Queen Bee (1955) User Reviews

Another Joan Crawford Eyebrow Picture

[Bucs1960 · 6/10 · 2 September 2007]

Joan does her big eyebrow look again in this film about a true bitch in heat. Here she is an "outsider" who traps Barry Sullivan, scion of a good Southern family, into marriage and proceeds to make his life a living hell. For that matter, she makes everyone who surrounds her a target for her venom. She is truly a psychotic whose greatest thrill is to destroy everything and everyone within her circle of influence.

She has a passion for her husband's friend, played by John Ireland who just happens to be engaged to her husband's sister. After she rides roughshod over those two with tragic results, she starts on her cousin, an innocent who is visiting this Garden of Eden. Probably a big mistake since this leads to further trouble ending in a denouement that you can see coming from a mile away. Very tidy.

Is this a good film? Depends if you like Crawford at her histrionic best, chewing up both the scenery and her co-stars. But again, as another reviewer said, you will like this movie if you love Crawford or if you hate her. She's that good. It's one of those soap opera plots that were popular in the 50s and it will hold your interest, if only to see if Joan gets her come-uppance. Don't be embarrassed if you find yourself liking this film......you're in good company.

Queen Joan

[RanchoTuVu · 8/10 · 29 January 2009]

Joan Crawford's least likable character could be the one she played in this film, as a controlling and vindictive woman of wealth who runs and ruins (or nearly ruins) the lives of all those whom she has relationships with in her large southern plantation mansion. Apparently the relationships come out of her money and their lack of it, as well as the level of her misdirected intelligence and lack of empathy for others, none of which gets explained very fully. Even to her own children, the product of her marriage to heavy drinking philosophizing character played by Barry Sullivan, she shows a cold disregard, especially the choice of a nanny, who's even meaner than Joan. Into this dysfunction comes Jennifer Stewart as a young cousin from Chicago who upsets the strange family chemistry that has been developing over the years, befriending the poor kids, and catching a lot of eyes. John Ireland seems a natural as the one guy who can and does (in some well done scenes) stand up to Queen Bee Joan, presenting his usual suppressed aversion to injustice while also straddling the fence. It's worth sticking with for the ending.

Welcome to Hell

[JBThackery · 8/10 · 3 February 2007]

I could rave about the fantastic acting and directing. But every scene is like waking up in a real Hades. I mean, these people seem locked into the never-ending strain of having to live with each other, and even worse, with themselves.

I disagree with another posted comment which said none of the acting was good except for Joan Crawford. They were all superbly on cue, dynamically intertwined, and their interactions were so genuine I kept thinking I was in the room with these miserable rich people.

I kept getting ulcers, and feeling angry, depressed, or panicky with each character interaction. Now and then the sweet-natured visiting cousin, Jenifer, offers a fresh breeze of hope, but wow, how she gets caught up in their poisonous existence. You never know if she is going to save this wretched family, or destroy them; you can't quite figure what she is about.

There is plenty of movement, dynamic interplay, psychological warfare and symbolism, and smooth continuity. Every actor surprises you with revelations of their inner selves which they are not afraid to expose, which in every scene stirs up more conflict to work out.

I also slightly disagree with the posted comment that the ending was tacked on. In a way it could seem so, but the events leading up to it keep you wondering... was the freshly budding resolution of all their sorrows real? Or just a lot of fake premise that never got to full light? We will never know. But after seeing this otherwise well produced movie,I am determined to live as good a life as I can, if this is what Hell is like! And these poor people are in Hell.

A very, very Crawford movie

[verna55 · 26 September 2000]

Maybe I'm going out on a limb here, but having seen a great many of her movies, I would say that Joan Crawford was at her bitchiest in this picture. That is to say, bitchier than usual! She tears at the scenery, she tears at the script, and brother I feel sorry for her co-stars, because even though they are also a talented group, they of course don't stand a chance when Crawford's on the screen, which is basically every scene. Although her character doesn't appear right away, it's still obvious from the very start that this is a very, very Crawford movie. The film just instantaneously gives off that omen. The gist of the story is this: Crawford is a glamorous socialite who dominates her Southern family and takes great pride in doing so. Yes, we've seen Crawford play this type of role before(HARRIETT CRAIG), but I personally never tire of seeing Crawford getting the upper hand. Though they didn't get along too well in real life, Joan Crawford and Bette Davis had much in common when it came to choice of movie scripts. They both specialized in playing catty, indomitable females, and they both clearly relished doing so. Crawford is at her best in this one. Sure, the script isn't the greatest she's been given, and frankly it's pretty sleazy stuff, but Crawford does wonders with it and manages to turn in her finest performance. She clearly works at the part and isn't simply clawing and nailing at everyone around her. Even though her character is an absolute horror of a human being, Crawford does her best to make her a sympathetic one, and she just about pulls it off! Some people will discard this one as pure camp, but this is a movie that serious Joan Crawford fans like myself will treasure, and no doubt watch over and over again. Terrific!!!!!

