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<blockquote data-quote="Crimson" data-source="post: 229353" data-attributes="member: 5079">I do indeed.I like JANE; I think it&#039;s a nifty little film, but also a bit meager.&nbsp; I mean, really, not much happens: an old bag engages in mostly petty, inconsequential torments on her crippled sister. In my crabbier moods, I lean towards it being a bit dull.CHARLOTTE is more ambitious -- a Grand Guignol Southern Gothic -- and pulls off those ambitions.&nbsp; Not just the best of its very slim genre, but a darned good film of the era.I&#039;m torn in whether I would have preferred Crawford.&nbsp; I adore Olivia, far more so than Joan and Bette; I was also genuinely surprised by the twist with her character the first time I saw the movie, as I wasn&#039;t expecting her to be a villain.On the other hand, I&#039;m not really convinced Joan would have given an obvious performance.&nbsp; That was Bette&#039;s assessment, I think, and I kind of don&#039;t believe her.&nbsp; For one, I think Bette was wrong about Joan&#039;s performance in JANE.&nbsp; She grumbled about Joan wanting to have nail polish or whatever, as if that was just Joan&#039;s ego.&nbsp; Maybe it was, or maybe Joan understood the character more than Bette gave her credit for.&nbsp; Blanche was a former film star and even an invalid shut-in can cling to small vanities.&nbsp; I like to think Joan, even in her reclusive last years, still put her eyebrows on every morning.Joan wasn&#039;t typically an actress of heavy-handed obviousness; and if anyone could pull off phony graciousness, it was Joan Crawford.&nbsp; The modern perception of her as a raging bitch is looking back through the filter of Faye Dunaway.&nbsp; Audiences in the mid-60s would have had little reason to suspect Joan as an obvious villain; she rarely played them.&nbsp; If there was even the slightest chance of her giving a performance similar to her later turn in NIGHT GALLERY, once the character&#039;s nature was revealed -- what a loss!&nbsp; (And while I think Joan would likely have been good in CHARLOTTE, she probably wouldn&#039;t have reached the heights of NIGHT GALLERY.&nbsp; I have no idea what kind of sorcery Spielberg summoned to draw that performance out of her.)</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Crimson, post: 229353, member: 5079"] I do indeed. I like JANE; I think it's a nifty little film, but also a bit meager. I mean, really, not much happens: an old bag engages in mostly petty, inconsequential torments on her crippled sister. In my crabbier moods, I lean towards it being a bit dull. CHARLOTTE is more ambitious -- a Grand Guignol Southern Gothic -- and pulls off those ambitions. Not just the best of its very slim genre, but a darned good film of the era. I'm torn in whether I would have preferred Crawford. I adore Olivia, far more so than Joan and Bette; I was also genuinely surprised by the twist with her character the first time I saw the movie, as I wasn't expecting her to be a villain. On the other hand, I'm not really convinced Joan would have given an obvious performance. That was Bette's assessment, I think, and I kind of don't believe her. For one, I think Bette was wrong about Joan's performance in JANE. She grumbled about Joan wanting to have nail polish or whatever, as if that was just Joan's ego. Maybe it was, or maybe Joan understood the character more than Bette gave her credit for. Blanche was a former film star and even an invalid shut-in can cling to small vanities. I like to think Joan, even in her reclusive last years, still put her eyebrows on every morning. Joan wasn't typically an actress of heavy-handed obviousness; and if anyone could pull off phony graciousness, it was Joan Crawford. The modern perception of her as a raging bitch is looking back through the filter of Faye Dunaway. Audiences in the mid-60s would have had little reason to suspect Joan as an obvious villain; she rarely played them. If there was even the slightest chance of her giving a performance similar to her later turn in NIGHT GALLERY, once the character's nature was revealed -- what a loss! (And while I think Joan would likely have been good in CHARLOTTE, she probably wouldn't have reached the heights of NIGHT GALLERY. I have no idea what kind of sorcery Spielberg summoned to draw that performance out of her.) [/QUOTE]

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