BLACK AND WHITE SOIREE 2 : THERE'S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS! "ALL ABOUT EVE"

There really is no business like show business… Honestly. On stage, the PERFORMANCE is sheer magic. The stars truly shine. Then, they gracefully float out of sight, the grease paint comes off, the claws come out and production assistants and runners are thrown flying through the air like toys (I can personally vouch for the last part being true metaphorically true and wouldn’t swear that it didn’t occasionally happen physically as well). Now, it is almost exactly 10 years after Mr. Welles turned the world cinema stage upside down. We are now in the hands of quadruple (counting his win with this film) Oscar® winning director Joseph L. Mankiewicz. Ok, he was a bit before our time so what else might you have heard of that he did? The Barefooted Contessa? Yeah, come on, you’ve HEARD of it even if you haven’t actually watched it. Anyway, Mr. Mankiewicz takes us backstage. Not to the backstage of his own movie (DVD’s, Extras and “Behind The Scenes” wasn’t invented in 1950) but backstage in the theatre. Come, come, the real “drama” is just beginning…

Margo Channing (Bette Davis) is a diva. There is no other way to describe her and she would tear you to pieces if you tried. She lives in that rarified atmosphere – “the art circle darling” – populated with playwrights such Lloyd Richards and his wife Karen who is “theatre by marriage”, theatre critics such as Addison DeWitt, directors such as Bill, Margo’s long suffering boyfriend. Margo is so famous and such a success everyone puts up with her “ways”. She brings in such big crowds she’s allowed to play parts of 25 year-olds even though she’s pushing 40. And she has fans. Oh hundreds of fans but none so devoted as Eve Harrington. The mousy young woman attends ALL Margo’s performances, every single one, rain or shine. Karen is touched by the young girl’s attitude and devotion. And she is very old friends with Margo so she decides to do the poor little thing a favor and introduce them. Well Eve even melts Margo’s heart and soon she is living with Margo as her personal assistant. She has so many qualities, is so efficient… She’s just the perfect assistant for Margo… Or is she?

Now, I am a movie buff. I have worked in television, I am still heavily embroiled in the media and hope to become even more so. I love everything to do with showbiz and “behind the scenes”. I, therefore, watch one heck of a lot of this sort of thing. Rarely in my life have I seen a film where the intrigue was so cleverly constructed, Plot twists fall out of thin air, Bette Davis is brilliant, Anne Baxter who plays Eve is brilliant, everyone is brilliant. Everyone, incidentally, includes Marilyn Monroe who has a small part in it. Small, but brilliant. Like a diamond. The other thing is, of course, this movie is chiefly about acting – and I don’t just mean the topic. This was 1950 people, no special effects, no 3D, no HD, no adrenalin-pumped car chases or whatever. There is, however, acting. Bucket loads of the stuff in the best quality as well… Which is very fitting seeing as the topic is, basically, us. Even in your average office, all of you will know, there is intrigue, back stabbing, plots… Ok, put it in a theatre and showbiz, glam it up, it becomes more “dramatic”, but this is basically the kind of thing that happens all the time. You witness it and partake in it every single day. This is precisely why this film is a timeless classic. You’ll know what I mean when you watch it. And you will “recognize” the story. Immediately…

P.S. Ok, I love a bit of trivia. And I want to share this little morsel with you simply to show you how true to life this film is. When this film was shot, Bette Davis was a star, Anne Baxter was just starting out. And apparently Miss Baxter actually managed to influence the authorities into nominating her as “Best Actress” along with Bette Davis. The word is, this move divided the votes and definitively prevented Bette Davis from winning an Oscar ®. So there you are. I told you the film was realistic ;)