Whatever Happened to Mildred Pierce

[billpappas-1 · 6/10 · 19 April 2010]

Oh, Joan, That hairdo, those eyebrows, hide the children. Someone said she looked like she was wearing 'warrior makeup'. But, we love ya, Joan when you're as bad as you can be. This was before the Joker in the Batman movies.

Other reviewers have already laid out the plot but there are a few scenes that simply delight me. There's the one where a seated John Ireland has a telephone cord gently wrapped around his neck by Joan while she's on the phone.

In another scene, she is talking to her young niece or whoever she is while semi-reclining on the sofa. Meanwhile Joan has her leg elevated admiring it and pointing her foot in her high heel shoe, somewhat distracted by its shapeliness, I guess.

Then, while the young woman and Betsy Palmer are on the floor looking at blueprints of the house Betsy will live in, they don't hear Joan enter till you see her high heel shoe with its ankle strap stepping on the blueprints and ruining their fun.

Another delightful moment is when Barry Sullivan, 'Beauty' is in his office pacing in front of his desk where Joan is seated out of camera range while he is trying to tell her he wants a divorce. It's a heavy, serious scene. The camera pans over to Joan who is admiring herself in her compact make up mirror in a wonderfully blasé, Joan Crawford way.

These little moments are worth sitting through some of the tedious plot development. There is one scene where Barry Sullivan is having a long dialog with John Ireland in Sullivan's bedroom while he is dressing for a formal dinner. The dialog is one long shot while Sullivan is tying his bow tie, something we don't see in today's movies with all the quick edits. Today's actors don't seem to be able to do a long scene without cuts like in these old movies.

I guess Joan didn't mind playing a character that was so nasty that the audience cheered her demise at the end of the film.

Sunset Showcase For Miss Crawford

[janiceferrero · 7/10 · 30 September 2009]

A guilty pleasure if I ever saw one. Directect by Ranald McDougall, even his name reads like a misspell, he was the writer of Mildred Pierce and clearly Crawford trusted him. Look at her entrance, from a distance, a subtle and no so subtle game of light and music. The turgid tale of evil and deception suffers from holes in every angle but this is not the sort of picture that can afford that kind of scrutiny. This is a showcase for the late term Crawford die hard fans. You wont be able to help but admire her devastating self confidence. She knew every trick in the book as an actress as well as a character. Queen Bee goes bye fast very fast and the moral compass is determined by Lucy Marlow when in fact it needed a sort of Anne Baxter or someone with a bit more gravitas. To be seen with a bunch of like minded friends and laugh out loud.

"The sun is shinin', I didn't expect the sun to be shinin'"

[blanche-2 · 6/10 · 4 February 2007]

So sayeth Barry Sullivan in "Queen Bee" referring to Joan Crawford, the ruler of a southern household in this 1955 drama, which also stars John Ireland, Barry Sullivan, Betsy Palmer and Fay Wray. Cousin Jennifer Stewart (Lucy Marlow) arrives for a visit and immediately senses there are a few problems in the home - at first, she feels these problems are unfairly blamed on Eva (Crawford). She soon learns what the audience has known from Eva's first appearance.

The lovely and somewhat shy Carol Lee Phillips (Palmer), sister of Eva's husband (Sullivan), is about to marry one of Eva's hand-me-downs, Judson Prentiss (Ireland) but doesn't realize that Eva hasn't quite decided to let him go. Complicating things, cousin Jennifer finds herself attracted to Eva's husband. In real life, Ireland and Crawford were having an affair, and Palmer screamed "WHAT??" into the telephone when she was invited to Crawford's wedding to Alfred Steele. At the reception, she took Crawford aside and asked what was going on. "Oh, well," Crawford said, "We were in our cups and Alfred asked me to marry him, and I said yes."

