Rent All About Eve (1950)

Great Film - All About Eve review by RW

This is an all-time Great Film about post-WW 2 theatrical society in New York. The cast is brilliant with Bette Davis & George Sanders leading from the off. You are in for a real treat.

The Wings Take Wing - All About Eve review by CH

Mary Orr. Margola Cranston. These are not names that immediately come to mind when thinking of one of the most famous movies: All About Eve.

This sprang from a short story “The Wisdom of Eve” in which Mary Orr, having heard of a real-life incident, created a character, an actress Margola Cranston who would be upstaged by the eponymous help Eve, a smooth-talking serpent. This was clear from the opening sentences, as it would be in the awards dinner which begins the film where Bette Davis, as Margot Channing is swept aside by the machinations of Anne Baxter. This scene is notable for its use of two voice-overs, a device anticipated by Mary Orr's own opening: “A young girl is on her way to Hollywood with a contract for one thousand dollars a week from a major film company in her pocketbook. In a year or two I am sure Miss Harrington will be as much of a household word to you as Ingrid Bergman or Joan Fontaine.”

That destiny is the result of Eve's inveigling her faux-innocent way into the lives of these thespians whose bravado and insecurities mirror her own. So much for the brief plot of the story, published in Cosmopolitan in 1946; the film, just four years later, turns upon so much more, with pleasingly baroque screenplay and direction both by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. He had to hand elegant sets in which to swathe not only Bette Davis but a cast so good that the phrase “supporting players” does not do justice to the ensemble effect, one in which the ever-acerbic Thelma Ritter is never cowed by her employer's tongue.

And one has to treasure the creepily polite columnist played by George Sanders, whose clothes and intonation make him Noel Coward with an edge. Not to mention, though one must, the few minutes with Marilyn Monroe (if minutes they are, they linger in the memory).

The dialogue - “a bumpy night”, and all that - is well known, but the thing is that it gains so much from being heard, and seen, as a whole. Such is the pacing that one does not realise, until it is over, that the film has lasted for two hours and twenty minutes. One could dwell upon in-jokes, such as a jocular reference to the film's own producer and to Eugene O'Neill, but that would be geekish, contrary to a film carried aloft by passion - with a stunning final moment.

Who knows where a short story might lead? Not only this, but Mary Orr made a play from it and it became a long-running musical, Applause. Twentieth-Century Fox got a great deal from her for its $5000, even if she had been inspired by life itself, a quality evident upon every inch of this film.

Tedious Experience - All About Eve review by griggs

Long heralded as a classic, upon closer viewing, All About Eve reveals significant shortcomings that make it a challenging watch for modern audiences. Clocking in at over two hours, the film feels overlong and struggles to maintain a gripping pace. The plot twists, which might have been more surprising at its release, are now glaringly predictable, stripping the story of much-needed suspense and intrigue.

A critical flaw in “All About Eve” is the lack of genuine jeopardy or consequence for its characters. This absence creates a dull atmosphere where the stakes never feel exceptionally high, diminishing the impact of what should be dramatic moments. The characters, from Margo Channing to Eve Harrington, are difficult to sympathise with. Their motivations and actions often come across as self-serving or manipulative, making it hard for viewers to connect with them on any meaningful level.

All About Eve may have historical significance, taking a spot on the AFI 100 list, its drawn-out narrative, predictable plot twists, and unrelatable characters make it a rather tedious experience.