Good story, Not enough for a whole film

From my favorite movies..

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Taking her 1940's films into consideration the only thing Joan Fontaine might have been born to be was a mouse or, as she was portrayed in 1939's "The Women", a deer but as Joan got older Joan got bolder and by 1950 she was "Born to be Bad" and was holding the likes of Robert Ryan, Zachary Scott and Mel Ferrer in thrall. The director of this 'woman's picture' was Nicholas Ray who brought a steely edge to proceedings. Actually I've always thought Joan was born to play a bitch; that patrician air of hers was never suited to being simply 'nice' and it was to her credit that she could slip so easily between darkness and light, Here, though, she's almost too good to be true and I'm surprised no-one, other than good girl Joan Leslie, saw through her scheming earlier. Performances throughout are uniformly good; even Ferrer is first-rate here, (he hadn't yet developed that stiffness that marred his later work). Interestingly his character is probably meant to be gay but you really have to read between the lines and use a lot of imagination to get that. From a novel called "All Kneeling" by Ann Parrish.

Not a Typical Movie from the Big Studios, RKO Delivers, once again an Atypical Attraction of the Human condition in very Flawed People. It would be a Stretch to call this Film-Noir but some may do so. Let us call it that only in the most Liberal Confines. Even Scholars have been Uneasy about a Definitive Definition that has been Extremely Elusive.The Story is Sudsy to say the least and has been a Literary Lexicon forever. Movies, on the other hand, use to Tread Softly on this kind of Sultry, Seductive, and Immoral Behavior. After the War things did begin to Change, but Slowly and not without Careful Consideration. The word "Sex" in an Amorous sense, as in We have a "Sexual" Attraction in common, is used here, for example. That just wasn't said and You would be Hard Pressed to find it used that way during this Era, and from Unmarried People no less.The Film has quite a few Witty Quips and it is Better Verbally than Visually. As so, it can be Entertaining in a Romance Novel kind of way and probably Enjoyed more by Women.

I had to see Joan Fontaine play a villainess … What would that be like? I thought her portrayal was pretty realistic in that she showed deliberation in her machinations, but also a caught-off-guard response when her stratagems blew up. It's where this character is. This appears to be this girl's first time out. She appears to be a little too carefully brought up, as the expression goes. It looked more like she was under a tight leash. The uncle was always dour toward her and somewhat suspicious. The aunt is hovering and condescending. She almost reminds her to drink a nice glass of warm milk before bed. This is a grown girl. Perhaps she had a history of manipulative behavior and they were exercising precautions for that reason. But, perhaps they were over protective and over controlling. She really seemed to be someone let out of a cage. Perhaps she had been so hemmed in, she felt she had to grab what was around her and quick if she were to have anything for herself. Maybe it was not so much a case of being born to be bad, but more of being bred to be, through suffocation. Whatever it was, she was very ill adapted for life. This is a strong cast. Maybe it was the character, but I liked Mel Ferrer in this very much, while not liking him anywhere else. Maybe he does laid back better than aggressive, and didn't get a lot of chances to do that. Joan Leslie was very pretty and natural, convincing, especially in the earlier part. Her make-up with Scott seemed a little pat, but maybe that's the fault of the script. Zachary Scott seems also to do mellow well and is convincing early on. His assertive scenes seem a little overdone. Robert Ryan (Nick) is a bit quixotic in that he's just hard to get along with at first, gets himself reeled in, but really does a whiplash in the final scene with Christabel. I guess that was righteous indignation, but it was quite a turnabout. You wonder how little Miss Chris would have fared had they gotten together. Somehow, you can't picture her getting away with the stuff she pulled on Scott (Curtis). Nick was a lot quicker on the intake.Joan Fontaine does well depicting this young girl at the beginning stage of a downward spiral. It's a girl attempting to play the game of what is expected from a milk and water miss and grasping for what she can get at the same time. There's continual tension in that double booking, and Ms. Fontaine shows that throughout. Christabel moves too fast at times, gets off balance, slips up, shows her hand. I can't help picturing her about to drive away at the end. You get the idea that, with the restraints of relatives and reputation gone, she's set to cut her losses and go on from there, playing a new and much tighter game. It will no longer be necessary to play the young girl who arrived on the "wrong night."

In one of director Ray's earlier films, Fontaine portrays a young blonde woman whose polite and coy exterior masks a savagely ambitious and passionate core. Fontaine's uncle Vermilyea arranges for her to live with his secretary Leslie while she attends business college and she "just happens" to arrive one night early, in time for a party full of wealthy and appealing men. Though robust author Ryan immediately likes Fontaine, she actually has her sites set more on Leslie's rich fiancé Scott! As one can guess, the machinations kick in as Fontaine wrangles everyone around her as much as she can, but will she be happy when and if she ever gets what it is she's after? Fontaine is too old for the part she's playing, but her performance is interesting enough most of the time to get past that. She's saddled, especially through the early portion of the film, with a rather fluffy, unruly, bleached hairstyle that does her fewer favors than she probably imagined or intended. Her gowns by Hattie Carnegie are in most cases far less attractive, complimentary to her and striking than those of Leslie's, which were done by Michael Woulfe. Again, this was surely not the intention! Ryan is excellent throughout. He is given several saucy lines and delivers them effectively. He adds a liveliness to his part, along with the deep feeling, that is most welcome. Scott, an actor who excelled at shifty and slimy characters, is the more upright person here and does well, even eliciting some sympathy. One of the real surprises is Leslie, who offers up a pretty, lively and appealing presence despite the demands of the script, which calls for her to come off as a little bit dim. Just as her overall styling is superior to that of the other Joan, her hair is beautifully arranged throughout. She would soon leave the business to raise her family. Ferrer, in one of his earliest film roles, portrays a starving artist who is gossipy and spongy and could be read as gay, though it is never outright suggested, of course. There is a scene, however, in which he and Ryan are pictured so closely together and in such a way that it could almost be snapped, cropped and used in a suggestive Confidential article or something! Vermilyea, as Fontaine's somewhat knowing uncle, and Farmer, as her completely unknowing aunt, lend solid, sometimes amusing support. The film has a solid directional hand in it thanks to Ray and moves along nicely. While it isn't necessarily believable, it is usually entertaining. It is also, for 1950, pretty straightforward about the sexual relationships that are taking place. Ryan even uses the words "sex attraction" at one point. Fans of the stars ought to enjoy it quite a bit.