This is one of those southern dramas we saw a lot of in the '50s and early '60s - "The Long Hot Summer," "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," and "Desire in the Dust," to name a few. "Queen Bee" is a little over the top. It's a tour de force for Crawford, who has some very biting lines which she delivers in her inimitable style, and her wardrobe is sensational, especially the last gown. She plays the kind of bitch we always imagine she was in real life, the woman depicted in "Mommie Dearest." She couldn't have been - too many people, from Ann Blyth to Betsy Palmer, truly liked her. A little too much of a disciplinarian at home and with a voracious sexual appetite, she certainly brought those edges to many performances. Crawford also was one of the great screen presences with a face made for film.

Highly enjoyable film particularly for Crawford fans, though everyone in it is very good.

over-the-top, full of plot holes yet so much fun to watch!

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 30 April 2006]

This movie is sort of a "guilty pleasure"--you know, a film you like watching despite the fact that it's not exactly well-acted or intellectual fare. I'll be the first to admit that the movie was very histrionic (in particular Ms. Crawford's performance) and is pure soap opera as well--but I still enjoyed the film immensely.

The film opens with a nice young lady (Lucy Marlow) coming to visit her bitchy cousin (Joan Crawford). Ms. Crawford acts incredibly kind and sweet and Ms. Marlow is completely taken in by this performance. However, the rest of the household (including Joan's husband and sister-in-law) seem far less taken by Joan's kindness--going so far as to warn Lucy it's all an act. And, eventually, Joan's evil, controlling and horrid nature seeps through and the audience comes to realize many things: she hates her own children (that must have been a BIG acting stretch), hates everyone around her, must be 100% in control of everyone and is like a wild animal when crossed. Her evil ways eventually lead to her sister-in-law committing suicide and her husband begins plotting to murder her. Exactly how this is all resolved, I'll leave to you--I'd hate to spoil it.

As for the problems with the plot, there were several. If you don't think, they won't pose a problem. However, the romance between Lucy and Joan's hubby (Barry Sullivan) seemed completely illogical and "from out of left field". It didn't make much sense and it just wasn't at all convincing. Second, Joan was so bad, so cruel and so gosh-darn awful, it's really hard to imagine it took anyone so long to try and kill her! Perhaps this was just a little too far-fetched!

All-in-all, this movie is very typical of Crawford's movies of the 1940s and 50s. She played the bitchy, controlling role a lot and based on reports from Christina Crawford, these roles weren't far from the truth! Fun to watch--impossible to live with!

Crawford at her best!

[robman-5 · 9/10 · 11 November 2001]

Joan Crawford is in her element here! As a deceitful, manipulative woman with the Medusa touch she's in her glory. You get the feeling she's enjoying herself immensely. Hell, you even get the feeling she's enjoying the costumes! She tears into the part of Eva Phillips as if it were her last meal, and takes the rest of the cast along for the ride. They don't make movies like this anymore and it's a shame. It's good, clean, sinister fun with Joan in control every step of the way.

The Big Buzz Of Joan Crawford's Prevailing Star-Power

[strong-122-478885 · 6/10 · 15 February 2014]

Favorite Movie Quote - "My, Carol, you look so sweet. Even in those tacky, old riding clothes."

Watch Out! - Queen Bee is a virtual hornet's nest!

In Queen Bee, Joan Crawford (all eye-brow pencil and trademark bow-tie mouth) is undoubtedly the whole show here, lock, stock and barrel.

With great gusto, Crawford plays "queen bee" Eva Phillips, a ruthless, manipulative man-eater, full of jealousy and rage, who viciously ruins the lives of everyone around her.

Crawford, in the final "high-diva" stage of her career, almost single-handedly managed to turn this piece of 1955 melodrama into a camp and unintentionally hilarious romp down "Soap Opera" lane.

Containing lots of biting, backstabbing dialogue, Queen Bee (in its own satisfying way) is an ultimate soap opera of bitter bickering and self-centered family squabbling where Joan Crawford (in very good form) gives it her best shot as she triumphantly slaps faces, trashes a bedroom and dresses to the absolute nines (all very nicely executed for perfect effect).

For Crawford, films like "Strait-Jacket" and "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?" would soon be waiting for her just around the corner.

