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hey yall its time for me to chime in here and say enough is enough. please just agree to the earwolf cookie policy because its only there to make the site better and its for you really. i know a lot of you "alt comedy" types are anarchists who dont like to accept policies but ut the politics aside for a minute and do the right thing. for my less tech-savvy readers, you accept the cookie policy by clicking the circle heart in the bottom right corner of this post VVV

I think that's another great thing about the writing. Eve is the villain but she's not the mustache twirling type. Rather she is so subtle that there are only hints of it throughout the movie that are only clear on reflection or second viewing. We, like Margo, are not to suspect her of any wrong doings or evilness right away but much like the characters we slowly learn this over the course of the film until it is too late. Take for example her looking at herself in Margo's dress for the play. At first it is an innocent act of a fan wishing to emulate her favourite star, but once we know the full story that moment has a slight darker overtone to it. To me the first major sign that she truly is "evil" or "bad" is when she comes on to Bill. Yes, stealing a lover away does happen but it is more her reaction to it. This is the first time in the movie something doesn't really go her way so what does she do? She goes into a fit of rage and tries to tear the wig apart and smashing things. That to me was a big "Whoa" moment. Then in the end when we're confronted with the truth about Eve is to me where the big separation comes in between "wanting to be successful" and just "villain" come in. We learn from her story that she is a liar, manipulator, and con person. She was a small town girl who worked in a beer factory. She wanted to be rich and somebody so she tried to get with the owner of the factory who was married. They had an affair and when the heat was on she stole $500 and fled to New York. To me that paints the picture of who she really is. She might want fame and success but that isn't really what drives her. If she was a mid-western girl who came out to New York and then does this all, I could see her more as just climbing the ladder by any means. However, from that story it is clear she just covets what others have. She wants to better her life by taking those that can give her the best life possible. In her town the owner of the brewery was her ticket, when that didn't work she ran away to New York where she saw Margo's play and thought "That's what I want."

I just realized this was Vol 12 (Deck the Halls didn’t count as a “Volume”) Have we really been doing this for more than a year? That’s awesome! Thanks for hanging with me, guys

Amy spoke about it in the episode, but my personal take on the Eve/Phoebe dynamic at the end wasn't just about how the "new young thing" seems to be coming more rapidly, but specifically how it applies to Hollywood and its treatment of women over a certain age. To me, it felt like All About Eve was essentially saying, "You think it was bad for Margo? At least she was able to have a successful thirty-six year career. In Hollywood, at twenty-five, Eve might already be considered over-the-hill."

"The Theater, the Theater! What book of rules says the Theater exists only within some ugly buildings crowded into one square mile of New York City? Or London, Paris or Vienna? Listen, junior. And learn. Want to know what the Theater is? A flea circus. Also opera. Also rodeos, carnivals, ballets, Indian tribal dances, Punch and Judy, a one-man band - all Theater. Wherever there's magic and make-believe and an audience - there's Theater. Donald Duck, Ibsen, and The Lone Ranger, Sarah Bernhardt, Poodles Hanneford, Lunt and Fontanne, Betty Grable, Rex and Wild, and Eleanora Duse. You don't understand them all, you don't like them all, why should you? The Theater's for everybody - you included, but not exclusively - so don't approve or disapprove. It may not be your Theater, but it's Theater for Somebody, somewhere." Honestly, in light of Shawshank, Titanic, and (sure to be soon) Sixth Sense controversies, I'm surprised this monologue wasn't brought up. I absolutely cannot stand snobbery, and Bill just breaks it all down here. I loved it.

Hey guys! My parents are visiting from Australia so things have been so crazy around here that I haven't actually logged on to the forum since the update. Sorry to be AWOL, but it's nice to know that there's a community there waiting without judgement for when I finally get my act back together. Then again, I start a new four-course teaching load on the 27th, so things may well go to hell for a bit there too. Anyway, have fun with Billy Joel-singing stray animals! I'll be back soon, I'm sure! (Also, I should probably change my name back: Kit Walker was my original login name but I changed it years ago...)

