer" (1963)
In the scene in the foyer of the theatre Marilyn took so many takes to get her line right that Bette Davis ended up shouting at her. Marilyn's character isn't off. She's playing an ingenue and a genuine one unlike Eve who is just pretending.
I agree with your analysis of Marilyn's brief, but showy performance in this high energy film.
At the time of this movie release, nobody ever heard of "Marilyn Monroe"....it was this movie and Asphalt Jungle (released the same year) that 20th Century Fox (and MGM) were getting hundreds of letters a week asking "who's the blonde?".
I have seen this movie 10-15 times and each time I see it, during the "party" scene, with all the "darkness" around - the shouting, the sarcasm, the insecurities, jealousy, manipulation....slowly rises from the staircase, this bright white light of innocence and vulnerability....knowing she can't compete with their talents... she uses what she has to get noticed (let's face it, her screen presence steals the scene) - you also can literally see her turn on her "MM persona" when she is asked to "entertain" Max..
Addison Dewitt's later comment to miss Caswell "Well done. I see your career rising in the East like the sun" is very prophetic and also quite chilling.
Marilyn is so beautiful in this movie, she's shining like a star.
In BURNT OFFERINGS Karen Black said her 1st scene with Bette Davis wasn't going well and finally Davis took her aside to calm ber. Davis realized Black was so in awe of her Black couldn't concentrate and Davis saw that and reassured her so Black could do her best. Davis was a treasure.
Love that movie. So ….. strange? I wasn’t scared, fascinating?
So glad you like it. Thelma Ritter rules! I've seen most of her movies. She is one of my all time favorites. She was wonderful in Rear Window. She was also wonderful in The Model and the Marriage Broker. Really she's wonderful in everything.
Yup. She's wonderful in everything.
"Giant" was James Dean's last film--in the event you want to review it. He died two weeks after his last scene, with the movie still filming when the cast got the devastating news. Excellent (and long) film.
Oh wow! That couldn’t have been easy for the cast and crew. Remind me, what did James Dean die of?
@@MoviesWithMia This is a Hollywood legend, getting lost to time now... James Dean was driving his new sports car, nicknamed "Little Bastard" with a friend. He took for granted another car would yield to him. His last words were, "that guy's gotta stop, he'll see us."
His friend was thrown from the car and lived. James Dean was crushed, his car was a flattened wreck. He was only 24.
East of Eden is my favorite film of his. RIP James.
@@MoviesWithMia Killed in a car accident on 9/30/55, driving a Porsche that was presumably going far too fast.
May I also recommend watching "The Lion in Winter." starring Kathrine Hepburn & Peter O'Toole. I think you will enjoy that movie as well.
"I freakin' love me some George Sanders." Honey, me too!! 🥰 You still need to check out "The Picture of Dorian Gray", which is a classic George Sanders movie! And another lesser-known George Sanders movie that I would absolutely recommend you checking out is "The Strange Woman" with him and Hedy Lamarr. It's like a film noir set in the 1800s... very unique.
"That's HEDley!" 😁
@@ludovicoc7046 🤣
And with Halloween coming up, Village of the Damned.
Oh yes! I am familiar with the story of The Picture of Dorian Gray! Fascinating! I’ll have to check that out!
@@MoviesWithMia You want the 1945 version of course. You'll also see a couple of other familiar faces, including Donna Reed and Angela Lansbury.
THE great Edith Head did the costumes- won one of her 8 Oscars for it.
When you said I love me some George Sanders I knew I was in the right place :-D
Yes is it! Fantastic movie. I'm so glad you're finally getting into Bette Davis' movies. She's just brilliant and one of my ultimate favorites. So many great movies! I can't wait to see your reaction to Rebel Without a Cause. Honestly, i hope you watch Giant and East of Eden as well, James Dean is awesome in them too.
Also Giant which was his last. There's so many classics. I love this channel and Mia's excellent analysis and joy. It's probably my top 2 or 3 RUclips channels.
One of the greatest lines delivered ever is "What a story, everything but the bloodhounds snapping at her rear end." Birdie knew she was bogus, she knew it early. However, there are so many great lines delivered by everyone, especially George Sanders.
