What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? Book vs Movie Review

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  • Опубліковано 22 гру 2024

КОМЕНТАРІ • 103

  • @julieblair7472
    @julieblair7472 2 місяці тому +11

    I think the beach scene is an especially cinematic ending because as the viewer you have been trapped with these two, but they are mostly unknown. These two women are forgotten, and the movie ending leaves you with this shocking reveal. You have been privy to their home life and now after many years the scene is exposed to the world at large. It's a release after being trapped with them through the suspense, thinking of a stranger reading about this scene in the paper, not knowing all the details you know.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +3

      You make such a great point! It could also be symbolic because they had been trapped in the house and trapped in their lies and animosity for each other, but in the end the truth is revealed which frees them in a sense-it is all brought out into the open just as they are brought into the open air of the beach.

  • @kimberlyporter9555
    @kimberlyporter9555 2 місяці тому +9

    It's grandiose narc vs vulnerable narc....now we know how it ends

  • @JohnCastillo-t1c
    @JohnCastillo-t1c Місяць тому +2

    This movie made me really love Bettie Davis as an actress. She totally could have gone their in the camp style yet she was able to give her real drama. And her scenes with Crawford are my favorite.

  • @LiirThropp2687
    @LiirThropp2687 2 місяці тому +14

    I love watching old videos of Bette talking about this film. Apparently, since Bette and Joan were middle aged at that point, not many people were willing to finance the film. "Those two old broads? I wouldn't give ya a dime." That's horrible but Bette was always amused when telling that story. Bette and Joan defied the odds and worked together to make an awesome film. They might not have been the best of friends, but they knew the film was gonna be something and made it happen.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +2

      Yeah i love that they came together for this! I'm glad it was an instant success and one that people still watch today.

  • @rociomiranda5684
    @rociomiranda5684 2 місяці тому +11

    The lady in a wheelchair pushed down the stairs is a scene from 1947 film noir Kiss of Death.

  • @SkylerDominic
    @SkylerDominic 2 місяці тому +9

    I religiously watch all of your videos ever since I found the channel. I'm usually a passive watcher (hardly ever comment, just give a like), but since it's still a smaller channel I just wanted to let you know how much I love and appreciate your content. Keep going, it's amazing to watch you compare not-that-popular book/movie pairings. I keep getting surprised some movies I've watched are based on books because of you. Great work!

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +2

      Thank you so much! Hearing that means a lot 😊🤗

  • @beyondthefilmfatale145
    @beyondthefilmfatale145 2 місяці тому +3

    Pushing the woman in the wheelchair down the stairs is from KISS OF DEATH. Richard Widmark plays a gangster and is the one who does it.

  • @thomasfoley8287
    @thomasfoley8287 2 місяці тому +10

    I think people confuse Richard Whitmark pushes his wheelchair mother down the stairs in Kiss of Death. Also a great film.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +3

      That makes sense! That movie is also based on a book so I'll have to make a video on it sometime.

  • @glennallen2605
    @glennallen2605 Місяць тому

    Thank you for this! I liked the beach scene, & as an adult (I'm 57), I can't help but tear up when Jane remembers when they & Daddy had such happy times at the beach & how "nice" it was. She sounds like my grandmother, btw, but still, just remembering family times like that brings it all back. It wouldn't have had the impact it did if it ended in the house, so it makes sense. Thank you again! :-)

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  Місяць тому

      Yeah that's very true about them having happy memories at the beach! I'm glad you liked my video and thanks for commenting 😊

  • @thewickerman4083
    @thewickerman4083 2 місяці тому +2

    I just wanted to send you a message to say how much I am loving the content on your channel.

  • @rosamariabest6069
    @rosamariabest6069 2 місяці тому +2

    I too like the bird being Blanche's pet. It is a lot more messed up.

  • @johnmccabe6867
    @johnmccabe6867 10 днів тому

    I think the beach scene is good because she gets an audience when beach goers see her dancing, also it works as a good bookend device to match the beginning of the story. the house is the story arc and the beginning and end are the stage.