Filmed in glossy b&w, Queen Bee was expertly directed by Ranald MacDougall whose other films included Man On Fire, The World, the Flesh, and the Devil, and Go Naked In The World. This film featured a strong supporting cast headlined by Barry Sullivan, Betsy Palmer and John Ireland.

Bzzzzzzzzzzz!

"She's like some fancy kind of disease!"

[moonspinner55 · 4/10 · 3 February 2007]

Young innocent from Chicago travels down south to stay with her wealthy cousin, a society shark with an alcoholic husband who is planning on busting up the engagement between her former lover and a terrified girl who also lives in the mansion. Though based on a novel, "Queen Bee" looks and sounds like a stage play (sub-Tennessee Williams), with arch overacting by everyone and only a smidgen of memorable lines. Joan Crawford wear some fancy gowns, but this isn't an attractive role for her. The character interaction is drowsy and sluggish, and the plot-turns are occasionally confounding, outdated or hoary. There's an interesting plot-thread involving a cruel nanny who gives Crawford's Queen a run for her money, but she inexplicably vanishes. The film is drawing-room bitchery, and yet with only minimal camp appeal. It's hardly enjoyable even on that level, particularly since nobody here appears to be having any fun. ** from ****

Oh MY God!

[thedavid01 · 10/10 · 4 February 2007]

From frame one, she is EVIL! I totally cracked up because everyone else is dressed and lit adequately,but in each shot, each frig-gin' shot, Joan is in fantastic gowns, jewels, lit fabulously and with just that HINT of gauze, Vaseline over the lens. Same year as Female on the Beach. Go Joan! She chews through scenery like a wood chipper. However her character, originally from Chicago, is intimidated by a southern family..I don't think so. I realized she is the prototype of characters like Glenn Close in "Fatal Attraction". The scene where she dares her husband to divorce her is shark-like.Glamorous from start to finish.And poor Betsy Palmer....

"I'm not a very nice person..."

[marcslope · 6/10 · 1 December 2008]

And you're not, Joan, in this Gothic 1955 soap. Joan's a Northerner who married into Southern aristocracy and rules the Tara-like mansion with threats, sarcasm, deceit, and in one memorable take, a quite real-looking slap at a prettier young actress. That's Lucy Marlow, who actually has what's probably the lead role in terms of length. But the focus is Joan, Joan, Joan, and while her evil-bitch persona is always entertaining--at this point in her career, she'd determined it was the way her fans wanted to see her, and she wasn't shy about pouring on the acid--it's not a very energetic or convincing movie. The children, for one thing. Aside from the fact that they're at least 20 years too young to be Joan's children (and Tim Hovey is an unusually annoying '50s kid actor), their relationship with the parental units isn't spelled out at all. What's their father (Barry Sullivan)'s attitude toward them, and vice versa? And is the ending meant to be, like, happy? And how are we supposed to feel about Jud (John Ireland)--hero or heel? It's like writer-director Ranald MacDougall just wanted to paste together a medley of evil-Joan moments and didn't really care whether the continuity made any sense. There are some memorable images, though, and a bevy of ugly '50s fashions, and the usual fawning over how lovely La Crawford is even though she isn't. That ought to keep you amused through the lulls.

Joan is Queen of the manor...and the suds keep flowing...

[Doylenf · 5/10 · 3 February 2007]

QUEEN BEE is a handsome showcase for the JOAN CRAWFORD brand of acting. She's the Southern Gothic matriarch of an uneasy household and the other characters are all foils for Joan's dominating Queen Bee.

There's the sweetly naive girl from the North (LUCY MARLOW); Crawford's bitter husband, a scarred BARRY SULLIVAN; and BETSY PALMER as the most normal of the group, clearly disliking Eva (Crawford) and her controlling ways; and JOHN IRELAND as the all knowing ex-husband.

Crawford is at her royal best, giving lines like "I'd rather you didn't talk to me in that manner," the haughty air of a woman who just ascended from her throne. She looks well, except for the eyebrows that are thicker than Boris Karloff's. "I like people around me to laugh and be gay," she tells the naive Northerner guest. We all know something dire will happen sooner or later.

Joan has some terrible dialog to spout. "It makes me terribly cross when people oppose me," she tells Marlow. "If you left, I'd never have anyone to call my own." Naturally, it's tailor-made material for Crawford who holds the spotlight without any difficulty, although Betsy Palmer and Barry Sullivan do nicely in supporting roles.

