MY EASTER WEEKEND WITH BETTE.
Well, I spent probably the most wonderful Easter weekend I could possibly think of: I didn't see a living soul (for the most part) but instead spent the entire weekend with Bette Davis. That's right.
Now, I must admit that, although I always liked Ms. Davis, I never considered myself a particular fan of hers. The truth is I simply never saw a great deal of her movies; and the movies I saw were from the "later" . . . that is, "older" Bette Davis movies when she was at the end of her career. We're talking "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?", "All About Eve", "The Whales of August", "Death on the Nile", "The Watcher in the Woods" etc. etc. I simply never really saw her pre-1950 catalogue (for the most part). Now, it is true that Penelope once made me watch "Now, Voyager" but that was about 20 years ago and I only thought that movie was simply "OK". Maybe I was too young to appreciate it because my opinion has changed about that one.
Well, for some reason, last Friday I decided to buy not one but TWO Bette Davis box sets full of movies I've never seen. That's right; I dropped about $80 on these flicks sight unseen. So, I was taking a chance. And I spent all weekend watching them. And here's what I have to say. I'm now a Bette Davis fan. Now, at the risk of offending my gay friends (Hi Cheeks!!!), I must say that, while the post 1950 Bette Davis of "Baby Jane", "The Star" and "All About Eve" was a great deal of fun, I think she was leaning a little too much on the Bette Davis "caricature" and I prefer the 30's-40's Bette. Now, don't get me wrong; when the material was top notch (as in "All About Eve", "Baby Jane" etc.) the "older" Bette STILL could act and did often sublime jobs on these movies. However, the "young" Bette was a revelation and I can now see where her tremendous reputation comes from.
The two box sets contained the following movies: Dark Victory, The Letter, Now Voyager, Mr. Skeffington, The Star, Jezebel, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Marked Woman, Old Acquaintance, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane and Stardust (the recently made 2 hour documentary on her life). Now, it's rather telling that the movie I liked LEAST of all these was 1952's "The Star" where, despite the fact that Bette was nominated for a best actress Oscar for this one, I found to be substandard Bette Davis "caricature" acting and the film itself to be a pale attempt at a Sunset Blvd. imitation. Other than the scene where Bette and her Oscar get drunk and drive through Hollywood together, I'd say avoid the whole movie. "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" is, of course, a classic. Not a camp classic (the film is much too superbly acted to be merely camp) but a classic with no qualifiers. I'd seen that one before so that's all I have to say about that.
"The Letter" (1940) is a classic in my mind. There have been few opening scenes better than this one; the calm, quiet night on the Chinese rubber plantation is broken by the sound of gunshots as Bette comes barrelling down her front stairs emptying her gun into some guy. I'll tell ya, most days I know how she feels and I'd like to do the same thing. It's Bette's picture all the way but the acting of everyone concerned is top notch, the direction by William Wyler is perfection and the photography is a perfect example of what they mean when they say "in glorious black and white". In fact, I watched the movie twice because it just looked so damn good.
Dark Victory (1939) is another classic five star movie. Bette was nominated for best actress again for this one but lost to the "juggernaut" that was "Gone With the Wind" that year. This is one of the quintessential "woman's pictures"; this term DOES NOT mean weepy soap opera (although there is that aspect of it) but that the film centers around a woman. Back in the day, they knew how to make a woman's picture; what the hell happened nowadays where an actress can't find a decent role anymore?!? Anyway, this was Bette's favourite film of her years at Warner Brothers (all 18 of 'em) and she's unbelievably good in it. So, in fact, is Geraldine Fitzgerald whom I've never been a fan of . . . until this movie where she's fantastic of Bette's best friend. Hey, even George Brent is adequate. Humphrey Bogart is totally miscast (why oh WHY did they make him fake an Irish brogue?!?) and Ronald Reagan is fine as well as a vacuous playboy who's drunk in every scene. Bette gets to act every possible emotion from diva heiress to bitch to angel; rarely has Bette Davis gotten a chance to act such a sympathetic role. A classic tearjerker.
