classicsoncall Some neat twists and turns in this story make it an enjoyable couple of hours, particularly when Edie (Bette Davis) gets what's coming to her - even if she was convicted of the wrong murder! That was one of the ironic things about this picture; as the viewer one likes to see things wrapped up in a nice, neat little package, but if that doesn't work out, well at least justice was served in a roundabout fashion.This film reminded me of a couple others, the first being Bette Davis's own "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" which also featured a pair of sisters in a dysfunctional relationship. The other was "Sunset Boulevard", in the respect that the butler Henry (Cyril Delevanti) here remained loyal to the phony Margaret DeLorca (also Davis) in somewhat the same manner Erich von Stroheim's character traded his loyalty for individuality while maintaining a façade for Gloria Swanson's Norma Desmond. Granted, that situation was a bit different, but you get my drift.And then there was Duke. Right off the bat I had a pretty good idea Duke would know the score with Edie masquerading as her sister. For a minute, I thought Edie might have given herself away when Sergeant Hobbson (Karl Malden) first came calling, and I was surprised he was never let in on Edie's little secret, although he came pretty close. Good detective work though, getting the goods on Tony Collins (Peter Lawford) and figuring out the old arsenic gambit. Come to think of it, if you wanted to make the case for Edie getting away with a second murder, she had a pretty competent accomplice.If you can overlook some of the pitfalls in the story and just take it as it plays out, it's a pretty good one. I got a kick out of the opening scene when a sign for Rosedale Cemetery comes into view stating 'Graves, Niches, Cremations and Undertaking - All in One Place'. I thought about that for a while before asking myself, where else would they be?

SnoopyStyle Edith Phillips (Bette Davis) meets up with her estranged twin sister Margaret de Lorca at Margaret's husband Frank's funeral. Edith has her money losing cocktail lounge while Margaret is lording her wealth over her. Frank was courting Edith originally until he had an affair with Margaret. After Margaret's claim to be pregnant, Edith never talked to them again. Margaret tells Edith that the child died before a year old but the family chauffeur recalls that she was never pregnant. Later, Edith lures Margaret to her lounge where she kills Margaret and assumes her identity. She makes Margaret up to look like her having committed suicide. People have their suspicions including Margaret's lover Tony Collins (Peter Lawford) who starts blackmailing her. Edith's boyfriend police sergeant Jim Hobbson (Karl Malden) continues to investigate her supposed suicide and also the death of Frank de Lorca.Bette Davis is a powerful force. That's what this movie gives with her on the screen. Director Paul Henreid could have tightened up some of the scenes to elevate the tension. For example, the scene of Edith setting up Margaret's body as a suicide takes forever. It could have been done better and with more intensity. No matter what, Bette Davis exudes screen presence.

Movie Critic This would have gotten a 10 if Davis had pulled off the crime but this is Hollywood and that can't be damn.I love this type noirish movie---yes it is a bit of a run on attraction from Baby Jane but it is still decent.It just irks me that Hollywood never lets them get away with things there was a very similar movie Hollow Triumph that is worth watching.To get a movie where the bad guys win you need to turn to cynical Europe...The Double Hour is good. This is a lot better than Sunset Boulevard...watchRecommend.

secondtake Dead Ringer (1964)From that crazy, Gothic, overblown, fabulous last decade of Bette Davis's career, another wild one. And we get not one, but two Davis characters, twins, and the scenes where they are both shown (seamlessly) it's a kind of Bette Davis gluttony. Luckily, she's a great actress, and she pulls makes the melodrama burn. The movie makes no secret of being over the top, the plot outrageous and engaging enough to pull along all the other unlikely and exaggerated scenes.The weakest link here is possibly the direction, under actor Paul Henreid's hand (most famous as the second male lead in Casablanca). As amazing as the plot is by nature (filled with double-crossing treachery and murder), it actually drags a little at times. But not for long. The cinematography is really amazing (the great Ernst Haller at work--he did so many truly stellar movies it's breathtaking), amazing enough to study, the camera arcing around a stairway, or playing with the light turning on and off. The music is an odd mix--the harpsichord jingles are both perfect in setting a creepy mood and tacky for seeming to cheapen the drama--and it's classical conductor Andre Previn (Mia Farrow's onetime-husband) in charge. But counteracting this is some great funky early sixties organ jazz in a few scenes (the two performers are uncredited), what you might expect from a Sam Fuller movie.As awesome as this movie seems as a bit of delicious excess, something to roar about, eyes glued to the visuals, it's also a little awkward, just a shade. Like Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte, The Nanny, and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane, it's in the pantheon of cult Bette Davis movies, an early 1960s attempt to keep both her career and the old-fashioned Hollywood drama alive. It manages to do both.