Bette Davis & Olivia de Havilland move face to face in 1964’s southern gothic suspense movie, “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte
used to be a follow-up to the wonder 1962 destroy, What
Ever Came about to Child Jane? Whilst Child
Jane used to be aptly launched that Halloween, Charlotte
oddly opened all the way through the 1964 Christmas season. Each fright movies were given most commonly
excellent evaluations and made cash, however Child Jane
used to be the person who stayed mounted in film fanatics’ reminiscences, with its comedian horror
have a look at Hollywood. Nonetheless, Charlotte
succeeds as a straight-up southern gothic suspense movie. Whilst there are
a large number of similarities to Child Jane, Charlotte additionally has some surprises.

“Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte” used to be the 4th and closing movie that Olivia de Havilland &  Bette Davis co-starred in combination.

Apart
from the twisty story, the highest drawer forged truly places Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte over. Bette Davis, as Charlotte Hollis,
will get a raucous function to sink her enamel into. Davis’ son, Michael Merrill, mentioned that
she to begin with didn’t need to play every other hag horror function and idea the
script used to be too grotesque. Even after Child
Jane, paintings and cash for 50-something feminine stars have been scarce, so Bette authorised
Charlotte.

Victor Buono’s a large daddy certainly, as Sam Hollis, who desires to verify daughter  Bette Davis does not develop into a Jezebel! 1964’s “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte
begins with a prologue in 1927 on the Hollis circle of relatives mansion. Patriarch Sam
Hollis is raging at John Mayhew, a married guy who’s having an affair together with his
younger daughter, Charlotte. After some wrangling, John has the same opinion to finish it. At a
ball within the Hollis mansion, Charlotte’s married lover meets her on the “summer season”
space. She doesn’t take the scoop nicely, regardless of John’s claims that he did love
her. Moments later, any individual comes again. John thinks its Charlotte and whoever
the customer is, they introduced a cleaver that’s been used to open champagne instances.
The ball involves a halt when Charlotte reappears with blood on her white ball
robe. Despite the fact that she isn’t charged, everybody assumes that Charlotte butchered
John Mayhew. Lower to give day 1964, with eccentric Charlotte preventing the
government over shifting out of the circle of relatives manse, to make approach for freeway
building. When Charlotte’s Cousin Miriam involves assist, it’s a fair
bumpier trip.

Bruce Dern’s characters suffered grisly flashback demises in each 1964’s “Marnie” & “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Younger Charlotte’s popularity is ceaselessly stained by means of the suspicion of homicide of John Mayhew, in 1964’s “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Whilst
Bette Davis doesn’t grasp again portraying Charlotte’s pepper pot character, she
has delicate moments too, corresponding to scenes with a curious reporter, performed by means of Cecil
Kellaway. The similar is right of Agnes Moorehead as brash however faithful maid Velma.
Moorehead is in point of fact outrageous in some scenes, particularly when she spars with Charlotte’s villains. Agnes has sly
silent moments in addition to trustworthy ones, like when Velma goals to appear out for
Charlotte’s welfare. The veteran persona actress makes essentially the most of her over
the highest function and were given a genuinely-earned Highest Supporting Actress Oscar nomination,
and successful a supporting Golden Globe.

Agnes Moorehead has a box day as fiesty housekeeper Velma, in 1964’s “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

As
Cousin Miriam, Olivia de Havilland makes one easy villain. Because the deficient
relation taken in as a kid by means of the Hollis circle of relatives, Miriam returns at
Charlotte’s behest. Olivia’s honeyed gentility and wide-eyed fear harkens
again to her vintage function as Melanie in Long past
with the Wind. Apart from this time, her southern cousin IS too excellent to be
true. One in every of Olivia’s few dangerous woman roles, she’s somewhat intriguing, and best is going
excessive like her different feminine co-stars when Miriam displays her
hand—now and again actually!

Olivia de Havilland performs “candy” Cousin Miriam in “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Barbara
Stanwyck mentioned that she used to be by no means requested to play Miriam, as now and again written, however
used to be asked to play Jewel Mayhew, John’s spouse. Which Stanwyck became down, as
the phase consisted of 2 scenes. On this cameo function, Mary Astor as Jewel is
enthralling. Mary performs a demise lady in her ultimate appearing process, and performs the
function merely and hauntingly. Mary’s come upon with Olivia is zingy, and her lengthy
scene with Kellaway is depression. Astor makes
each second depend.

Mary Astor is very good in her cameo function as Jewel Mayhew, the spouse of Charlotte’s slain lover. From 1964’s Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

There
are a number of encore actors from Child
Jane: Victor Buono performs Charlotte’s enforcing Large Daddy, Sam Hollis;
Wesley Addy—Blanche Hudson’s “great Dr. Shelby”—is the sheriff who should deal
with cranky Charlotte; and Dave Willock, Child Jane’s liked daddy, is the cab
motive force who brings Miriam again to the scene of the crime.

Joseph Cotten used to be the unique Dr. Drew! He is Charlotte’s document and Miriam’s ex-suitor  in 1964’s “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Joseph
Cotten provides his easy southern allure, performed with laconic humor, as Drew
Bayliss, Charlotte’s physician and Miriam’s former beau. Cotton co-starred with
Bette Davis 15 years previous, in her WB swan tune, Past the Woodland. George Kennedy simply tangled with Crawford in Strait-Jacket, and does the similar as head
demolition man in Hollisport. Bruce Dern performs John Mayhew, Charlotte’s married
beau, within the prologue. Later, he’d paintings once more with Davis, as one her legal
sons, in an overly particular Gunsmoke
episode. Cecil Kellaway’s delicate scene stealing provides distinction to one of the vital
girls and their surroundings chewing. And
search for John Megna (Dill from To Kill a
Mockingbird) as the brand new child who’s dared to move within outcast Charlotte
Hollis’ mansion. Lillian Randolph, the liked Annie of It’s a Superb Lifestyles, is without doubt one of the packing girls; squeaky-voiced
Percy Felton is the funeral director; The
Waltons Ellen Corby and Helen Kleeb are native gossips; and Frank Ferguson
performs the native newspaper editor, whilst he used to be enjoying Eli Carson on TV’s Peyton Position.

Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte
has the similar upsides and disadvantages as Child
Jane. At the plus facet, the solid is uniformly excellent, the tale entertaining,
and the manufacturing values sturdy. The debit facet is most commonly director Robert
Aldrich’s susceptible issues. Whilst he’s a powerful storyteller at his perfect, Aldrich’s
tendency to overstatement reasons Charlotte
to run 2 and ¼ hours, and prefer Child Jane,
about quarter-hour too lengthy. Each motion pictures have entertaining however long prologues
and drag a bit of within the closing part. Each thrillers have some plot issues that
don’t endure scrutiny. Additionally, each motion pictures have theme songs that get reprised one
time too many!

Cecil Kellaway as a curious reporter & Bette Davis as Charlotte percentage some delicate moments in “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Amongst
the opposite similarities between Charlotte
and Child Jane: Prologues that get a
kicker within the movies’ finales; two outspoken housekeepers; Bette as a disturbed
daughter with daddy problems; Davis’ antagonists are captivating phonies; lifeless
our bodies that should be disposed of; and Charlotte and Jane’s closing scenes are of them
being gawked at by means of onlookers.

Charlotte
and Child Jane have been made within the early
‘60s, when there used to be the closing vestige of movie glamour as opposed to plot sense. In Jane, Joan Crawford’s invalid Blanche
nonetheless has beautiful nail polish and lipstick regardless of having been a recluse for 3
a long time. In Charlotte, after Bette
Davis bravely threw down the glamour gauntlet as extraordinary Child Jane, is that this
day out the celebrity that sneaks in somewhat glam for her growing old Jezebel. Despite the fact that
Charlotte Hollis has noticed best the maid and her document for the closing 35 plus years,
she nonetheless sports activities make-up mortician Gene Hibbs’ warfare paint. And wears top heels,
when no longer operating round barefoot wearing a nightie and a shotgun! If best
Bette had sported a extra original no-makeup seem like co-star Mary Astor. However
then, perhaps that’s why Bette used to be enjoying the identify function and Astor had a
two-scene cameo. Curiously, Olivia de Havilland displays her Paris way of living
in her personal Dior cloth wardrobe and elegant bouffant, plus make-up that remains throughout the
strains of her facial options!

“I assumed this Gene Hibbs make-up used to be intended to make me glance more youthful!”

A lot
has been fabricated from Joan Crawford’s departure from Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte. I’ll best say that Joan will have
performed the silky villain with assurance and elegance. In reality, Crawford performed a
selection of charismatic, insincere varieties for just about 15 years prior to Charlotte. Who is aware of whether or not Joan left
as a result of she used to be in actuality ill or simply ill of sparring with Bette Davis.
Crawford claimed sickness in every other demanding state of affairs just about twenty years prior to,
on Oscar evening of 1946, with an identical hypothesis. What’s unlucky is that some
Joan fanatics take out their ire on Olivia, who used to be a reluctant closing minute
alternative. Crawford almost definitely would have performed in a grander taste, nearer to
Bette and Agnes’ performances. However Olivia’s casting towards kind, as a fab
villain is its personal a laugh.

Joan Crawford used to be to play Cousin Miriam however claimed sickness and dropped out.

Was once this the sparkly get dressed that Olivia’s Miriam discovered slashed within the closet?

Minutiae:
Was once the sparkly get dressed that Olivia’s Miriam reveals slashed in her closet the only
that Joan’s Miriam wore for the homecoming dinner scene? Additionally, I discovered it
a laugh that Bette, who favored to slap co-stars up to Joan did, chickened
out within the automotive scene the place Miriam drops her masks. Despite the fact that new Miriam Olivia used to be
a long-time pal and co-star, Bette requested that her slaps be faked, and it
displays! In the end, whilst a more youthful double is used for Charlotte, why on earth did
they use Bette’s 60-ish cigarette voice, the place she tried to sound more youthful?

And
conventional of the mid-century moviemaking, the flashback scene of a ‘20s birthday party
seems like a ‘60s promenade with a flapper theme. Additionally unlucky is that the one
blood on Charlotte’s get dressed is on her lap house! A minimum of the opposite ladies didn’t
throw tampons at her, like Carrie!

The
tale/script by means of Henry Farrell and Lukas is maximum suave, regardless of some holes in
common sense. The song by means of DeVol is atmospheric, and Joseph Biroc’s superb
cinematography is placing and in point of fact provides to the temper. Additionally, I’ve visited one
of the 2 Louisiana’s mansions featured in Charlotte.
Miriam’s house is in reality Oak Alley Plantation and it’s shocking.

Mary Astor as Jewel, with a the reporter, performed by means of Cecil Kellaway. Jewel’s house is  represented by means of the Oak Alley plantation. “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”

Right here’s
my take at the mythical Child Jane! https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2016/10/bette-and-joans-acting-duel-whatever.html

Right here’s
the one different time Olivia performed evil,
in The Darkish Replicate! https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2023/07/10-takeaways-olivia-de-havilland-dark.html 

Bette Davis & Olivia de Havilland don’t seem to be precisely kissin’ cousins in 1964’s “Hush… Hush, Candy Charlotte.”