  • @SR-li5do
    @SR-li5do 2 місяці тому +1

    I remember watching this movie on Channel 57 and I was so young but fascinated. I loved it! My favorite scene was when they were on the beach and Baby Jane is talking about ice cream while her sister is literally dying on the sand. I'm like "Dang that lady is crazy." I've also seen both versions of the movie. ❤

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +1

      Lol seriously! At least in the book she goes to call the police to save Blanche, but in the movie she is just so delusional.

  • @audreyquinn73
    @audreyquinn73 Місяць тому +1

    In the 1947 film, "Kiss of Death," Richard Widmark pushes an elderly wheelchair-bound woman down the stairs. It's a real scene, but from a film noir, not "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?"

    • @LucyLioness100
      @LucyLioness100 Місяць тому

      Sounds like some people confused the two. Plus “Fade to Black” actually pays tribute to that scene by having the first death in that film mimic “Kiss of Death”

  • @juliajesus35
    @juliajesus35 2 місяці тому +2

    Laura, your hair looks so fabulous in this video!!!

  • @FQ8
    @FQ8 Місяць тому

    This is one of my sister’s favorite movies. She also loved 1959 Imitation of Life (novel by Fannie Hurst).

  • @niteycat
    @niteycat Місяць тому

    I love for you to do a 2 against one review. The original movie vs. the remake with Redgrave sisters vs the book.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  Місяць тому

      Yeah I saw they were in a remake! I didn't bother to watch it though. Is it good?

    • @niteycat
      @niteycat Місяць тому

      @@WhytheBookWins it is okay. Lynn is Jane and Vanessa is Blanche. Warning they changed the time period for this movie. It took place in 1991 times. Instead of people rediscovering the sisters on tv, it was VHS and video stores. I guess is they remake it again it would be streaming. But something about the setting in the 60s gives the original Davis/Crawford a bigger air of mystery. The original to me was almost gothic like.

  • @DominarRygel-XVI
    @DominarRygel-XVI 2 місяці тому +1

    This is one of my favorite films. Maybe one day you'll do The Ninth Gate as well.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому

      Yes! I looked into that one a while back but still haven't done it, definitely want to though.

    • @LucyLioness100
      @LucyLioness100 Місяць тому

      @@WhytheBookWinsmaybe for spooky season next year?

  • @slowdrop
    @slowdrop Місяць тому

    Thanks!

  • @6808Justin
    @6808Justin 2 місяці тому +2

    Thanks for another great video! The main movie that comes to mind concerning a wheelchair bound person being shoved down the stairs would be. The 1947 film "Kiss of Death" starring Richard Widmark. A performance for which he received an academy award nomination for his excellently unhinged performance. I would most certainly recommend this film for your viewing pleasure, if you haven't seen it yet. Keep up the great work 👍

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому

      Oooo I looked it up and it's based on a book! Sounds like one I'll need to cover eventually 😉

  • @arlem525
    @arlem525 2 місяці тому +1

    Davis' performance as an adult singing I've Written a Letter to Daddy is hands down one of the creepiest things I have ever seen in a film.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +1

      @arlem525 Yes!! She's so good, it's such an unsettling scene.

  • @actionitem1
    @actionitem1 Місяць тому

    The movie where a caretaker pushes an elderly person down the stairs in a wheelchair is called "Kiss of Death" (1947). This scene is considered a particularly chilling moment in film noir history

  • @realhousewifeoftransylvania1.0
    @realhousewifeoftransylvania1.0 2 місяці тому +24

    If you watch Feud season 1 , which I highly recommend , Joan Crawford was so vain she did not want to look "ugly" or old in those scenes, so she was doing whatever she could to look good and young at the same time she was supposed to be looking bad. lol

    • @LiirThropp2687
      @LiirThropp2687 2 місяці тому +5

      I wish I could find a physical copy of Feud. I absolutely loved it! Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon were phenomenal.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +9

      I need to watch that show! I've heard great things.

