Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte

I'd advise getting this version of the HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE DVD rather than the one that was released in 2005 (Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte) if you don't already own the Bette Davis Centenary Celebration Collection (All About Eve / Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte / The Virgin Queen / Phone Call from a Stranger / The Nanny), which includes this version of the DVD.The previous release didn't include the "Hush...Hush, Sweet Joan: The Making Of..." featurette.Anyway, HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE was supposed to be a re-teaming of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford (with director Robert Aldrich) after their surprise horror hit What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (Two-Disc Special Edition). In the movie, Bette and Joan play cousins and Crawford was supposed to be the one getting revenge in this flick. Of course, problems on the set came up and Crawford was replaced with Olivia De Havilland.Bette portrays "Charlotte," a southern belle who becomes a recluse after her married lover is found hacked to death at her party. Everyone believes she committed this horrendous crime and she becomes a pariah, living in the large plantation-mansion alone, with her only company being the ghosts of the past, nasty children who play pranks on her, and a broken-down maid named "Velma Cruther" (played to the hilt by Agnes Moorehead). As if living all alone for decades wasn't punishment enough, the city now wants Charlotte to vacate the property so that they can build a bridge through it. But she doesn't want to leave the only home she's ever known and therefore brings her cousin "Miriam Deering" (De Havilland) back, hoping that she can help her. And that's when the fun really starts. Suddenly, the past comes ripping back and takes poor Charlotte to the brink of madness!Like its predecessor "... Baby Jane," HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE is a psychological thriller with great lines, top notch acting, and enough camp to make it such an endearing cult classic.Davis is fantastic as "Charlotte," and just hearing her do that southern accent is worth the price of admission alone! Another funny part is when a younger actress is playing the youthful Charlotte, but they use Bette's voice (how can they not); it has me in stitches. Also, there's a short scene with Bette and her married lover "John Mayhew" (played by the dashing Bruce Dern), and it's supposed to be taking place when the Charlotte character is just a teenager, but Bette insisted that she be in the scene and not the double! But the one scene that always has me rolling on the floor howling with laughter is when Bette crawls down the stairs, backwards, alternating between a primal scream and a maniacal laugh! You really think she lost her mind! Although the scene isn't funny on first viewing, it tickles me each time I've seen it afterwards.And although De Havilland is good in her role as "Miriam," I still can't help but imagine what the picture would've been like had Crawford stayed on. But in any event, the real scene stealer in this movie is Agnes Moorehead. She should've won the Academy Award for this role! I've only known her for her work as "Endora" on TV's Bewitched: Season One, and also seeing her in one episode of "The Twilight Zone," but this characterization is totally different. Moorehead plays white-trash maid "Velma Cruther" and she manages to steal every scene, which is no easy task considering Davis is not only a fierce actress with remarkable screen presence but her portrayal of "Charlotte" was also a train wreck character that you couldn't look away from. You'll find no trace of "Endora" in "Velma" and when I first saw the movie, I wasn't sure that it was Moorehead!So if you haven't seen HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE, and you liked "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane" and other horror/psychological thrillers, I would definitely recommend it.****** SPECIAL FEATURES ******"Hush...Hus, Sweet Joan: The Making Of Charlotte" -- 21:40-minutes FeaturetteAdell Aldrich (the daughter of director Robert Aldrich), Michael Merrill (Bette Davis's son), Bruce Dern ("John Mayhew"), Michael Musto (writer for "Village Voice"), Mark A. Vieria (author of "Hollywood Horror"), and others talk about the movie and how it was supposed to be a sequel to "... Baby Jane" and the feud that began with the two co-stars. There's great behind the scenes footage of the filming of the movie (unfortunately no moving footage of Crawford in the role), and still images of Joan Crawford on location and with Davis before she was replaced."Bruce Dern Remembers" -- 12:41-minutes Featurette (Present day interview)The actor talks about the his role on HHSC and what it was like to work with Bette Davis."Wizard Work" Narrated by actor Joseph Cotton (who plays "Dr. Drew Bayliss" in the movie) -- 04:42-minutes Vintage PromoA wonderful behind the scenes promo of the movie that shows the actors at work and in the screening room.GalleriesTrailersAnyway, I highly recommend the HUSH...HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE DVD! If you're unsure which DVD is which, and the price drops to about the same, the one with the yellow cover with a closeup of Davis and De Havilland looking away from each other -- not the one where De Havilland is standing behind Davis -- is the most current release and has the above special features.

Surprisingly this film is over 40 years old, and still captures one's imagination and attention. As a child, i was too young to see the film in the theaters, tho i do remember the film making it's TV debut, as it was a big deal for some reason back then.Seeing it on a black and white tv set dampered things a bit, as i thought that because of the grand scale the production seemed to possess that it was filmed in color. I was taken aback when i found out it was filmed in black and white. I only remembered at the time the dark scenes around the house, Bette Davis slowly deteriorating, and the 'mirror' scene near the end of the film with Davis confronting her dead 'ex lover'. Well, kinda. Won't give the ending away. Otherwise, it was scary all in all to me.It took years of waiting and seeing the film on different TV stations to finally get a video version of the film, which was uncut. TV at the time had a strange practice of editing down films to conform to their airtime, and also the violence to not offend the easily offended, tho sometimes makes a film incomprehensible.The violence in the film is minimal, tho the first murder is and was a shocking set-piece that sets the whole tone of the film. Unlike Joan Crawford's 'Straight-Jacket', a film that Crawford opted for after leaving Charlotte and replaced quickly by DeHavilland where ax murders continue, the initial horror is not repeated in Charlotte, but you never know, right? That's how a good horror film is made. It's not exactly what you see, it's what you think you may see.For it's time, the film boasted a boatfull of seasoned actors, and did a very good job with the material. The cinematography isn't as smooth as one would like, but given the time-span between murders and eerie moments a viewer needs to be on one's toes.It's a shame that the film wasn't photographed in color, but, according to Davis herself, the film would have looked like 'Gone With The Wind' if it was. DeHavilland was a superb replacement for Crawford, as her rather laid-back approach to acting played against type. She's no Melanie here, and gave another powerful performance. As for Joseph Cotten, for some reason i never did like his style of acting. Aside from his classic performance in Citizen Kane, Cotten seemed rather bored in his acting chores, and never grabbed my attention in anything else he did, including this film.Agnes Moorehead's performance was again, against type, as she by then was famous for her portrait of the over-bearing mother-in-law in 'Bewitched'. Here, she plays a dedicated servant, who is both outspoken, and knows from the early frames that something shady is going on.It took quite a few viewings to figure out who the actual killer was. Either i was stupid child, or because it was not actually 'said' who the killer was in a way where it seemed important at the time when Davis's character is being transported away from her home is lost. After a few viewings it did sink in that it was Cecil Kellaway's character who did fill in the empty blanks and let us realize what was going on.Most claim that the film's running time is rather long. One must think of the scope of the material involved, and you'll understand why it took some time to not only get to know each character, but slowly know thier intent, and importance in Charlotte's life.The expanded DVD version persented here is a curiousity. It has a few TV and film trailers, which are superb to look at. The quality of the film is again, superb.I was just wondering if there was any footage of Crawford on the set, or any footage shot of her in character. Would have been nice to see what she would have looked like if she actually did the film, but, much too late now.So, Charlotte is a classic melodrama with some horror thrown in for good measure. It's still not a film for the little kiddies, as some images may be a little disturbing, and in some areas they may become bored and fall asleep. For us adults, it's an example of good filmmaking, utilizing some of our most beloved actors.