I'd seen plenty of vintage SF, Fantasy, and Creature Features growing up, some in theaters and drive-ins when they were first released, but watching a showing of "All About Eve" in a college theater was my first deliberate step into the wider world of "classic cinema". When I first saw it, "All About Eve" was only about 22 years old, which kind of makes my head spin now, but it was a whole different scene before home video existed. I'm still taken aback that so many people have no interest in watching old media now that availability is so much greater than in the past. It's like not appreciating grocery stores.
In a lot of ways, I think 1925-1975 was kind of a golden age for women on screen despite what people will tell you now, many of whom have hardly watched any movies from pre-1980.
A Letter to Three Wives is a criminally overlooked film with a great cast consisting of Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Southern, Celeste Holm, Kirk Douglas and Paul Douglas. Definitely worth you doing a reaction to.
Anne Baxter was supposed to play the fourth wife
A lot of what Mia loved with elevated feminine perspectives and a clashing of the sexes is cranked up to 11 with this one, it's definitely underrated and contains such frothy intrigue at that.
I second this
@@bespectacledheroine7292
"ALTTW" has long been high on my ultra-ultra fave list. Kirk Douglas's amazing speech about the dangers of radio and its "dumbing down" of America is just one highlight. Acting by all, and especially the writing and directing by "Mank" are easily on a par with "AAE". I've mentioned this film to Mia on Twitter. I hope she sees it.
@@epsteinisms1483 Ann Sothern's response to raising more boys with a chauvinistic mindset leading to more war and her kids will have no part of it is one of my favorite classic Hollywood burns. Such a sharp film.
You can't miss with "All About Eve".. Bette and Ann were brilliant. One of the best movies ever made. Thanks for bringing it back. I am so glad you watched it!
iF you like James Dean, you have to watch "East of Eden".
In the scene where Eve confronts Karen and tells her she wants the part that was written for Margot -- and says "I'd do much more for a part that good" -- SHE imitates Bette Davis' voice perfectly!!!
"Bill's here,baby. Everything's alright now."
💋❤️💋❤️💋❤️💋
Judy Holliday ended up winning Best Actress that year, supposedly due to the split vote between Davis and Baxter--and undoubtedly Gloria Swanson for Sunset Boulevard.
Good God! That’s right. What a roster!! Also Eleanor Parker for Caged. I certainly wouldn’t have wanted to be voting that year.
"Born Yesterday" is worth seeing on its own merits. Very reminiscent of "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington".
And Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter split the vote for Best Supporting Actress. Josephine Hull won the award for _Harvey_ .
Whilst not as god as 'All About Eve" and "Sunset Boulevard", I had a soft spot fot Brando's performance in "The Men".
The quality of films back then was off the charts.
Such an amazing film! I'm so happy you finally got to see it. So many quotable lines, so many memorable scenes! Another Bette Davis film I very much recommend is Now, Voyager. Wonderful reaction!
And "The Letter".
"Now Voyager," one of my favs. Love the scene when you get the first glimpse of her coming down the gangplank after her transformation, both physically and mentally.
The Sarah Siddons Award was a theater in-joke. (There are a lot of these in the screenplay. George Sanders' character's name -- de Witt -- is another.) Siddons was an 18th century actress famous for playing Lady Macbeth.
The Sarah Siddons Award, established in 1952 two years after _All About Eve_ , is presented annually to an actor for an outstanding performance in a Chicago theatrical production. During the Sarah Siddons Society Anniversary Gala in 1973, an honorary Sarah Siddons award was presented to Bette Davis, even though she didn't appear in a Chicago play that year. Celeste Holm, had previously won the award in 1968. Lauren Bacall, who played Davis' role in the Broadway musical version, _Applause_ , has also won in 1972 and 1984.
@@RaymondHng Too bad Anne Baxter never got the award. I saw her in the national tour of NOEL COWARD IN TWO KEYS at the Blackstone with Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn circa 1975. I heard she was better than Bacall in APPLAUSE.
In an era of re-makes, they've never dared to remake this, as it can't be done. The story has been re-worked and re-imagined, notably in 1988's "Working Girl" and 2006's "Devil Wears Prada", but nobody, not even the Devil herself, could play Margo Channing.