Now, Voyager (1942). Talk about a classic tearjerker. What was I thinking when I didn't think much about this one. This is another undisputed classic. Bette's an introverted "ugly duckling" who has had her spirit smashed by her domineering mother (superb Gladys Cooper -- before she met Robert Redford in the Twilight Zone). Psychiatrist Claude Rains helps her out of her shell and she meets and falls in love with married man Paul Henreid on a cruise. It's one of those movies where nobody's gonna end up happy and we love it. Another classic "woman's picture" with one of the greatest final lines in movie history. For all those of us who have realized that life does NOT offer us happiness and we simply have to take what we can get; Bette Davis speaks for us all when she says: "Let's not as for the moon; we have the stars". Penelope was definitely RIGHT about this one and I stand corrected.
Mr. Skeffington (1944). This one I liked not so much. It's still good but nowhere near as good as the previous 3 movies. Claude Rains is back; this time as Bette's unloved husband Mr. Skeffington. Bette is a vain woman who refuses to admit that she's growing old. Her grotesque wig and makeup (after she contracts diptheria) are surely greatly appreciated by her later "Baby Jane"-era fans but I found the movie to be strangely uninvolving. I didn't really care about Bette's character and Claude Rains was such a doormat that he got what he deserved. This one occupies the middle ground in the box set; not a classic but not really bad either.
Jezebel (1938). Here's another classic. I never expected to like this one; after all, it's one of those Civil War (actually PRE-Civil War) era movies which I don't find that interesting. The Civil War is the one part of history that I always skip over and "Gone With the Wind" is not one of my favourite films. Of course, this movie is Bette Davis' version of Scarlett O'Hara essentially and I can only say watch "Jezebel" so you won't have to sit through the awful "Gone with the Wind". Bette starts off the movie headstrong and willful; she's gonna do whatever the hell she pleases and damn everyone else. Of course, this behaviour backfires on her and she ends up humble and supplicant. I never thought dresses would be so interesting but there are 3 or 4 different dresses in the film which are almost characters in themselves. The king of them all is that infamous red dress she wears to the 'Lympus Ball where virginal unmarried women are ONLY permitted to wear white. The movie's black and white but you can practically SMELL the redness of her dress as all the other dancers back away from Bette and Henry Fonda as if her red dress was the plague. Naturally, Bette's stubborn behavior loses her fiance Pres (Fonda) who marries another woman. Oh God, the scene where Bette is about to see Fonda after a good deal of time has gone by is a killer; Bette puts on the white dress she SHOULD have worn ages ago to win Fonda back and gets her heart crushed completely. I won't provide any spoilers; you just gotta watch it to find out what happens. Another classic and Bette deservedly won a best actress Oscar for this one.
The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942) -- This was OK, nothing to write home about. Bette Davis, Monty Wooley, Ann Sheridan, Jimmy Durante etc. gamely work through this silly bit of fluff that's no classic but not bad.
Marked Woman (1937) -- This is one of those typical Warner Bros. gangster movies with Eduardo Cianelli as one of the nastiest mobsters ever depicted in film. This is only half a good movie; some scenes bored me while others were remarkably gripping. One scene involves Bette Davis being pistol-whipped and it's truly disturbing as her screams echo from behind the closed door. This was loosely based on the Lucky Luciano trial where a group of prostitutes testified against the mobster in a media circus. The film makes a great deal of trouble denying that the events and characters depicted bear ANY resemblance to actual people but we're not fooled. Of course, Warner Bros. had to clean it up by making Bette and the other girls into "night club hostesses" but we get the idea. Humphrey Bogart appears as a D.A. obviously based on Thomas A. Dewey; the prosecutor in the Luciano case. Not a bad movie but no classic either.
