Better In Your Head?--WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?

 

Spoiler Alert: none of the memorable quotes are in the book.

THE BOOK-Written by Henry Farrell, released 1960

THE MOVIE-Directed by Robert Aldrich, written by Lukas Heller, released 1962

THE STORY-The Hudson sisters are living and dying in Hollywood. Once-beloved film star Blanche has spent over twenty years as an invalid. Once-adored child star Jane has logged even more time lost in daydream elation. With the nadir near, will vanity claim victory?

MIND THE GAP-The script kept the plot intact (smart) and sensationalized an already-sordid story (smarter). The psychological torture is ramped up to the limits of toleration, essentially exploiting the real-life animosity between leads Bette Davis and Jean Crawford. This uptick in bitchiness benefited the film greatly, and Davis especially. She is the hideously jealous Jane Hudson, a mesmerizing embodiment of trenchant trashiness whose mental faculties are declining commensurate with her social relevancy. Bette's mad-eyed, clown-faced, gin-voiced performance is legendary. Joan is the lesser performer here, and most everywhere honestly, thanks to her innate vanity. When I consider that we could've seen big sister Olivia de Havilland as Blanche instead, I wanna weep into my morning muffin.

Freed from the shackles of subtlety, Victor Buono is a roar as the forever-aspiring musical accompanist hired by Jane in the batty broad's last-ditch attempt at a showbiz comeback. He puts on airs, accents, and at least a pound a day. I don't particularly care what happens to the guy, I just want to watch whatever that may be happen.

The supporting characters are mostly winners, save for sassy Liza Bates, portrayed by Bette Davis's own offspring. Dear reader, the apple catapulted from that particular tree.

Lazy analysts demean WEHTBJ? as camp...melodrama...menopausal madness. (Decades of wheel-spinning, bitch-slapping spoofs haven't helped public perception either.) It is so much more. It is a bleak, bitter horror classic worthy of serious examination. Thwarted ambition, sibling squabbling, parental neglect--all the juicy subjects gatekeepers normally drool on.

The caged bird is pure film flex, out of the Hitchcock Handbook.* Show the audience the bird, establish its relationship to a seemingly sympathetic figure, then end the relationship in one brutal, undeniable stroke. 

BETTER IN YOUR HEAD-Henry Farrell and Robert Aldrich toiled in the shadows of masters. Frankenstein this ain't. Rear Window this sure as sugar-free apple tart ain't. Film fans go into the book with certain expectations. Character depth, expanded interior worlds, familiar dialogue. Farrell's work, dry and serviceable as a cheap blanket, adds little. It is, much like its central antagonist, a disturbed piece of justifiably forgotten art. I found it easy to read the novel and not picture Bette and Joan. Which, in this particular case, isn't a point in its favor.

As a film, What Ever Happened To Baby Jane? is can't-miss material. Understanding his cats needed additional room to bat about the crazy ball, director Aldrich expanded the dimensions and let the score tally itself.

Moving pictures, winner by TKO.

*Producers wooed Hitch himself, who (perhaps lamentably, perhaps not) was precoccupied with Psycho promotion.