Okay, this question is mostly (though not necessarily) for straight men...

Okay, this question is mostly (though not necessarily) for straight men... Oct 25, 2018 3:09:49 GMT Toasted Cheese likes this

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Post by dirtypillows on Oct 25, 2018 3:09:49 GMT

Oct 25, 2018 2:56:01 GMT Toasted Cheese said:

Oct 25, 2018 2:16:02 GMT dirtypillows said:

Oh, I could talk about this particular subject forever! I believe Bette had much more range than Crawford. She could really do just about anything. My favorite performances of hers are "Old Acquaintance", "All About Eve" and "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?". Most of the time, Davis tends to be histrionic, but I guess everybody accepts that from Bette Davis. But she has such a forceful presence and undeniably had a wonderful sense of humor. I, too, would have bowed at her feet. There was something about Davis that makes you hope that she would like you. Lol! I would have loved to hang out with her. I think she would have been a hoot. Crawford, I don't know. She either loved your or hated you, and I don't know if there was rhyme or reason with her. I think she would have been extremely high-maintenance and I think she was something of a phony. Nevetheless, I love Joan Crawford and think she is fascinating. I think probably there was not a harder worker in the business than Joan Crawford and I think nobody appreciated her fans more. (I remember reading once she said "If I'm staying at a hotel in Kansas City and a fan wants to know where I am, then you'd damn well better tell them!" You just don't hear that kind of appreciation often.) But with her persona, literally every single decade she transformed herself. It is very interesting to me because I think her four best performances are "Humoresque" (1946), "Possessed" (1947), "Flamingo Road" (1949) and "Mildred Pierce" (1945). I've never thought her acting was all that great (good, not great), except for this short string when she was excellent and I think that it must have been the confidence that was likely instilled in Crawford for winning the Oscar for MP. There's something to this. The self-confidence part. She was luminous in "Humoresque".

1920s - roaring twenties flapper
1930s - social climbing shopgirl
1940s - glamorous masochism
1950s - hard as nails, masculine bitch
1960s - grand guignol

Thanks for your response Mr. Dirty. I have been looking forward to hearing your feedback here.

I have just watched the trailers for Old Acquaintance and Flamingo Road. Davis looks fabulous in her movie and her tongue in cheek and even self-deprecating persona would be right up my alley. As for Crawford, she looks terrifying and cold and hard. One of the tag lines in the trailer said..A woman who's past caught up with her. Now aint' that the truth.

She doesn't appear pleasant or attractive to watch and no warmth. She is very butch as well. Crawford appears to be more of a parody of what she is playing, in order to be taken seriously, Davis just threw caution to the wind and looks magic and spontaneous. She certainly had more allure than Crawford. JC does looks like she is acting her part and the pretense appears more obvious, Davis is acting, yet appears to work up a storm, which is naturalistic.

I am going to watch more of the trailers for the films you have recommended and of course I would though need to see the films in their entirety to put them in context.

I love Bette in "Old Acquaintance". Usually her characters are a little bit strung, but her Kit in OA is so down to earth and likeable. I think I read once where Davis said her character in this movie was the one closest to her own personality in real life. Kit is extremely no-nonsense and warm and likeable. It's a very enjoyable movie. I highly recommend it.

Crawford was pretty butch! Ha!

"Davis just threw caution to the wind and looks magic and spontaneous." - I love how you've put this, Toasted Cheese. Davis was pretty obviously acting, but there is something so forceful and magnetic in her acting that, like you said, she just threw caution to the wind. She always seemed like she was having so much fun acting her role. She was a very gutsy lady! Hats off to her all the way!!!