Davis Discovered

As many movie as I have seen, there are still directors, actors and writers that despite their fame have for some reason or another escaped my gaze. I can now cross Bette Davis off that list of famous starlets that have done so much for the industry yet I have not seen any of their work. Davis was nominated for 11 oscars in her career, winning two, and perhaps should have won for her work in The Little Foxes (1941).

Directed by William Wyler (who in his own right is historically successful and someone else I need to watch more films of) this film is adapted from Lillian Hellman's play and Hellman also penned the screenplay. What I always notice about plays that are successfully transformed into films is how perfect the structure is without being heavy handed. The Little Foxes surrounds a wealthy southern family and the balance between good and evil, greed and morality amongst the family members. Every line in this movies is their for a reason, and everyone represents some theme that later plays into the plot. To do this well is to be a master writer and Hellman seems to me to be a master.

Davis plays the matriarch of the family, her husband is sick and dieing, her brothers need her husbands money for a business venture. Now in the 40's one would think they would play it safe and have their star play the motherly role as a nurturer, but no, Davis brilliantly portrays this women as a greedy, heartless figure who for the sake of money wants her husband to invest in her brothers corrupt business so she can take a percentage. Herbert Marshall plays the husband, he is a generous man, a man ready to do what is right with the time he has left on earth. They have a daughter played a bit over the top by then newcomer, Teresa Wright, who garnered an oscar nomination for this role. Wrights character is naive and innocent and we see she could go either way, down the road of good like her father or inherit the selfishness of her mother.

The Little Foxes not only brings to light the issues of one family but also is a microcosm of America both then and now. Its about the wealthy taking advantage of the poor. Its about those who commit these acts and those who oppose them, and most importantly its about those who do nothing. It is hard not to see this film on a social level, but even ignoring that, the drama of the family dynamic and great performance (especially by Davis) is entertaining enough to call this a very good movie. On top of all that Wylers direction is above average as you can tell he made efforts to use the camera as a device to move the plot forward, rather than always keeping things classically shot. There is one scene in particular where Wyler keeps the camera motionless and lets the drama play out with gripping tension.

Overall this has been a great introduction to Davis, an actress I always just thought of as a classical beauty, and here she really shows her ugly side. Anyone especially interested in writing characters should check out The Little Foxes.

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