Circling back to Eve and Phoebe, unlike Amy and Paul, my interpretation of that final scene wasn’t so much that Eve was obvious to Phoebe’s machinations, but rather that she was so alone that she just didn’t care. Eve’s whole journey is about seeking love and adulation. When she sees the way audiences respond to Margo, she sees that as fulfillment. However, if instead of trying to emulate Margo she actually listened to her, she would have realized just how hollow and unsatisfying that affection is. What Eve wants is Margo’s fame, what she needs is Margo’s support system.

Oh, okay. I have no idea what’s going on over there in Facebook-Land. I just thought it was odd when he brought it up. Kind of like “I guess I should be clarifying this...” and I really didn’t understand why the onus should be on Paul and Amy. It’s not like they’ve been secretive of where they’re pulling the movies from. I guess some people just like to be spoon fed.

I think they're getting this because some of the discussion (in Facebook/Twitter) is about what SHOULD be on the AFI list, and people keep bringing up stuff that's shot down because it's not American. So that upsets some people (that these are the AFI's rules) and gets back to Paul that way. Not really his fault, so I hope he doesn't take it as such.

Yup, these should be the clear moments where you see that Eve is the villain. The rest can be chalked up to standard career ambition, but actively going after the husband of someone who is supposedly your friend? And doing it twice (thereby proving that it wasn't just some heat of passion thing, it's a deliberate plan)? A decent person doesn't do that. But I will say that the first time I watched All About Eve I was also totally taken in by Eve's act. It wasn't until very late (when Addison first questions her in the dressing room) that it became obvious to me she was playing everyone for suckers. Watching it back again, it seems pretty obvious from the start. But that's also the strength of the movie! It totally works either way.

I really enjoyed this movie, and like Paul, I haven't seen much of Bette Davis save for Baby Jane. The writing here is somewhere between Hemingway and 30 Rock (as I type this, the Tina Fey clip just started playing, so that's awesome). Every line reveals and exposits something about the speaker. The dialogue is biting, witty, and full of puns and double entendre and metaphor. I had to watch the first 45 minutes over because I had started it in the background and realized I was lost because I wasn't paying much attention to what folks were saying, and once I closed the laptop I got totally absorbed purely by what they were saying. I really think the writing and acting saves it, though. Next to "That was a great line," the thought I kept having the most throughout the movie is "This is great, but is it Top 100 great?" It's one of those movies that, to me, would feel more at home on the stage. Some of the cinematography feels a bit clunky, like when Addison (?) follows Eve into a room and then talks to her from 50 feet away while she's obscured by the wall of the room she just entered. Maybe that's supposed to be a symbolic shot, but the oddity of the composition was distracting at times. But again, I really dug it and was surprised how relevant it still is (as I have been by several of the movies covered by this podcast). And I think I'm in love to Bette Davis now.

Lol! Yup, Paul’s on your side! (I lol’d) I guess my problem with Eve is just how Machiavellian she is. From the moment she’s introduced, she’s kind of waging this subtle war of attrition on Margo’s ego. Amy brought up a couple of instances in the podcast, but the one that stuck out to me is when Eve is given one of Margo’s suits and says something like “It fits almost perfectly. It just needed a little taking in here and letting out there.” On the surface, it sounds innocent enough, but it’s clear what she’s really saying. Then, on top of that, she goes for Bill - the hot director. When that doesn’t work out, she goes for Lloyd - the hot writer. She’s doesn’t want them because she loves them, she wants them for what she can get from them. Everything about Eve is a lie. A fact even more glaring when you compare her to Margo whose big break came from a place of innocence (4-years-old) and truth (literally baring herself to the audience). I can totally buy Eve as a sympathetic character but she’s definitely the villain.