    • @MandaMalice
      @MandaMalice 2 місяці тому +2

      YESSSS!!! Both Sarandon and Lange are INCREDIBLE in that series!!! The two of them as Bette and Joan was such perfect casting.

    • @realhousewifeoftransylvania1.0
      @realhousewifeoftransylvania1.0 2 місяці тому

      @WhytheBookWins FYI, its on Hulu. 😁

    • @realhousewifeoftransylvania1.0
      @realhousewifeoftransylvania1.0 2 місяці тому +1

      @LiirThropp2687 I know, I want it as well, love it!😁

  • @Kevin-rg3yc
    @Kevin-rg3yc 2 місяці тому

    First saw this film during my time in middle school after first learning Bette Davis through all about eve and my god what a rollercoaster ride it was, I still feel that same when watching it today, what I love is showing the complexity of both Jane and Blanche even with Jane supposing to be a villain you have so much empathy for her especially now with the discourse of what happens to Hollywood child stars once they get older, it’s shocking that a 1960s film does a much better at telling that than today’s Hollywood films, and the sympathy for Blanche who was sidelined throughout her entire childhood and finally has her time to shine it all get taken away in a one moment.
    I agree doe Joan Crawford performance was snubbed in fact I would go as far to say Joan talent as a actress is highly underrated all bc of the drama and sensationalism of her personal life, in addition Hollywood executives never took her seriously all bc of her working class backgrounds compared to the prestigious actresses who were peers that were non American and came from wealthy backgrounds. But she shown her range as a actress in her prime and past that was one of the few golden age actresses that embraced and took inspiration from the new school method acting style that was emerging in the 50s and 60s, make you think if it wasn’t her being typecasted into hage exploitation films and her tragic death what she woulf do later in her career

  • @NewBlueStocking
    @NewBlueStocking Місяць тому +1

    According to IMDB, this is a quote from Betty Davis "The best time I ever had with Joan Crawford was when I pushed her down the stairs in 'What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? '" . Apparently they were rivals in real life. Maybe this is why everybody thinks it happened

  • @LucyLioness100
    @LucyLioness100 2 місяці тому +3

    The “hag” movie to end all “hag” movies for actresses of a certain age. It’s such a strange feature, but has two excellent lead performances from Joan & Bette. The director also played a big part in things staying as civil as possible; most BTS crew said that Aldrich was diplomatic as he could be when handling the antics of the leading ladies. I did see the ‘91 TV version with the Redgrave sisters & it’s really mid though the Redgraves do their best, but it’s gonna be hard for most not to compare to the ‘62 original

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +1

      Yeah I read about that later adaptation but to be honest I have zero interest in it lol.

    • @LucyLioness100
      @LucyLioness100 2 місяці тому

      @@WhytheBookWins you’re not missing a lot. It’s just a “modern” (for the early ‘90s) take but still proceeds similarly to how it goes in the original film. Just the love interest for Jane gets a makeover and meets a grim fate compared to him bolting out of the movie after Bette’s Jane has fully gone bananas

  • @frankducky6130
    @frankducky6130 2 місяці тому +5

    Can i also say u are completely stunning!

  • @ras613pa
    @ras613pa Місяць тому

    Regarding the staircase scene: I've heard others presume that there is a scene of Blanche being thrown down the stairs. Uncertain why this has entered a collective unconscious but offering two possible explanations: (1) In 'Kiss of Death' (1947) Richard Widmark's character pushes a woman in a wheelchair down the stairs. (2) In 'Homicidal' (1961), directed by William Castle, the 'Psycho' like character has many scenes in which she tortures an elderly woman in a wheelchair on and near the staircase. (Pretty certain that, in the end, the woman is beheaded in her chair on the staircase).