I appreciate all the research you do for these films. I’m a big fan of DVDs because many of them include commentary which gives you additional behind the scenes insight. I love all the extras.
Your reaction was part of the great pleasure of sharing it with new eyes. 👏👏👏👏👏Ben Mankiewicz is the nephew of the writer director Joseph Mankiewicz
"I find that there's something I don't believe in her character." - Very perceptive. You saw it from the beginning.
Thelma Ritter was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Birdie. It really was an excellent performance, although for some reason Birdie disappears halfway through the movie.
A local film critic whom I won't name here wrote that the movie would have been better with Claudette Colbert in the role of Margot Channing. He said that Bette Davis was too old for the part, and as evidence he used the scene where Margot is dressed in a sort of Bo-Peep costume. He said it made her look ridiculous. Setting aside the fact that Colbert was older than Davis, he completely missed that she was *supposed* to look ridiculous in that outfit. Margot's insecurity about her age was a big part of the story, and putting her in a costume appropriate for someone younger was a way to emphasize that. It was one of the stupidest, most ill-informed opinions I've ever read from a professional film critic.
Thank you for this excellent reaction!
Yes it was in her eyes! I could just see it! And yeah, there are plenty of professional film critics out there who make crappy opinions on movies 😂 believe me I have seen some crazy ones!!
@@MoviesWithMia My favorite film from the classic era is 1933's Heroes for Sale. It has Loretta Young and Richard Barthelmess starring as the leads and it's directed by William Wellman. I hope you can do a reaction to the film.
Oh you might like “ The Women” ….a movie with an all female cast.
44:00 "That would be cool if she looked into the camera!"
Nah, that would be veering too close to the ending of "Sunset Boulevard," which was also released the same year and sharing some of its themes.
I love this movie. It's one of those that's great on first viewing and even better on the second.
Bette Davis, when interviewed by Dick Cavett I believe, was asked why she got the reputation for being difficult Bette said that she stood up to the director and writers on films if they weren't up to snuff. She contrasted it to the script of All About Eve and said - it was ALL RIGHT THERE, I didn't need to change anything.
If you like 50s movies you should do “ Streetcar named desire” it was pretty revolutionary
This may be mentioned elsewhere in the comments but I haven't seen it. So if you liked this movie so much, you may be interested in checking out Mankiewicz's film from 1949; "A Letter To Three Wives". Completely different plot, but the same kind of underlying emotional struggles for the protagonists.
I agree with others suggesting "Now, Voyager". It's shamelessly soapy, but in all the best ways, also with incredible dialogue and performances. An ugly duckling story with Bette Davis and romance is comfort food.
Bette Davis did three films with director William Wyler - Jezebel (which earned her an Oscar) and two which are classics in their own right: The Letter (a noire with beautiful cinematography) and The Little Foxes, two of her great villainous roles, roles which she did not shy away from. She often set aside glamour if the part called for it, something not all actresses did.
If you are going to do the incredible Bette Davis, then you must give equal time to her arch enemy, Joan Crawford. Mildred Pierce (1945) may be her most memorable movie and she won the Oscar for it. It’s part film noir and part melodrama. But how about Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, a neo-horror that stars them both! Their feud was so palpable that A+E did a whole miniseries about it.
The one film that I believe is better from BD is "Now Voyager". She is truly outstanding, and her transformation in the movie will leave you star struck over how good she was at her craft.
I saw Anne Baxter play the Margo Channing role in Applause!, the musical version of the story, back in the 70's (the part was originally played by Lauren Bacall, by the way). She was wonderful in that part , too.
I appreciate that you also found Eve a bit hard to believe from the beginning. I did too, but people tend to get defensive when I say that, like I'm insulting Anne Baxter's performance. I think she's brilliant, and she's making a brilliant choice.
I can’t imagine why people would get defensive about finding Eve hard to believe! I think that’s the essence of Eve’s character! She’s supposed to be too perfect that she’s a bit off! I would get defensive if people were trying to defend her 😂 And I agree that Anne Baxter is making EXCELLENT choices!! She was amazing in this film!
