tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post937856943903049840..comments2024-03-18T11:01:42.459-05:00Comments on Pretty Sinister Books: FFB: What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? - Henry FarrellJ F Norrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-57939176868669922872017-03-17T23:09:22.017-05:002017-03-17T23:09:22.017-05:00You're so right about Blanche in her bed! Horr...You're so right about Blanche in her bed! Horrid details. And after Mrs Stitt finally opens the door it's two whole chapters before you even know what she saw in Blanche's room. One of the few good suspenseful touches in the book. <br /><br />The neighbors were a bit more interesting too, especially the one who's out on the garden all the time. I like that she got a hold of the note unlike what happens in the movie. In fact that entire scene is not only changed, but also moved to a much earlier part in the movie. J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-46739553845492644342017-03-17T20:00:27.126-05:002017-03-17T20:00:27.126-05:00I read this about a year ago and was surprised at ...I read this about a year ago and was surprised at how faithful the film was to the book. The performances of Crawford and Davis are so entrenched in my mind that whenever there was a bit that's not in the film, I couldn't help but hear it in their voices. It was almost like stumbling upon some secret outtakes.<br /><br />I thought there were a few places in the book that were way more gruesome than in the film, such as the fact that Blanche is left to lie in her own filth. It's something that I guess is obvious going to happen when she's left alone for so long, but it's never so much as hinted at in the film and honestly never occurred to me. <br /><br />Kelly Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01752857506190488860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-77958401178124366952017-03-13T14:08:57.929-05:002017-03-13T14:08:57.929-05:00Excellent review--the history and analysis drew me...Excellent review--the history and analysis drew me in altho I'd not seen the film nor read the novel. I vaguely recall when the movie came out, and that it didn't attract my interest then. You've persuaded me to seek out both the film and the book. I don't have TV, so I must pass on <i>Feud</i>. Mathew Pausthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06157135006791553019noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-2738454367024539672017-03-12T15:02:18.175-05:002017-03-12T15:02:18.175-05:00The film is wonderful - that still above is terrif...The film is wonderful - that still above is terrific and really gives the flavour. I've never even wondered whether there was a book (which is not like me) and I actually think I'd watch the film again rather than read the book. I liked Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte too. Clothes In Bookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14680610242823846662noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-63388626450035834042017-03-10T22:50:15.515-06:002017-03-10T22:50:15.515-06:00The second cover is so horrifying. Dolls can look ...The second cover is so horrifying. Dolls can look very scary at times. Incidentally, the Allan book is available at Open Library, if you are interested. neerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01986509319841061021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-52855973997321734402017-03-10T18:29:52.126-06:002017-03-10T18:29:52.126-06:00Live and learn. 😉Live and learn. 😉J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-31755870091001435532017-03-10T17:57:28.398-06:002017-03-10T17:57:28.398-06:00I've never found a copy of How Awful about All...<i> I've never found a copy of How Awful about Allan</i><br /><br />Aaargh! It never occurred to me it might have become rare. I guess I should have held on to my old UK 4-Square paperback of the book, then?noirencyclopediahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02843963811822980754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-27002998473036444582017-03-10T15:20:53.325-06:002017-03-10T15:20:53.325-06:00John – Thanks for the review. I was wondering abou...John – Thanks for the review. I was wondering about this book last Sunday when watching the first episode of FEUD.Elgin Bleeckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08417587392887691664noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-90977015244655679282017-03-10T12:23:30.325-06:002017-03-10T12:23:30.325-06:00Next month I'll be writing up Farrell's ve...Next month I'll be writing up Farrell's very different and largely overlooked second novel <i>Death on the Sixth Day</i>, a pursuit thriller with a psycho hitchhiker vibe to it. I've never found a copy of <i>How Awful about Allan</i> though I've seen the movie. J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-74405365668392703352017-03-10T10:22:45.428-06:002017-03-10T10:22:45.428-06:00Oops - forgot to tick the "Notify me" bo...Oops - forgot to tick the "Notify me" box.noirencyclopediahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02843963811822980754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-29229655131822029632017-03-10T10:22:15.091-06:002017-03-10T10:22:15.091-06:00I read some of Farrell's novels back in the da...I read some of Farrell's novels back in the day, including this one, and enjoyed them -- especially, so far as I can recall, <i>How Awful About Allan</i>. (In checking the spelling of "Allan" at Wikipedia I've just discovered that one of the movies I have lined up for Noirish treatment, Truffaut's <i>Une Belle Fille Comme Moi</i> [1972], is based on a Farrell novel. Small world!)<br /><br />So far as the screen adaptation of <i>Baby Jane</i> is concerned, my opinion on the merits of the two performances is the converse of your own. I feel the movie's by Davis's over-the-top histrionics, with Crawford bringing far more depth to the long-suffering Blanche. Whenever the movie comes to mind, it's Crawford's face I see, not Davis's. Guess it's just different strokes, etc.noirencyclopediahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02843963811822980754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-53585204283516086502017-03-10T06:52:24.158-06:002017-03-10T06:52:24.158-06:00Can you get the FX network over there? If not try...Can you get the FX network over there? If not try to see the first episode of Feud online. Neither actress attempts to do full-on impressions of the two divas a la most drag queens, but they really capture the essence of each woman.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-49144722880554398422017-03-10T03:00:23.953-06:002017-03-10T03:00:23.953-06:00Thanks John - seen the movie of course plenty pf t...Thanks John - seen the movie of course plenty pf times but ever read the Farrell. I actually saw the follow-up, HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE first, based on a treatment by Farrell which, I believe he later novelised (Curtis Evans did a post on it as I recall). It owes too much too LES DIABOLIQUES but in many ways I prefer it as a movie just because I always thought that the BABY JANE movie, clearly like sections of the original book, tended to go on a bit too long and felt ultimately overblown as a result. Great post John - hadn't thought about these in an age :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com