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Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte [1962]


RRP: £12.99
Our Price: £3.48 (subject to change)

Bette Davis makes a great creepy hag!
Review date: 2008-11-08 Rating: 6 out of 10

This film was,apparently,originally meant to be the sequel to 'Baby Jane' and bears strong resemblances to it.Bette Davis plays a tortured old woman haunted by a tragic and violent past, as she does in 'Baby', and she is also looked after by a seemingly saner, kinder relative Miriam,( played by Olivia de Havilland), who turns up at Charlotte's request, when her house is threatened with demolition to accomodate a motorway. Events soon take a sinister turn.Has Charlotte descended further into madness, or is her cousin, aided by old philanderer Drew(Joseph Cotten) up to something? You'll have to watch this to find out, but suffice it to say that this is a fine film, a worthy successor to 'Baby Jane': there are some excellent,creepily effective scenes,and some great performances:Davis, of course,is in her element as the tortured protagonist, but de Havilland is equally good as her cousin, as is Agnes Moorehead, playing Charlotte's feisty maid.

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Reviews


Great cast, so-so movie
Review date: 2008-10-11 Rating: 6 out of 10

Bette Davis plays the fragile title character in this movie, which feels like a cross between What Ever Happened To Baby Jane and Gaslight. It would have been nice to see Joan Crawford in the role of Bette's cousin, but her replacement, Olivia de Havilland, does a very good job. Her performance is very low key compared to Davis's campy (but good) scenery chewing. Agnes Moorehead steals her scenes as the maid Velma.

So, the acting is great, and the movie has its good moments, but overall, it's way too long and slow moving. Worth watching for fans of the stars, like myself, but I was a little disappointed.

Nightmares for years!
Review date: 2008-07-24 Rating: 8 out of 10

This film has stayed in my mind for over forty years, I watched it when I was 9 years old, late one night, and I wished I hadn't. I can remember every scene, every horrific scene, Bette Davis has terrified me all my life! Saying that, it is a good film. Maybe I should dare myself to watch it again, it probably isnt that scary, but I can't even say or type out the title of the film it gives me goosebumps!

Whatever Happened to Joan Crawford?
Review date: 2008-04-10 Rating: 8 out of 10

A couple of years after their successful teaming in 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane' director Robert Aldrich and star Bette Davis were reunited for this frenetic monochrome shocker. As Joan Crawford was unavailable Olivia de Havilland replaced her.

A lengthy prologue takes us back to 1927 Louisiana where young Charlotte (Davis) is about to run off with her married lover when he is viciously murdered after suddenly rejecting her. Local opinion has it that Davis was responsible and as we move to the present (or 1964) she is now a pitiful, confused chatelaine, alone and adrift in her antebellum mansion with only loopy maid Agnes Moorehead for company and whose only purpose is to scare the town's young children.

This Havishamesque reverie is shattered by the news that her splendid home is set to make way for a new road and as the demolition squad moves in, her grip on reality, already loose, slips further.

When her cousin Miriam (de Havilland) turns up to help, things take a turn for the worse as Davis's eccentricities plunge toward madness. But is all as it seems? Was Davis responsible for the murder? Is her lover really dead? Who or what are responsible for the noises in the night?

Aldrich delivers an atmospheric, polished slice of Southern Gothic containing a demented, barnstorming performance from Davis as the southern belle gone wrong and impressive support from de Havilland in a less showy role. Joseph Cotten and Mary Astor round out the Golden-Age-of-Hollywood cast.

One of a spate of early-60s thrillers that followed in the wake of 'Psycho' this stands above the competition thanks to its sterling performances and willingness to go for the throat.

Classic 60s movie from this genre.
Review date: 2007-11-18 Rating: 10 out of 10


This is the movie I've watched numerous times, but upon the beginning of every viewing, always seem to have forgotten the outcome of the story. This was the second film on a similar theme to 'Baby Jane' made two years earlier, but far more complex, and as a consequence, can at times appear a little over-long. Agnes Moorehead deservedly earns herself an award here as the faithful and loyal servant of the alleged crazy 'Miss Charlotte' (played by Bette Davis) Compare Moorehead's performance to that of her role in the US 60s sitcom: 'Bewitched' and you will see what I mean! Olivia de Havliand is at her most cold and cunning in this, as Charlotte's cousin Miriam. There is one spectacular and un-missable scene between she and Moorehead at the top of the stairs when one character is highly suspicious of the other. Some of the best movies in this genre from the 60s were led by women such as the aforementioned; 'Baby Jane', Whatever Happened To Aunt Alice' and Britain's 'The Beast In The Cellar', and somehow have more impact, and are more disturbing, because of their sex.

'Hush Hush' almost has the exact same cast as starred in 'Baby Jane', and it would have been complete but for Joan Crawford, who because of the strain of working with Davis in 'Baby Jane', after only a short time of filming had been forced to drop out, and was replaced by de Haviland. The switch could have potentially been fatal to the success of this picture, but for de Haviland's outstandingly cold performance!

One of the extras on this DVD is the original Trailer - re-mastered (Trailers are not often polished up), and is one of the very best I have ever seen for this type of movie!

True movie gold!

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Agnes Moorehead
Cecil Kellaway
Olivia De Havilland
Joseph Cotten
Bette Davis

Creators:
Bette Davis (Primary Contributor)
Olivia De Havilland (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
EAN: 5039036024570
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: Black & White, PAL,
Release date: 2006-01-16
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 132 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1962
Language: English (Original Language)

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