I mean, I fully have always acknowledged that Cakebug Tranch is the stupidest login name ever, but I always liked that it was so weird that it has absolutely no connection to my real life and I could never be tracked down through this forum (it sounds paranoid but I had some bad experiences of the sort through Twitter, using real names or identifiers). I like that it's completely random, even though it's super dumb.

I remember when you first changed your name to CakeBug, and I resisted the change. Now Kit Walker just feels weird. Hope your parents are enjoying their stay! And, of course, we're always here for you.

I dunno, I think that was intentional. They want you to focus on Addison and have Eve hidden during that bit (so you don't immediately know how she's taking it). Most of the blocking and camera placement seems pretty intentional and considered here to me. I can see an argument that it occasionally feels stagy, but IMO it's the good kind of staginess (where the placement of people within the frame is supposed to communicate meaning), sort of like Citizen Kane.

We’re about to hit the 30th anniversary of this movie, and recently it’s been confirmed that the kid actually gets shot on camera and dies from it in a deleted scene that was left in in the Japanese version: Link

nice episode, thanks for making it

Rigoletto is the only opera I have ever seen "live" (I went with my grandma and a friend of the family to see it at the movie theater because the Met broadcasts to movie theaters around the country now.) The version I saw took place in 60's Vegas with the Duke owning his own Casino and Rigoetto being his comic (i think?) instead of his fool. It was a wonderful production and if you can find that version online I strongly recommend it. You are right though it does have a very Shakespearean sort of story to it . This is the most famous song from the opera. Because I'm stupid and know nothing about opera I always thought it was a love song when I heard it but it's actually a song about how women are fickle lairs who can't be trusted . here are the English lyrics because I'm a fucking nerd who likes to share my knowledge : Woman is fickle Like a feather in the wind, She changes her voice — and her mind. Always sweet, Pretty face, In tears or in laughter, — she is always lying. Always miserable Is he who trusts her, He who confides in her — his unwary heart! Yet one never feels Fully happy Who on that bosom — does not drink love! Woman is fickle Like a feather in the wind, She changes her voice — and her mind, And her mind, And her mind! This is sung by a cheating bastard the Duke (played by June's favorite Bigger Boy Pavarotti ) While he's trying to seduce the sister of the man Rigoletto plans to hire to kill said Duke for being such a womanizer. Mainly to stop him from fucking around with his daughter any longer. I can't remember if he raped her or they had a willing affair in the opera I saw. Honestly Giorgio was made to play the Duke .

Hey look, I drew a ball on a bigger ball chasing a ball. While looking up references for this, I did find pictures on google of Pavarotti playing tennis. But he was wearing the same outfit in all of them, so I can only confirm he's played at least one game of tennis outside of this movie.

I remember watching this when I was a young teen and I loved it, knowing full well how downright bonkers it is. I couldn't stop re-watching this movie. Rickshaw races (and JCVD running in knock off sneakers), finding explosives on the butt of his jeans, Rob Schneider constantly getting punched in the face, etc., etc. Also I guess everyone in Hong Kong is a CIA agent. I remember watching Rob "promote" the movie on Leno and he very diplomatically said the movie sucked. I think the line he said when explaining why the movie was delayed, was "We wanted to wait until kids were in school." Also as many other posters pointed out, JCVD is coked out. He admitted to his habit around the time this movie came out (or maybe earlier ... I remember his admission was part of the movie review when this was released).

Please, please make this a priority in 2018 for the show. The very definition of bonkers. Coked out Van Damme Comic relief from Rob Schreinder Exploding Jeans Mortified Paul Sovino Baffled Lela Rachon Green explosions Rickshaw races It makes Double Team seem restrained. If another JCVD film is done, please make it this one....and then Sudden Death.

Let's give this a bump here!

I also love how they put a little spin on Arnie's catch phrase when he says, "Look, I might be back." And the clerk at RePet (another bonkers part of this movie) says, "You'll be back."

Nelson Cruz #17, former Rangers right fielder