  • @VeneficusPlantaGenista
    @VeneficusPlantaGenista 2 місяці тому +6

    You mentioned the two actresses’ feud. There’s actually a lot of evidence that this feud was more or less made up as part of the publicity for this film (though they didn’t like each other very much). Be Kind Rewind has a wonderful video talking about it in the context of the 1964 Oscar for Best Actress: ua-cam.com/video/lWYISEEl2dI/v-deo.htmlsi=Q3Dj7NKmUnf7sE6a

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +5

      Oh interesting! I'll need to watch that video.

    • @MandaMalice
      @MandaMalice 2 місяці тому +2

      That actually makes sense too because the rivalry between Lugosi and Karloff was made up too.

    • @mariabrackin9465
      @mariabrackin9465 2 місяці тому

      Came here to say this! The only real feud was over which men they were with!

  • @amydaskilewicz9076
    @amydaskilewicz9076 2 місяці тому

    I love this movie and I never knew it was a book! I’ll have to read it sometime

  • @Mallowolf
    @Mallowolf 2 місяці тому +1

    I didn’t know this movie was based on a book! I watched it as a teenager and really liked Bette’s Baby Jane. The way she looks and acts is so iconic, I feel I would miss her if I read the book. It’s the same with _Misery_, since you mentioned it. Kathy Bates is so compelling to watch, she just made the character of Annie for me.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому

      Yeah Davis and Bates are each so good, and both were nominated for their portrayals!

  • @loridegrande2350
    @loridegrande2350 2 місяці тому +1

    What gets me is why is Blanch on the second floor??? Thats crazy to me!

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому

      Yeah such a weird setup! Once she was in a wheelchair you would have thought they would have made a downstairs room for her.

  • @PhilipWeisman-dl4ik
    @PhilipWeisman-dl4ik Місяць тому

    First time at experiencing one of your episodes, and by luck, l also read the book in a paperback reprint. What the film leaves out of the flasnback prologues is that during the summer vaudeville touring season, Daddy took the family to the beach where he and Jane would rehearse. What Blanche and Mother did l do not recall. But l believe Jane drives to the exact same beach location. It is a return to a psychologically happier time.
    No one ever talks about the Mother character's withdrawn, submissive role in the marriage or her pairing with Blanche in the first prologue. Nor is she contrasted to Mrs. Flag and her dysfunctional relationship to Edwin.
    Bette Davis blamed Joan Crawford doing sneaky things that injured her back during the "dragging" Blanche from the bed. Flash forward to CHARLOTTE, the roles are reversed in both character, and Bette's working relationship to director Aldrich. There is a scene where Cousin Miriam slaps Charlotte. Nothing has ever been stated, but l firmly believe Bette was NOT submitting to that scene with Miss Crawford.
    Robert Aldrich's son, was a major player, show runner/producer, on the BABY JANE tv remake. Did not add or detract one thing, publicity at the time to the contrary.
    FEUD, the tv mini series, is based on the book by Shaun Considine, well researched but not always scrupulously fact checked. However, he does build annectodal details, especially from an interview with Joan Blondell.
    Ryan Murphy, has is building Hollywood hubris in a contentious production career at least partly because of seemingly uncensored comments. But Olivia De Havilland, brought a law suit against Ryan Murphy & the FEUD production company et al. Miss Da Havilland is no stranger to Hollywood law suits having won the Da Havilland decision that stopped the studios from tacking time on suspension to the end of a player's contract. She spectaculary lost her suit when Ryan Murphy et al, back pedalled their based on fact dual bio pic, as needing a certain amount of fiction to pad out the production, despite Olivia's suit focusing on sequences involving her direct quotations.
    Jack L. Warner, was known for long standing feuds against actors who broke agreed upon terms. When Mickey Rooney broke his ankle in a sporting accident during filming A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, he never allowed him to make another Warner picture. Warner had a tumultuous 18 relationship with Bette Davis, but her inflexible stances during the production of BEYOND THE FOREST sealed her departure. Same thing with Joan Crawford. Seven Arts was the producing wing that used Warner Bros. distribution channels. The luncheon publicity picture of Bette, Joan and Jack for the launch of BABY JANE, the smiles can only have been matched by the underlying tension. Davis's daughter, at 16, married Seven Arts producer, Elliott Hyman.