I agree, I think. Eve is an illusion. Like a stage persona. She has no idea who she is, because she’s tryin to be someone else?
One of my absolute favourites. I've watched it so many times, and am still thrilled by the writing and acting and so much more.
It's hard to imagine anyone but Bette Davis as Margo, but I would have loved to see what Claudette Colbert would have done with the role--I think she'd have brought some self-deprecating humor to it and a wry recognition of what was happening. Anne Baxter was cast because of her resemblance to Colbert.
The 1934 Academy Awards, where Colbert won Best Actress for It Happened One Night and Bette Davis hadn't been nominated for Of Human Bondage (prompting a write-in campaign), apparently always stuck in Davis's craw. At a tribute to Frank Capra in the 1980s, Colbert and Davis ran into each other. Davis said something to the effect of "well, we're even now. You got the Oscar but I got All About Eve." Colbert was bewildered and just stepped into the elevator and said "have a good evening, Bette." Afterwards she said "can you imagine? She's been holding on to that for 50 years."
Found your channel yesterday, watched your video on Rebecca, LOVED IT, and now I am here for it all. All About Eve is one of the greats and one of my favorites. So darn good. I loved your insight into it and I really love how much fun you have with these movies! Keep up the good work!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed this one! I was such a great film! Thanks so much for watching!
Mankiewicz was phenomenal, no doubt about it. Writer/Director of this gem (and Cleopatra) he did the impossible. Battle between men and women characters that gets audiences to understand where both are coming from. The guys aren't shown as stupid to build up intelligent female characters or vice versa.
Favorite line (among 1,000s) was "What I go after I want to go after. I don't want it to come after me."
Boom! Mic dropped on her wigged head!
One of the greatest films of all time. Davis, at the time, was facing exactly what Margo was facing: her career was in a slump because she had reached 40. Although she was nominated for the Oscar for playing Margo, it didn’t revive her career.
Celeste Holm’s performance is often overlooked, but her acting is amazing. Playing against the more high-energy Davis and Baxter, Holms underplays, and I think she’s great in the part.
I wanted to point out that early on in the film, when Margo tells Bill to stoo calling Eve “kid,” it’s not just that it’s inappropriate; Margo’s sensitive to the fact that no one calls her “kid” anymore.
It would be surprising to the audience to know that Celeste is the one who shocked audiences playing Ado Annie in "Oklahoma!" on Broadway with the song, "I'm Just A Girl Who Can't Say No"
"What a story...everything but the hounds snappin at her rear end." My favorite line ever.
Joe Mankiewicz is a wonderful writer/director. I enjoy Billy Wilder’s films as well. But my favorite writer/director is Preston Sturges.
All About Eve is my no.1 movie of all time, even surpassing The Godfather and Citizen Kane. Every line of dialogue is delicious!
Smart, sophisticated and devastating funny, all about eve is a Hollywood classic that only improves with age, ALL ABOUT EVE (1950) 99/100% Certified Approved ☑️ Margo Channing: "FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS. IT'S GOING TO BE A BUMPY NIGHT."
Bette Davis was also amazing in Now, Voyager (1942). I think many people could relate to that movie today. I know I can.
You should watch Pillow Talk with Doris Day, Thelma Ritter and Rock Hudson. Absolutly a comedy classic. They did a kind of remake in 2003 called Down with Love.
One of the few times the best film of the year actually won Best Picture, though you also have Sunset Blvd. and Rashomon coming out that year, which I think are equally great.
Once in a blue moon the RUclips algorithm comes through and drops a gem of a creator/channel in my feed, and tonight was a lucky one indeed.
Wow! Thank you so much! I’m glad the video found its way to you!! And thanks for watching 😁😁
Thelma Ritter in Pillowtalk is the greatest. When she's drinking with Rock Hudson.
Trivia…Joseph l Mankiewicz is related, I think uncle, of Ben Mankiewicz, the Turner Classic movies host.
When it comes to Sunset Boulevard vs All About Eve I gotta go with the former. (They frequently get compared because they were released in the same year, competed for a lot of Oscars against each other, and were both centered around the delusions and struggles of women in show business). I just love film noirs and love Gloria Swanson’s performance. But both films are indeed brilliant.
