"Jezebel"

I’m binging a bunch of classic films, thanks to the now-cancelled TCM Classic Film Festival.  While most are going into a single review this film deserves more comment. 

Imagine:  Politics ripping a country apart while a fast-moving infection destroys a city and closes borders.  No, I’m not talking about now.

Imagine:  Antibellum south.  A fiery, spoiled belle will let nothing stop her from pursuing a decent man who has married someone else.  She destroys a simple minded guy in the process as she uses him for her own gain.  Disaster strikes and she finally sees the light – maybe – and the film ends on an ambiguous note.  No, I’m not talking about “Gone With the Wind”. 

1938, a year before GWTW, a rival studio (Warner) tried to one-up MGM by releasing this remarkably similar film.  It starred Bette Davis, who was miffed that she got passed over for the lead in the “other movie”, a role which went to nobody Vivien Leigh.  This story was a virtual carbon copy but filmed in black and white with a much smaller scope.  The racism and sexism is as prevalent as it is in GWTW but is more heavy-handed with Ms. Davis’ character, who is compared to a child, a harlot and beating is repeatedly recommended (with a smile) as a way of straightening her out.  The title is biblical and makes it clear that she isn’t just being unladylike, she is literally breaking commandments. 

It’s called the greatest role of Bette Davis and had a star-studded cast which included, among others, a very young Henry Fonda.  Ms. Davis and her co-star, Fay Bainter, won Oscars for their work.

However.  I can’t not compare it to GWTW, which is better.  This film is rushed and it shows.  Edits are jerky, the script is thin.  Only the great actors manage to give meaning to a lot which feels meaningless.  And you just can’t compare the 104 minutes of this film to the 238 minutes of GWTW.  The carts of sick people being wheeled through New Orleans is powerful but pales in comparison to the bodies in the street after the fall of Atlanta.  Scarlett O’Hara faces the Civil War.  Julie Marsden (aka Jezebel) faces the ire of rich people when she wears a daring, inappropriate dress to a party.  The most interesting part of GWTW, Scarlett’s ability to fight, is negated in “Jezebel” as the end credits start rolling just as Julie faces a real challenge.  I couldn’t root for her.  Scarlett, for all her many (many, many) flaws, had something admirable.  Julie was just a girl who broke convention and was seeking absolution.  Scarlett never got, nor asked for, forgiveness.

As to Ms. Davis, yes, she is great.  She was always great.  Personally, though, I liked her later roles.  I liked it when she had enough power to stand up to the studios and play women who didn’t simper.  I like the real Bette Davis, not the pretty girl with the cultured tones which starred here.