Old Acquaintance (1943) - - This one is a must see merely for the pairing of Bette Davis with Miriam Hopkins in the same film. You think Bette and Joan Crawford were enemies? They were NOTHING compared to Bette and Miriam; these two broads HATED each other!!! You see, Bette slept with Miriam's then-fiancee Franchot Tone during the filming of "Dangerous" and then Bette won a Best Actress Oscar for "Jezebel"; the role that Miriam Hopkins played on the stage. Talk about pissing someone off. Well, the film itself is another of those not classic but pretty good movies but just watching Miriam and Bette go at it raises the enjoyment level. The one scene where Bette finally shakes the living shit outta Miriam is a stunner and worth the price of admission.
Finally, the superb documentary "Stardust: The Bette Davis Story" is one of the best of these kind of things I've ever seen. All in all, I'd say spending the weekend with Bette was worth "fastening my seat belt" for!
MY EASTER WEEKEND WITH BETTE.
Well, I spent probably the most wonderful Easter weekend I could possibly think of: I didn't see a living soul (for the most part) but instead spent the entire weekend with Bette Davis. That's right.
Now, I must admit that, although I always liked Ms. Davis, I never considered myself a particular fan of hers. The truth is I simply never saw a great deal of her movies; and the movies I saw were from the "later" . . . that is, "older" Bette Davis movies when she was at the end of her career. We're talking "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?", "All About Eve", "The Whales of August", "Death on the Nile", "The Watcher in the Woods" etc. etc. I simply never really saw her pre-1950 catalogue (for the most part). Now, it is true that Penelope once made me watch "Now, Voyager" but that was about 20 years ago and I only thought that movie was simply "OK". Maybe I was too young to appreciate it because my opinion has changed about that one.
"The Letter" (1940) is a classic in my mind. There have been few opening scenes better than this one; the calm, quiet night on the Chinese rubber plantation is broken by the sound of gunshots as Bette comes barrelling down her front stairs emptying her gun into some guy. I'll tell ya, most days I know how she feels and I'd like to do the same thing. It's Bette's picture all the way but the acting of everyone concerned is top notch, the direction by William Wyler is perfection and the photography is a perfect example of what they mean when they say "in glorious black and white". In fact, I watched the movie twice because it just looked so damn good.
Dark Victory (1939) is another classic five star movie. Bette was nominated for best actress again for this one but lost to the "juggernaut" that was "Gone With the Wind" that year. This is one of the quintessential "woman's pictures"; this term DOES NOT mean weepy soap opera (although there is that aspect of it) but that the film centers around a woman. Back in the day, they knew how to make a woman's picture; what the hell happened nowadays where an actress can't find a decent role anymore?!? Anyway, this was Bette's favourite film of her years at Warner Brothers (all 18 of 'em) and she's unbelievably good in it. So, in fact, is Geraldine Fitzgerald whom I've never been a fan of . . . until this movie where she's fantastic of Bette's best friend. Hey, even George Brent is adequate. Humphrey Bogart is totally miscast (why oh WHY did they make him fake an Irish brogue?!?) and Ronald Reagan is fine as well as a vacuous playboy who's drunk in every scene. Bette gets to act every possible emotion from diva heiress to bitch to angel; rarely has Bette Davis gotten a chance to act such a sympathetic role. A classic tearjerker.
Now, Voyager (1942). Talk about a classic tearjerker. What was I thinking when I didn't think much about this one. This is another undisputed classic. Bette's an introverted "ugly duckling" who has had her spirit smashed by her domineering mother (superb Gladys Cooper -- before she met Robert Redford in the Twilight Zone). Psychiatrist Claude Rains helps her out of her shell and she meets and falls in love with married man Paul Henreid on a cruise. It's one of those movies where nobody's gonna end up happy and we love it. Another classic "woman's picture" with one of the greatest final lines in movie history. For all those of us who have realized that life does NOT offer us happiness and we simply have to take what we can get; Bette Davis speaks for us all when she says: "Let's not as for the moon; we have the stars". Penelope was definitely RIGHT about this one and I stand corrected.
