Review of All About Eve (1950) by Brandon W — 15 Feb 2012

Eve, Eve, Eve...It's All About Eve, isn't it? Well that's a bit misleading. Yes, our title character remains the main focal point of the film, but it's not just her that we're interested in.

Now, granted, Eve Harrington's one of the greatest cinematic villains of all time, but she's nothing without her fellow players. Margo Channing, Karen and Lloyd Richards, Bill Sampson, and Addison DeWitt give us the depth of the character of Eve.

This is just something to think about in Joseph L. Mankiewicz's opus of a film. Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, and George Sanders were never better on the screen as their roles in the film, and the screenplay is just marvelous.

However, given the the great advantages to the film, there is one huge detractor to the film that almost ruins it: The direction. Mank's script may be legendary, but his manipulation of the imagery is an atrocity, especially given this great material and cast.

The performances shine, but the movements are clumsy, the gaps in dialogue from the movement of the characters is glaringly obvious, and the general set-up of certain scenes is fumbled up. That being said, the performances and the script are able to shield this flaw.

A great film, but when compared to it's contemporary "Sunset Boulevard", there's no contest as to who wins.