I would never call myself a Bette Davis fan, as much as I simply like her work. However, in All About Eve she is a force to reckon with. Written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, All About Eve hit Blu-ray from Fox Home Entertainment last week and it is a first-class transfer for a five star film.
Nevermind the fact we’re talking about a now 61-year-old film, you don’t have to be a fan of black-and-white oldies to appreciate every note struck in this six-time Oscar winner. Did you like the dialogue in The Social Network? Well then you better buckle up for the fire and music presented here. Jeff Wells at Hollywood Elsewhere even drew the comparison recently, although his was just another opportunity to denounce what he perceives to be the Academy’s choice for picking The King’s Speech over The Social Network for Best Picture, but one area The Social Network doesn’t compare is in the thunderous performance of Davis, or even the conniving pomp of George Sanders as Addison DeWitt. I would leave room for a comparison of Anne Baxter’s performance as a doe-eyed Eve to Andrew Garfield’s Eduardo, but the characters themselves don’t compare. Eve is no Eduardo. She’s much more of a Mark Zuckerberg in the end.
I’ve probably only seen about seven or eight of Davis’s films, but it’s hard for me to imagine anything she did is any better than what she does here. I haven’t seen Judy Holliday’s performance in Born Yesterday, but if it was enough for her to legitimately win the Best Actress over Davis in 1951 (even Gloria Swanson in Sunset Blvd. for that matter) I need to see it to believe it.
The clip to the right is my favorite from the film. Davis’s performance in that scene is commanding and Hugh Marlowe as Lloyd Richards matches her every step of the way.
I couldn’t end there, however. I had to include the clip at the bottom of this post just to point out the slight crack in Davis’s voice when she says “so young” at the two minute mark. It’s a most likely unintentional change in pitch (she hits a similar note in the previous clip when she shouts “Paranoiac!?”), but it cuts to the heart of the viewer, realizing this is a character is on the verge.
If you don’t yet own All About Eve this is an absolute must buy for anyone that loves film. You don’t even have to watch it to appreciate it, just turn it on and have it playing in the background. My guess is you’ll more than once find your eyes drawn to the screen based solely on the power of the words and the performances. They suck you in and don’t let go.
To buy All About Eve on Blu-ray right now from Amazon just click here. It’s currently listed at 34% off the suggested retail price.
