All About Eve (1950)

An ingenue insinuates herself in to the company of an established but aging stage actress and her circle of theater friends.

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writer:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz (written for the screen by)

Stars:

Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, George Sanders

Top 250 #95 | Won 6 Oscars. Another 15 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bette Davis	...	Margo
Anne Baxter	...	Eve
George Sanders	...	Addison DeWitt
Celeste Holm	...	Karen
Gary Merrill	...	Bill Simpson
Hugh Marlowe	...	Lloyd Richards
Gregory Ratoff	...	Max Fabian
Barbara Bates	...	Phoebe
Marilyn Monroe	...	Miss Casswell
Thelma Ritter	...	Birdie
Walter Hampden	...	Aged Actor
Randy Stuart	...	Girl
Craig Hill	...	Leading Man
Leland Harris	...	Doorman
Barbara White	...	Autograph Seeker

Storyline

Aspiring actress Eve Harrington maneuvers her way into the lives of Broadway star Margo Channing, playwright Lloyd Richards and director Bill Sampson. This classic story of ambition and betrayal has become part of American folklore. Bette Davis claims to have based her character on the persona of film actress Talullah Bankhead. Davis' line "Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night" is legendary, but, in fact, all of the film's dialog sparkles with equal brilliance.

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Plot Keywords:

theater | director | actress | critic | fan | 

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Taglines:

It's all about women---and their men!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

15 January 1951 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Best Performance

Filming Locations:

21 Club - 21 West 52nd Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$10,177 (USA) (6 October 2000)

Gross:

$10,177 (USA) (6 October 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

138 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ranks first in the Most Academy Award Nominated Films with 14 nominations, set a record which has been tied only by the No.2 Titanic.

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Goofs

In the dressing-room scene at the beginning, Margot turns in her chair to look at Karen. In the subsequent reverse angle, her arm positioning across the back of the chair has completely changed.

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Quotes

Margo Channing: I'm a junkyard.

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Crazy Credits

Eddie Fisher is credited in the cast as 'Stage Manager,' although all of his scenes were cut from the released print. This is not the the singer Eddie Fisher, but another actor.

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Connections

Featured in Precious Images (1986)

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Soundtracks

"Poinciana"
(1936) (uncredited)
Music by Nat Simon

User Reviews

Incredible

I had read comments about the quality of the writing in this film but I really had no idea to what extent this would elevate the experience. The fact is, it leaves me with no other choice than to give it a perfect 10. Unless you see this film, I don't think you'll have the necessary frame of reference with which to to base any expectations on. It's an incredibly engrossing, moving and often comedic experience, but time and time again what knocks you over is the absolute finesse with which this script was crafted. The fact that the acting and direction are flawless and surprisingly natural-seeming (most old movies usually seem stiff or people seem to "act" too much) only enhances it that much more. With this film, you can really imagine the *people* the actors are portraying.

"All About Eve" shows some similarity to one of my other favourite 50s films "A Face in the Crowd". Both are studies of fame and celebrity. Eve shows how a person will corrupt themselves in order to attain it, whereas A Face's premise is that fame corrupts those who find themselves in the spotlight. Both have themes that are perhaps even more resonant in our celebrity-obsessed culture now than when they were made. Interestingly, Eve predates A Face by several years.

And possibly most interesting of all is the honest and often raw way in which women are portrayed, the strength of their character and the power they wield. The male contingent is practically relegated to the back seat. One might be hard pressed to find a movie quite so "liberated" today. So what more can I say? If you love movies and you haven't yet seen it, you've suffered long enough; don't wait another day.