It's a well mounted production, filmed crisply in glorious B&W photography and the interiors of Joan's mansion are only slightly less imposing than Manderlay in REBECCA.

But it never becomes much more than high camp, with Crawford strutting her stuff as only she can--and the others performing capably enough but never having a chance to really shine.

Summing up: Ideal viewing for Crawford's legion of fans who probably will enjoy seeing her in a series of Jean Louis gowns, impeccably poised as she delivers some sweetly sarcastic lines. Her clothes even got an Oscar nomination, as did the B&W photography.

Trivia note: Joan's best line: "A party is to women, what a battlefield is to men."

Gothic Crawford

[DAHLRUSSELL · 7/10 · 30 November 2006]

This was one of Joan Crawford's last Glamour Queen movie roles, before she started doing horror films and TV, and this part itself is transitional, as she plays a legendary beauty, pathological in her manipulations of the people around her. Despite the huge 1950s eyebrows that could be seen on Joan, Audrey Hepburn, Kim Novak, and others during this period, and the weird heart shaped hairdo, Joan remains both a beauty and a really compelling and totally invested actress. This was after Joan did POSSESSED and proved she could both underplay and play full tilt. Here she plays a woman so deeply dishonest that she is unconvincing in every emotion – we don't even know if she believes any of this herself.

The real stand out performance of this film is Barry Sullivan as Joan's physically and emotionally scarred husband. He is completely believable in a roller coaster role. The prototype of the sexy damaged man.

The film itself is average, the script is soap opera predictable, and the biggest mystery (how he got scar) is never revealed, only hinted at. Despite Joan's title character and her entrance-making Jean Louis wardrobe, this really is an ensemble piece, and everyone does a good solid job in this Southern Gothic potboiler. The "town and country" set of this film feels both ostentatiously grand and a little too cramped and small, and that is a good way of describing the whole thing.

For A Hobby Joan Manipulates

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 24 September 2011]

I think I'm not going too far out on a limb when I say that Joan Crawford probably did Queen Bee as a favor to screenwriter Ranald MacDougall who wrote the film that was her greatest success and brought Joan the Academy Award for Best Actress. I'm referring of course to Mildred Pierce. Queen Bee was going to be MacDougall's directing debut as well and I'm sure Crawford did this one for a friend.

As a director MacDougall just gave Crawford her head and she just chewed the scenery right down to the foundations. It was that kind of part and her overacting also covered up a really bad melodramatic story.

Crawford's cousin Lucy Marlow comes to live with Crawford and her alcoholic husband Barry Sullivan and their two children. It becomes rather apparent soon enough that Crawford sadistically manipulates events and people around her almost as a hobby. She's miserable and she can't stand anyone around who is truly happy. She even engages sadistic nanny Katherine Anderson for her kids.

The film such as it is belongs to Joan Crawford who dominates the film totally. Her friend MacDougall to say the least didn't write a screenplay that was anything close to Mildred Pierce. Hence Crawford had to take up the slack.

Joan's performance carries the film a couple of notches up from where it should be. Definitely a must for her fans.

"...beautiful house, beautiful people,...in the eye of the beholder."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 20 September 2019]

Joan Crawford gives the term 'bitch on wheels' a pretty good workout here, as a manipulative wife who casts a pall over everyone who even remotely finds themselves in her presence. You have to wonder why anyone actually would subject themselves to her sphere of influence; it's not like she did anyone any favors. However when it suited Eva Phillips (Crawford), she could be sweet as pie, but those moments were few and far between. This is the kind of picture where you just can't wait to find out how the witch will eventually get what's coming to her, though it gets telegraphed in a way that could have probably been handled with more suspense. Husband Barry Sullivan, who later donned a holster as Sheriff Pat Garrett in 'The Tall Man' TV Western series, was ready to do the honors at one point when he made a selection from his gun rack, but thought better of it to craft a more elaborate finale. Only thing is, his business partner (John Ireland) hated Eva even more than Avery (Sullivan) did. And who could blame the guy after Eva drove his fiancé (Betsy Palmer) to suicide. I thought that was a rather extreme reaction myself, after all you only get to use that tactic once. I have to wonder why movie car accidents almost always end up as fiery wrecks, but in this case, Eva's swan song was as volatile as the way she lived. The best part about it, she even saw it coming.