Mr. Skeffington (1944). This one I liked not so much. It's still good but nowhere near as good as the previous 3 movies. Claude Rains is back; this time as Bette's unloved husband Mr. Skeffington. Bette is a vain woman who refuses to admit that she's growing old. Her grotesque wig and makeup (after she contracts diptheria) are surely greatly appreciated by her later "Baby Jane"-era fans but I found the movie to be strangely uninvolving. I didn't really care about Bette's character and Claude Rains was such a doormat that he got what he deserved. This one occupies the middle ground in the box set; not a classic but not really bad either.
Jezebel (1938). Here's another classic. I never expected to like this one; after all, it's one of those Civil War (actually PRE-Civil War) era movies which I don't find that interesting. The Civil War is the one part of history that I always skip over and "Gone With the Wind" is not one of my favourite films. Of course, this movie is Bette Davis' version of Scarlett O'Hara essentially and I can only say watch "Jezebel" so you won't have to sit through the awful "Gone with the Wind". Bette starts off the movie headstrong and willful; she's gonna do whatever the hell she pleases and damn everyone else. Of course, this behaviour backfires on her and she ends up humble and supplicant. I never thought dresses would be so interesting but there are 3 or 4 different dresses in the film which are almost characters in themselves. The king of them all is that infamous red dress she wears to the 'Lympus Ball where virginal unmarried women are ONLY permitted to wear white. The movie's black and white but you can practically SMELL the redness of her dress as all the other dancers back away from Bette and Henry Fonda as if her red dress was the plague. Naturally, Bette's stubborn behavior loses her fiance Pres (Fonda) who marries another woman. Oh God, the scene where Bette is about to see Fonda after a good deal of time has gone by is a killer; Bette puts on the white dress she SHOULD have worn ages ago to win Fonda back and gets her heart crushed completely. I won't provide any spoilers; you just gotta watch it to find out what happens. Another classic and Bette deservedly won a best actress Oscar for this one.
The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942) -- This was OK, nothing to write home about. Bette Davis, Monty Wooley, Ann Sheridan, Jimmy Durante etc. gamely work through this silly bit of fluff that's no classic but not bad.
Marked Woman (1937) -- This is one of those typical Warner Bros. gangster movies with Eduardo Cianelli as one of the nastiest mobsters ever depicted in film. This is only half a good movie; some scenes bored me while others were remarkably gripping. One scene involves Bette Davis being pistol-whipped and it's truly disturbing as her screams echo from behind the closed door. This was loosely based on the Lucky Luciano trial where a group of prostitutes testified against the mobster in a media circus. The film makes a great deal of trouble denying that the events and characters depicted bear ANY resemblance to actual people but we're not fooled. Of course, Warner Bros. had to clean it up by making Bette and the other girls into "night club hostesses" but we get the idea. Humphrey Bogart appears as a D.A. obviously based on Thomas A. Dewey; the prosecutor in the Luciano case. Not a bad movie but no classic either.
Old Acquaintance (1943) - - This one is a must see merely for the pairing of Bette Davis with Miriam Hopkins in the same film. You think Bette and Joan Crawford were enemies? They were NOTHING compared to Bette and Miriam; these two broads HATED each other!!! You see, Bette slept with Miriam's then-fiancee Franchot Tone during the filming of "Dangerous" and then Bette won a Best Actress Oscar for "Jezebel"; the role that Miriam Hopkins played on the stage. Talk about pissing someone off. Well, the film itself is another of those not classic but pretty good movies but just watching Miriam and Bette go at it raises the enjoyment level. The one scene where Bette finally shakes the living shit outta Miriam is a stunner and worth the price of admission.
Finally, the superb documentary "Stardust: The Bette Davis Story" is one of the best of these kind of things I've ever seen. All in all, I'd say spending the weekend with Bette was worth "fastening my seat belt" for!
Welcome to the wonderful word of Bette!
ReplyDeleteOf course the later films are great fun, but the Bette Davis of yore was a goddess.
Now Voyager and Jezebel are two of my faves.
Next up, go way back to Of Human Bondage and prepare to be blown away!
"I WIPE MY MOUTH!!!"
ReplyDelete