Review of All About Eve (1950) by Jake R — 30 Jul 2009

Hollywood satire has almost never been this brilliant, accurate, or funny. Part of the reason for this is Mankiewicz's perfect dialogue. The performances are another major factor. But choosing to aim all that firepower at the culture of Broadway was a masterstroke.

On the surface, the result of this choice was to make mincemeat out of any pretensions held by what was certainly the major rival to the movie business at the time. Also, however, as one of the characters implies near the beginning of the movie, the very same weapons the film uses could easily be turned against Hollywood itself.

Lust for stardom, in any form of "theater," is addictive. Fame, even when it's achieved, lasts an intensely short time--regardless of the fact that a movie can immortalize a great performance.

That performance is a shadow, it's not the person. Acting is being something you're not; it's a lie. So, someone can view this film and see that the villain's only real crime is great acting, both on and off the stage.

That being the case, the film becomes the ultimate paean to acting and actors. There is no greater joy for an actor than to be handed a scene in which he can spout glorious dialogue that is intelligent and true to his character.

Every scene in this movie is like that. And the actors return the favor. Bette Davis, as is well-chronicled, is the standout. She can be a whirlwind, overpowering everyone else in the scene with her personality, but there are also moments when she uses nothing more than those eyes of hers.

The sad part of the story of the movie is that this role reflected her real life to some extent. For our benefit, that fact does lend more power to her performance, just as her off-screen relationship with Gary Merrill makes their relationship in the film even more believable.

The other actors are great as well. George Sanders is terrifically slimy, and Anne Baxter, always looking as if she doesn't quite belong in the crowd, manages a difficult role very well. If all that wasn't enough, Marilyn Monroe shows up.

This is a universally recognized classic that is also truly enjoyable to watch--graceful and vicious at the same time.