From the moment she glimpses her idol at the stage door, Eve Harrington (ANN BAXTER) is determined to take the reins of power away from the great actress Margo Channing (BETTE DAVIS). Eve maneuvers her way into Margo's Broadway role, becomes a sensation and even causes turmoil in the lives of Margo's director boyfriend (GARY MERRILL), her playwright (HUGH MARLOWE) and his wife (CELESTE HOLM). Only the cynical drama critic (Oscar winner GEORGE SANDERS) sees through Eve, admiring her audacity and perfect pattern of deceit. THELMA RITTER and MARILYN MONROE co-star in this acclaimed classic, which won six Academy Awards and received the most nominations (14) in film history.

Besides offering a major improvement in the quality of the image and sound, the new DVD also includes a good selection of extras. There's a 25 minute "Backstory" from AMC that is very informative and entertaining. There are two separate commentary tracks, one with Celeste Holm, Christopher Mankiewicz (Joseph's son), and Kenneth Geist, the other with Sam Staggs, author of "All About 'All About Eve'". There are
promotional interviews with Davis and Baxter, four newsreels, a trailer, and a restoration comparison.

The restoration comparison is one of the strangest that I've seen. Instead of an audio track explaining the problems and processes involved in the transfer, there's a series of screens with text printed on them. There then follows a series of comparisons from various versions of the film. There's nothing really wrong with any of this, but considering the huge amount of time and effort that goes into a restoration of this magnitude, I expected something a bit more dynamic.

For any "All About Eve" fan, old or new, this is the DVD we have been waiting for, and at five dollars less than the original DVD, a real bargain.

Highly recommended!

130 of 143 found the following review helpful:


A SPARKLING MASTERPIECE!  Dec 04, 1999 By Scott Barkley
Bette Davis made this movie in 1950 when her career was faltering;her last film was the insipid "Beyond the Forest" (now considered a minor camp classic by some.) "All About Eve" is relished by many who hail it as Davis's all-time greatest performance(which is,in all fairness, arguable) as the forty year old magnetic actress Margo Channing.Many also feel Davis never looked better than she does here (her costume designer for this was the legendary Edith Head).The acting is genuinely excellent and the screenplay is music to the ears;as a consolation for not winning the AA,(it went to Judy Holliday)Davis received the coveted New York Film Critics Award for Best Actress.George Sanders is peerless as the poison pen critic Addison De Witt;( he won the academy award for best supporting actor.) Thelma Ritter is hilarious as the wise old companion of Margo's who's seen it all happen before. Celeste Holm gives an absolutely sparkling performance as Karen Richards(she tells Eve "I'm the lowest form of celebrity" she being the wife of playwright Lloyd Richards(Hugh Marlowe,whose wooden personality suits the role he plays.)Gregory Ratoff's timing in the "bicarbonate of soda" scene is amazing and Gary Merrill is right on as the cynical Bill whose age (32) creates insecurity for Margo; she fears she'll lose him to some young "babe".The film holds up extremely well,considering it will be 50 years old next year.Marilyn Monroe has an amusing bit as a "Graduate of the Copacabana School of Dramatic Arts" Finally we come to the gal who played the "little worm" of the title: Anne Baxter.She is astonishingly straightforward and realistic in her interpretation of the louse;if she seems to be a bit on the drab side, it's only because she's underplaying to the "Queen Mother", studying and using her idol as a stepping stone in order to get her name in electric lights and reign supreme as a Lady of the Theatre; in other words, she's diabolical as HELL! If you've never seen this movie, you're in for a treat. If you have'nt seen the DVD version do so;the print is crystal clear and adds immensely to the film's viewing pleasure.This is Mankiewicz's masterpiece and it won the Oscar for the Best Picture of 1950.

32 of 35 found the following review helpful:


One of the best american films ever made. What? No extras??  Jan 08, 2002 By Paulo Leite
All about Eve is (along with Sunset Blvd.) my favourite film of that year. What makes it so great? Everything! This is the story of how greedy people get ahead in showbiz: using other people and manipulating their lives.

But there's more than meets the eye. The screenplay really shows how the characters revolving around Eve get affected by her actions. All of them play important parts in her raise and ultimate fall.

And more... The ending is one of the best endings ever written on movie history. This is a film that trully shows you the circle of life and how the evil that you do returns to you in the end.

Bette Davis, Celeste Holm, Anne Baxter, Thelma Ritter (and even Marilyn Monroe)... This is also a film dominated by women. It is their antagonism between them that moves the film. What they want and what they do. Every scene in this film is capital.

An american gem: a solid script, a strong cast, a beautiful music score, great production values, a great cinematography and on top of it all, a great director in peak form.

This DVD edition is ok. I think this film deserved a better edition with some commentary or a brief documentary, production notes or something like that. Here, all you get is the trailer. Anyway, with or without extras, this film is a must!

My two favourite lines: Bette Davis' "fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night!" and "I wish someone would tell me about me." ohh, but there are many... George Sanders' introduction is beautiful as is his "killer to killer" final talk with Eve.
Buy it now!

14 of 14 found the following review helpful:


Fabulous New Print and Sound  Feb 09, 2011 By E. Fisch "theater fan"
The new Blu-Ray edition of All About Eve has a new fabulous, super clear flawless print, and incredible stereophonic sound. (There is no information on the disk or booklet on how this was done or where the improved soundtracks came from or were processed.) The movie itself is a classic, one of the ten best movies ever made, with Bette Davis giving a once-in-a lifetime performance. The new print is much clearer than any earlier versions and the sound has been improved over the years from extremely muffled (VHS) to this incredibly clear and excellent sounding transfer. There is also a separate audio-only track where Alfred Newman's music can be heard to even greater effect. I think most of the extras have been included in earlier DVD versions. It's worth replaceing your earlier DVD with this very much improved Blu-Ray version. I hope Fox can do the same magic on the Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals.

14 of 14 found the following review helpful:


A new 2-disc edition of the Best Picture Oscar winning classic  Feb 01, 2008 By calvinnme
This film brought Davis' career back from the brink and set up a very productive second act in her career. Margo (Bette Davis) plays an insecure aging star who helps a very poisonous young ingenue, Eve, (Anne Baxter) get started. As Margo, Davis throws some of the best tantrums of her career. Just when you think there is nobody more evil than Anne Baxter's Eve Harrington, along comes George Sander's Addison DeWitt and kicks her to the curb in that category.
The special features are:
Audio Commentaries -
1. Celeste Holm - Star; Joseph L. Mankiewicz - Director; Ken Geist - