JohnDoe
Bryn
BrentonAll About Eve (1950) - Footage Included
February 2nd 2007 07:11
All About Eve
DVD Cover
“Eve. Eve, the Golden Girl. The cover girl, the girl next door, the
girl on the moon... Time has been good to Eve, Life goes where she
goes - she's been profiled, covered, revealed, reported, what she eats and when and where, whom she knows and where she was and when and where she's going... Eve. You all know all about Eve... what can there be to know that you don't know...?” – Addison De Witt (VO)
Awards season is here, John Doe listed some favourite Best Picture Oscar winners over at Luke’s Book Club as a result he has decided to review a few over the next couple of weeks.
“The Sarah Siddons Award for Distinguished Achievement is perhaps unknown to you. It has been spared the sensational and commercial publicity that attends such questionable "honours" as the Pulitzer Prize and those awards presented annually by the film society...” – Addison De Witt (VO)
Receiving a record breaking 14 Academy Award Nominations in 1950, All About Eve has become Hollywood legend. As famous for off camera diva behaviour and drama as it is for being one the most insightful studies of stardom ever.
Knowledgably penned with a vicious, verbose wit that delights in showing you the backstabbing, conniving world of fame, blind ambition and the over whelming power of success. Living in the land of dreams, all the glitz and glamour of the game comes at a price to the soul.
“The bed looks like a dead animal act.” - Birdie
It’s the story of a girl named Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), a shy little petal who idolises star of stage and screen Margot Channing (Bette Davis).
“Margot Channing is a star of the theatre. She made her stage debut at the age of four in "Midsummer Night's Dream," playing a fairy. She entered, quite unexpectedly, stark naked. She has been a star ever since.” – Addison De Witt (VO)
Attending every sold out performance, the star-struck drab little wallflower is introduced to her goddess and wins most of her entourage over.
“What a story! Everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end.” - Birdie
The Awards ceremony opening features one of the great character narrations of all time and also sets up what we need to know. Delicate, poor Eve is destined to shine so bright she blocks out the sun.
“Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night” – Margot Channing
One Day Im going to be a big bright shining star
Getting better with age and improving upon each sitting, All About Eve is a near faultless film. Endlessly enjoyable on the surface, plenty of heady melodrama and eluding to tragedy with underlying suspense and inevitable conflict.
The dialogue seems to be one memorable quote after another with commentaries on life, death, happiness, sex etc that are all worth pondering, once you’ve finished laughing.
In moments of high drama the camera moves like a silent assasin, stalking and finding key angles and coverage shots to keep us totally immersed. At other times it just observes from a distance, keeping you off balance and giddy with the good time that is being had by the cinematographer Milton R Krasner.
Writer/Director Joseph L Mankiewicz (Sleuth, 5 Fingers, Dragonwyk, The Quiet American) somehow made a masterpiece despite the fact that venom flew on the set and off stage lives were being torn apart.
There are some juicy books written on the production (All about Eve: The Complete Behind The Scenes Story of The Bitchiest Film Ever Made by Sam Stagg’s and More About Eve and All You Ever wanted to Know About Eve) all are great snapshot of silver screen folklore.
The real life rivalry between established lead Bette Davis (Whatever happened To Baby jane, Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte) and up and comer Anne Baxter (I Confess, The Ten Commandments) is now legendary, fortunately for us it all comes out onscreen and makes for movie geek nirvana.
Behind the scenes Bette Davis’ marriage was breaking down and her husky voice in the film is actually due to here damaging her throat from yelling at her soon to be ex. It was all good in the end though because she fell in love with and married one of her co star Gary Merrill.
Did I mention mega producer Daryl F Zanuck hated her guts too and when asked about the experience of acting opposite miss Davis Co star Celeste Holme (High Society) quipped
"I walked onto the set . . . on the first day and said, 'Good morning,' and do you know her reply? She said, 'Oh shit, good manners.' I never spoke to her again--ever."
Years later Miss Davis credited the director with reviving her burgeoning career by saying “He resurrected me from the dead”.
George Sanders (Laura, Ghost and Mrs Muir, Village of The Damned) as theatre critic and Eve mentor Addison De Witt narrates the film with a sly delivery that will keeps you smirking at his esteemed view of himself and scornful view of the people that surround him.
An effervescently youthful Marilyn Monroe (The Ashpahlt Jungle, The Misfits, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Bus Stop) plays an aspiring starlette, it’s a small part but her vivacious energy at the time made studios sit up and take notice of the future blonde icon.
The rest of the cast are all exemplary and if I had time to write another thousand words I would get more descriptive, but for your sake and John Doe’s he must leave.
I will finish up by giving a rundown of the films Oscar accolades:
Wins:
Best Picture – Daryl F Zanuck
Best Director Joseph L Mankiewicz
Best Screenplay- Joseph L Mankiewicz Jo
Best Actor-George Sanders
Best Costume Design – Edith Head
Best Sound
Nominations
Best Actress – Anne Baxter
Best Actress – Bette davis
Best Supporting actress- Celeste Holme
Best Supporting Actress – Thelma Ritter
Best Cinematography – Milton R Krasner
Best Editing – Barbara Mclean
Best Musical Score – Alfred Newman
Best Art Direction/Set Design
If you doubt me, click below and then tell me that it isn't some of the most crackling dioalogue ever delivered.
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Comment by Lilla
From The Home Front
Enviro Warrior
Dream Herald
Esoteric Bookshop
I love this film!
I think it is one of the creepiest films I've seen - all so seemingly innocent - yet bizarre. I had no idea it has won so many awards?
Do you know, I cannot remember the ending, I'll have to go and get it again now, thanks for that.
Cheers
Lilla
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
So glad your an All About Eve fan, i amazed there wasn't more love for it here. It amazes me with its boldness and as a sucker for films about films this is a mighty effort.
If Eve freaked you, then I dare you to check out Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte starring Bette davis. (Just click on the link in the review above to read all about it)