  • @AlexanderLongacre182
    @AlexanderLongacre182 2 місяці тому +1

    My opinion on Mandela Affects in general is what people remember is reality, it really happened. However, minor changes have happened since, by government, institutions, and elites, to get us to question reality and the truth so we the people are subtly made more reliant upon the government and other authorities for truth and reality rather than our own eyes and memory. 🤷‍♂️

  • @vintagegirl31
    @vintagegirl31 Місяць тому

    Have you considered a comparison of A Patch of Blue movie to it's book Be Ready For Bells and Drums by Elizabeth Kata?

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  Місяць тому

      I have looked into that one and would like to cover it sometime, I've seen the movie but it was a while ago.

  • @badseedgirl9411
    @badseedgirl9411 2 місяці тому +1

    I always assumed that Blanche died at the beach. Until you mentioned that the police found her and she lived, that never once came to my mind.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому

      Yeah in the book we don't know, but when the movie pans out we see the police reach Blanche.

    • @LucyLioness100
      @LucyLioness100 Місяць тому +1

      I think Blanche still dies in the film even though it’s not conclusive. She does appear to stop breathing by the time Jane leaves for the ice cream

  • @JS-fm7ch
    @JS-fm7ch 2 місяці тому +1

    Great Channel ❤

  • @georgiabentz9503
    @georgiabentz9503 2 місяці тому +1

    I've never read the book, but I've seen the movie, and it definitely left an impression on me. I agree, I don't know why they had to go to the beach. I assume it's because of that one scene in a flashback, they were at the beach, and Jane was being a brat?

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому

      In the pinned comment I say why I now think the movie ends at the beach!

  • @TinaBiebe
    @TinaBiebe 2 місяці тому +2

    I saw this movie when I was WAY too young, but my grandmother let me do that which was how I learned about so many of these wonderful golden age actors and actresses. I was wondering who best Davis for the Oscar. Anne Bancroft was very deserving. The Davis/Crawford rivalry ran so deep, Joan quit Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte from what I understand, and maybe only filmed one scene. You can still see Joan in a long shot, before she is replaced in the close-ups by Olivia 😂.
    I don’t know if anyone has beaten me to it, but the actor who plays the musician is Victor Bueno (sp?) who became well known to audiences for playing King Tut on the old Batman TV show. He also played Charlotte’s aristocratic Southern father in Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte. He finds his teen daughter at the dance, her white gown smeared with blood after her married lover is decapitated. So we’re uncertain at the beginning, if Charlotte committed the murder, or if daddy did. 😆 Yep. I was WAY too young seeing these movies.
    Thanks for the great video. It dropped in my recommendations this morning, so thankfully, it won’t be two years before I see it like many of your videos. 😅

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +1

      The edition of this I read was followed by the book of Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte (titled What Ever Happened to Cousin Charlotte) which I then read! I meant to watch the movie as well but still haven't gotten around to it, though I am very curious about it.
      Thanks for commenting and I'm glad you liked my videos 😊

  • @mariaskabardonis8353
    @mariaskabardonis8353 2 місяці тому +1

    This movie is on my list so I am glad you like so is Feud s1. Feud or not it’s great the actresses got together to make a good movie. I guess the stairs is a deleted but I am not a expert on the film lol

  • @shrikeofterven6006
    @shrikeofterven6006 Місяць тому

    Oh, Victor Buono was so good in this movie.

  • @yorkshiredrone
    @yorkshiredrone 2 місяці тому

    Such a great film, amazed there hasn't been a remake.. ah quick Google says there has, 1991 made for TV, poor reviews.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +1

      Yeah, I kind of don't know why they bothered with a made for tv remake lol.

  • @darkrandom9947
    @darkrandom9947 2 місяці тому

    I've never read the book, but I did watch the movie and thought it was good. Maybe I'll add the book to my endless reading list 😂.