A Tale of a complex woman for yesterday, today and tomorrow.

[mark.waltz · 6/10 · 16 October 2012]

It started with Eve, and it will probably end with another female named Eve, but somewhere in the middle came Joan Crawford's Eva. The dominating figure of a Southern estate, she is a modern day Regina, the antagonist of Lillian Hellman's play "The Little Foxes". All sugar on the surface, she is a combination of Regina, Lady MacBeth and "I Claudius's" Livia underneath. When distant relative Lucy Marlowe arrives, she is instantly fooled but soon learns the nasty truth. Another relative (Betsy Palmer) suffers dearly at the hands of the Queen Bee, and Barry Sullivan, as Crawford's drunken husband, plots his wife's downfall with an unexpected conclusion. There are many interesting analizations along the way, but none more revealing than those by Crawford herself. Eva is not a one dimensional bitch, and Crawford makes the viewer see every side of this walking tragedy in heels. "There's a bit of me in every woman:, she admits in a particularly vulnerable moment, but is compelled by some force stronger than herself. Marlowe, Palmer, Sullivan and paramour John Ireland all offer their own observations about her but the simple truth is that Eva is as crazy as any other power hungry male or female who has had the desire or need to control others. While the temptation to compare this film to "Mommie Dearest" may become an obsession for some, it really calls into question the truth of Christina Crawford's claims (both in the book, as well as the fact that the movie version of her book was nothing more than "another Joan Crawford movie") and solidifies Joan's place as one of Hollywood's most legendary stars.

Queen B she is for sure!

[Old_Movie_Man · 9/10 · 31 January 2005]

If you love Joan, like I love Joan, you have to see this movie. The script, costumes, acting, and music are all A++++. This has to be the baddest girl that Joan has ever played, and the part suits her well; Mildred Pearce pales in comparison to this role. Barry Sullivan is terrific too. Somehow, I get the impression that during the whole picture that Joan is thinking, "I'll show that Bette how to play a southern vixen!" This movie is the reason that I like old movies; they spent money on this one - the scenery, furnishings, costumes, and jewelry were all "old school" and to die for. If you see the DVD, the original trailer is a hoot! I fell out laughing looking at the trailer after watching the movie. They show way too much of the plot in the trailer, so don't watch the trailer before watching the movie.

Queen Bee-Crawford Takes the Sting Out of You ***

[edwagreen · 7/10 · 2 September 2007]

Joan Crawford's best role since 1952's "Sudden Fear." In "Queen Bee" she is a manipulative woman who has caused misery to husband Barry Sullivan.

Inviting her cousin to her home, the cousin soon discovers that everyone in the house is just miserable as they are in the orbit of a vicious Crawford.

John Ireland, who works for Sullivan, loves his sister, a very good Betsy Palmer here. Unfortunately, the Queen Bee was once a love interest of Ireland and right before the wedding, she tells this to Carol (Palmer) causing her to commit suicide.

Crawford's young children with Sullivan are miserable as well and how can you blame them with a mother like this?

When John Ireland discovers what Barry Sullivan has planned for Crawford, he takes matters in his own hand. Change partners and kill?

Joan in drag

[swanky7611 · 5/10 · 3 February 2007]

I saw this movie this morning on TCM. All these lines in there about Joan Crawford being a beautiful woman. One was ' I can't believe he stood there shaking, hasn't he ever seen a beautiful woman before?' Joan had big bushy black eye brows, and even though it was in black and white, her hair I think was orange and she had a mannish looking jaw line. Don't know what criteria of beauty they were using in this movie but to me she looked like a short man in drag. There is a very good slap across the face scene too. It didn't look like a stage slap either, it looked like the real thing. The movie was very entertaining in an over the top campy way. Some of the lines were hysterical but not meant to be funny which made them even funnier. If you are into camp and a Joan Crawford fan you must see this one.

..Pure Crawford..

[fimimix · 10/10 · 4 September 2007]

I really think that Ms. Crawford ("Eva Phillips") kept a bunch of writers on-salary to write these movies particularly for her. Randall MacDougall certainly was one of those ! Can't you see her deciding which lines to "keep" and which ones to "ditch" ?? "Avery Phillips" (Barry Sullivan) was truly good in his alcoholic role - didn't you know the end of the movie would involve a car-accident when he picked up "Eva's" keys from his desk? I really didn't understand why the niece committed suicide - it was plain to me that "Eva" had hitched-up with every male in The South. John Ireland ("Judson Prentiss") was good in his role, as were Betsy Palmer and all the rest.

