1950--All About Eve, Joseph Mankiewicz





 



1950--All About Eve, Joseph Mankiewicz

Nominated: Born Yesterday, Father of the Bride, King Solomon's Mines, Sunset Blvd

Should Have Won: All About Eve
Be Sure to See: Cinderella, Rabbit of Seville
"Nice speech, Eve. But I wouldn't worry too much about your heart. You can always put that award where your heart ought to be."--Margo Channing

     To come up with my vote for the best line in a particular movie, I'll jot them down as they are said while I'm watching it. All About Eve is bursting with stellar lines. I learned in a film class that dialogue is the most tricky part of the screenplay to write and was taught sometimes to leave it out and write it last. I guess Joseph Mankiewicz is one of those people who have an ear for it. All About Eve's most famous line “Fasten your seat belts, it's going to be a bumpy night” is probably about the tenth best line in the movie, as far as I am concerned.

 

     The story is about an adoring fan who becomes a friend, then an understudy, then takes over for the star she had once adored. It is based on an actual occurrence in the 1940s, written about by Mary Orr in a story called “The Wisdom of Eve.” A girl named Martina Laurence used to hang around outside the theater trying to get to know actress Elizabeth Bergner. At one point, Laurence stepped in for an audition when Bergner was late and eventually got one of Bergner's fan letters. This same situation happens in this movie. A related story of interest is how actress Telugu Bankhead, known from an early Hitchcock movie Lifeboat, thought Bette Davis was stealing her image in the roles she plays. She has even been quoted as saying “Bette Davis? Yeah, she does my roles in the movies.” I bring this up because in All About Eve, Davis is on the receiving end of what she was accused of doing to Bankhead.

 

     Fascinating as the back story for the movie is, the movie itself is stellar as well. It even coined a term in the industry. To be known as an Eve Harrington is to be a backstabbing understudy. Margo Channing is the finest actress working and Eve seems to know it. After a performance, she asks Margo's friend, Karen, if she could meet Eve. She does and is star struck, tells all about her past and immediately becomes Margo's aide. At first Margo is flattered to have someone who adores her so much, but then Eve doesn't seem so innocent. She studies Margo, sends Margo's husband a telegram about a birthday party pretending to be Margo. Then becomes her understudy.

 

     One of the best characters in the movie was Karen who, while many of the characters seem merely annoyed at Eve's doings, seems generally angry. Some of her icy stares are all we need to see to know her feelings toward Eve. But all the while Eve acts innocent, she even says it would kill her to think she had upset Mrs. Channing. There is a big revelation about Eve toward the end and after she wins an award, Margo delivers a line so good I actually yelled “Oh!” alone to the television. I suppose Eve is a villain but she is so friendly she doesn't fall into the typical movie villain type. She certainly isn't evil but her good intentions are so flawed they become villainous.

 

     I imagine this movie is very popular with people in the acting business. But I think everyone can relate to it if you think of someone mooching in on your job after seeming to admire your work. This movie is a gem but the dialogue is the key. For fans of Marilyn Monroe, look for her in a brief role. I also found the ending very chilling for a drama. The final scene made me feel a little uneasy which is exactly what it should do. The problem is that final shot is a positive and a negative. I won't reveal why it is positive because it will spoil what caused this emotion for me but the negative is  camera operator is reflected in a mirror.  Every movie has continuity flaws here and there, they are unavoidable. But when crew members are on camera it is a different story, and along with the one in the ending there is another scene where a man with a mustache is holding the camera in the ladies' room. I'm not sure how those shots got by the editors. But who cares? All About Eve is one of the best Oscar winners of all time.