Excellent reaction! For October, please watch HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE (1964). Stars Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Mary Astor, and Agnes Moorhead. All top actresses from Hollywood’s golden age, way past their prime and bitchy AF. It’s a great murder mystery, with plenty of gore, suspense, twists, and fantastic dialogue. IMO it’s superior to Baby Jane (same director). I guarantee you’ll love it and perfect for Halloween season. 🎃 👻 🤓
Thelma Ritter was always funny as hell with her delivery...
Bette's hair is fantastic here 🌹
Whether she is playing Nefertiti in The Ten Commandments, or Sophie in The Razor's Edge (a role that won her Best Supporting Actress Oscar) Anne Baxter is wonderful. In her scenes opposite the great Bette Davis, she holds her own--if you want to see a contrast pull up the pilot of the 1980s TV series which stars Bette Davis and Morgan Fairchild. In the scenes between these two you can see that Miss Fairchild simply does not hold up.
Bette Davis was an amazing broad - she referred to herself as an actor, never a celebrity or movie star, just an actor.
Im loving your reactions to these scenes!! @31:12 ...first watched this movie when i was 15 and took me many times to watch the movie to fully understand the full scope of who Eve was... a narcissist. You got it right on the first watch! But no one would have understood this at the time. Great movie and performances! Im suscribing to your channel btw. Loved your review
BEST Screenplay EVER written!!!! If you want to see another brilliant Oscar winning screenplay- check out 1968's 'The Lion In Winter' Katharine Hepburn (her 3rd Oscar win) and Peter O'Toole and King Henry II and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine. They spar like a 12 round heavy weight championship! Film debuts for Anthony Hopkins and Timothy Dalton. AMAZING Film!
WoW !! that was a review and a half !! Fckn EXCELLENT ive watched this film 1,000 times !!
Have you reviewed The Bad Seed? When I watched as a kid, scared the living daylights out of me. It would be a great movie to add y to o your classic collection.
Another Betty Davis gem is The Corn is Green
Amazing the What Ever Happened to Baby Jane was filmed in 1962 and Bette looked older than this movie filmed 12 years later.
First this is one of my favorite films ever. Great cast great script. I love the narration that it switches from the various characters. I will say this about Eve, the fact that they actually fell for her often says that people who bullshit sometimes fall for other peoples bullshit, even though there’s that lovely saying, never bullshit of bullshiter.
That last shot in which Phoebe carrying the award is shown replicated endlessly in the mirrors was such a good choice to portray that this cycle of backstabbing and being replaced by the next young thing will repeat itself forever and ever!
It remains one of the best movies on the brutality of the star system and on how female actresses are crushed and judged harsher and harsher as they get older...
8:07
Thelma Ritter was in Hitchcock's film, Rear Window.
Oops, my bad, you have already done Rear Window!
Wow, comprehensive classic movie channel.
Love your chsnneel. I began watching movies of the 1930's and 40's when i was about 9 in 1956 and have loved them ever since. I have lots of recommendations for you.
Mia love the Your channel and the films you have selected are all of my favorites. Just to let you know about the opening scene in Sunset Blvd. with Bill Holden face down in the pool. If you don’t know this by now a mirror was placed at the bottom of the pool to achieve that shot. Keep up the good work with your selections, which are most of my all time favorites.
9:52 - Check It out - Susan Sarandon wore an exact duplicate of the headband in Feud. Classic - Love it
The line at 19:00 where Bette Davis refers to Gary Merrill as being 32 and will look 32 , 20 years from now is very telling how men and women are viewed as they age .
I was actually surprised by how sexy Bette Davis was in this! 6:24 "Oh we got some SHADE?!" 🤣
I love Betty Davis's attitude throughout this film. Watching her performance just makes me smile.
Anne Baxter was great in "The razor's edge" (1946).
I just found your channel and I love it! All about Eve is one of my all time favorites. Now Vorager is my other all time favorites. Thank you for your commentary. Please keep up the great work and I'll keep tuning in. 😎👍