The star of the show, of course, is the wardrobe Ms. Crawford wears. I recall the TV-appeal they had her to do for poor people all around the world, some time ago. Everyone in the world could have, at that time, been fed if they just hocked the necklace she was wearing. True Crawford ! "Poor people, but keep you hands off my necklace !"

Yeah, the drag-queens really got some fodder for their acts, especially the fabulous Charles Pearce, who did an act about a bitch-fight between Bette Davis and Crawford, just by turning his wig around......but by using his own material. For those of you who didn't have the privilege of seeing Pearce perform, you missed some great talent....almost as famous as the ladies he mimicked.

You weren't aware that the lighting for this movie were designed to highlight Crawford's eyes - thick brows, or not ?

I think this film was a story of Crawford's real life - her own daughter couldn't sit through it. I loved "Queen Bee", because it made me laugh at such meanness, although I've known a lot of those people, too. You gotta admit one thing: NO ONE does "queen of mean" like Crawford did. Today's actresses don't have it in them to be mean AND glamorous - younger people may not realize that movies, in those days, ALWAYS had lines in them to say "how beautiful" the leading lady was.

I'm not a hard-core fan of hers, but I truly enjoyed Crawford in "Queen Bee". Bravo to all!

"Queen" Crawford Puts the Buzz in a Fair Story

[wes-connors · 7/10 · 2 September 2007]

Joan Crawford is an ageing Southern socialite (by marriage) who revels in dominating her extended family - like a "Queen Bee". As the film opens, cousin Lucy Marlow (as Jennifer Stewart) arrives; providing Ms. Crawford (as Eva Phillips) with a new victim - and viewers the opportunity to see "Queen Bee" Crawford bring another person into her hive. Drones include boozy husband Barry Sullivan (as Avery) and lady-killer John Ireland (as Jud). Betsy Palmer is very good as nice niece Carol.

Crawford creates an astonishing character, and the film is very well-photographed. The supporting players really operate in Crawford's shadow, which is to be expected. The film's weakness is a story that lacks depth in its characterizations, and doesn't live up to their potential. In the end, the film wastes its leading actress' effort, with a story lacking substance.

******* Queen Bee (1955) Ranald MacDougall ~ Joan Crawford, Barry Sullivan, Betsy Palmer

Near good - Joan at her typical

[cwoliver-1 · 3/10 · 2 September 2007]

The characterization and acting were generally acceptable in this movie but the script let them down. There were many instances where the dialog made no sense, in other cases it was just unintentionally humorous.

Examples; when Jennifer arrives and everyone is in the drawing room and Eva makes her entrance. She completely misses the existence of the only stranger in the room; Jennifer. Then, upon seeing this stranger standing there, she fails to realize that this is her cousin - who was expected ("should have picked you up at the station"). How could she not instantly know who this was?

Later Jennifer asks Eva what the doctor said about Ted, she replies, "Did you see how the doctor trembled as he spoke to me? You'd think he'd never seen a beautiful woman before!" For the life of me I can't figure out who she was referring to; it couldn't have been herself.

While Crawford is not mud-ugly she certainly is not beautiful – by '55 standards or by today's. With her long square face, too-intense eyes, and caterpillar eyebrows she is far from beautiful (handsome, perhaps). And while the above line alone wouldn't have been sufficient to criticize, similar references to her "beauty" appeared often enough to insure this wasn't unintentional.

Then you've got to wonder what hold this woman had over these people. She wasn't pretty, charismatic, rich, or sexy - so what was it? To steal a line from "10 Things I Hate About You"; "Wha'does she have, beer-flavored nipples?" And the characters kept going on about how nice Eva could be when you first meet her – what? At no point in this movie could Eva be considered "nice". This lack of likable side ruined the opportunity to contrast nice with mean leaving a one dimensional character rather than the intended schizoid persona.

Lastly, the scene where Eva was informed by Jennifer of Carol's suicide was absolutely hilarious. Totally out of character, overacted and with ridiculous smearing of coal cream on the mirror. What was that about?

While I enjoyed the movie it was far from great and only approaching good. 3 out of 10