Author Topic: All About Eve  (Read 5466 times)

chris

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #10 on: April 02, 2008, 06:18:11 AM »
I try to elaborate.   ;)

Sam the Cinema Snob

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #11 on: April 05, 2008, 10:41:22 AM »
I try to be succinct.
Seriously though, I loved it.  ;D


But I digress. All About Eve is one of my favorite films and easily has a spot in my top ten films of all times. For me what really makes the film fantastic is the superbly written script and I would argue this film is the best adaption of a script. Not only are the lines sharp but the actors use them to verbally duel each other. It's a fight of words and a much more cleaver and entertaining fight than any action film could make.

saltine

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #12 on: April 05, 2008, 07:20:01 PM »
All I know is that every time I watch it I think, "O My God, the writing!"  So pitch perfect...
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Valentine McKee

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #13 on: April 05, 2008, 07:54:30 PM »
I'm new here, and this thread has made me kick myself for not including All About Eve in my top 5 films intro list.

From the first viewing I was struck by the dialogue and the wonderfully ruthless sides of both Eve and Addison, summed up in this exchange:
Quote
That I should want you at all suddenly strikes me as the height of improbability... you're an improbable person, Eve, but so am I. We have that in common. Also a contempt for humanity, an inability to love or be loved, insatiable ambition - and talent. We deserve each other.

(quite similar to a line of Daniel Plainview's in There Will Be Blood)

This is a personal thing though, as I always go for the ruthless manipulative characters, The Sweet Smell of Success makes a good partner to All About Eve in that respect.

Lastly, the ending, the final shot, is one of those few perfect cinematic moments where more is said with a single image than could be with words. Sure we get that the young girl is manipulating Eve in a similar way to how she got to Margo, but those mirrors condemn all those who play the game, even the young girl just starting will have it happen to herself one day.

I suggest all who've seen this watch No Way Out if you want to appreciate Mankiewicz - both great films done in the space of a year, but completely different in style. He's all too often overlooked.
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chesterfilms

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #14 on: April 05, 2008, 07:56:22 PM »
welcome!
What? What are you talking about? It's girls and spaghetti. We love girls and spaghetti.

Sam the Cinema Snob

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #15 on: April 05, 2008, 08:23:02 PM »


Lastly, the ending, the final shot, is one of those few perfect cinematic moments where more is said with a single image than could be with words. Sure we get that the young girl is manipulating Eve in a similar way to how she got to Margo, but those mirrors condemn all those who play the game, even the young girl just starting will have it happen to herself one day.
Or the fact you can see the cameraman in the mirror. All About Eve does have a few technical flukes (like shoddy rear projection) I noticed watching it again recently but I heartily forgive such small flaws.

chris

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #16 on: April 05, 2008, 09:03:25 PM »
I love cameraman in the mirror flukes.  One of the Bond films had a good one. 

Valentine McKee

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #17 on: April 06, 2008, 07:14:15 AM »
Damn, never seen that cameraman, but that's all I'll be thinking about next time I watch it!

Citizen Kane has pterodactyls in - no, no stop there Val, this is definitely another thread.
Probably one that's already been started, I'll go hunt it out :)
The cat's in the bag and the bag's in the river.

Sam the Cinema Snob

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #18 on: April 06, 2008, 09:19:50 AM »
Damn, never seen that cameraman, but that's all I'll be thinking about next time I watch it!
Sorry! :P

J5er

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Re: All About Eve
« Reply #19 on: April 18, 2008, 04:46:48 PM »
I just watched it on a nice theater screen for my film studies class... I adored it, brilliant in every way.  I don't get your gripes at all. :P  Plus the "twist" took me 100% my surprise, one of the best twists ever... up there with Psycho and Sixth Sense and all those.
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