  • @frankducky6130
    @frankducky6130 2 місяці тому +1

    great movie, Bette Davis is a legend.

  • @angelaholmes8888
    @angelaholmes8888 Місяць тому

    I really enjoyed the film never read the book betty Davis and joan Crawford were excellent

  • @davidfitzpatrick6535
    @davidfitzpatrick6535 2 місяці тому

    Another Mandela effect from the Simpsons is in their Treehouse of Horror episode parodying the Shining the line "Gimme the bat Marge" said by Homer is only in the Simpsons and not The Shining movie.

    • @LucyLioness100
      @LucyLioness100 Місяць тому

      Although Jack does say “give me the bat” in the 1980 film when Wendy is backing up the stairs

    • @davidfitzpatrick6535
      @davidfitzpatrick6535 Місяць тому

      @@LucyLioness100 he does? Huh I thought that was a Homer/Simpsons only thing. I'll have to rewatch the movie again. Maybe its just hte way Homer says it.

  • @step3892
    @step3892 15 днів тому

    I never understood why Jane abuses Blanche due to guilt from believing that she crippled Blanche. It seems to me that if Jane thought she crippled Blanche, she would be nice to her due to guilt. Can someone explain this to me?

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  14 днів тому

      She has guilt but also also a LOT of resentment and bitterness! And the parents also did not raise them as equals.

    • @step3892
      @step3892 14 днів тому

      @@WhytheBookWins I still say that if Jane felt responsible for her sister being crippled, she would be extra nice to her. Regardless of if they were raised as equals. I just never understood the rationale of Jane saying "All these years we could have been friends".

  • @Big_Dai
    @Big_Dai 19 днів тому

    Why would anyone ruin their look with some tattoos?

  • @hanschristianbrando5588
    @hanschristianbrando5588 2 місяці тому

    The movie's more fun.

  • @TumbleFourYa
    @TumbleFourYa 2 місяці тому +1

    I wish you would've touched on the blatant ableism of this movie. I had to watch it for one of my classes freshman year of high school, and not knowing anything of what it was about, it rocked me: it was the first time I realized, "Holy crap, being as disabled as I am means anyone at any time can just abuse, neglect, or take advantage of me to say the least." Your use of the word "rivalry" between the sisters is a huge understatement, and I have to disagree with your thoughts of Blanche torturing Jane too. To have such a close member of your family physically and psychologically torture you when you thought you could trust and love them is one of the most chilling things I can think of, and no amount of, "Well, Jane had to take care of her after the accident" can make up for that. I understand why so many people like this movie -- it's truly unsettling, and what's horror for if not to unsettle? -- and I don't usually point out "problematic" elements of media so old, but the fact is, without the torture and undoing of a defenseless disabled woman, the movie just wouldn't exist. And I'd say that's a huge (and kind of disgusting) problem.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому

      Thanks for sharing your perspective, you make a good point.

  • @BritInvLvr
    @BritInvLvr 2 місяці тому

    Uhm. No, I never thought Jane pushed Blanche down the stairs. You know why? Cuz I saw the movie.

    • @WhytheBookWins
      @WhytheBookWins  2 місяці тому +1

      Bette Davis starred in the film and yet she is quoted as saying, "The best time I ever had with Joan Crawford was when I pushed her down the stairs in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?"

  • @Galantski
    @Galantski Місяць тому

    Liked & subscribed. This scene might be enough for the film to win out. It's so wonderfully daft, Bette Davis sells Jane's madness so perfect;y & Victor Buono's bemusement as Flagg while accompanies her that he caps off with a coda of sham applause is priceless! 😏 ua-cam.com/video/--RI7tlWuaM/v-deo.html

  • @anitarichmond8930
    @anitarichmond8930 2 місяці тому +3

    You guys are getting a scene “Kiss Of Death” another old black-and-white classic, confused with “Whatever Happened To Baby Jane” confused with that movie.🎟️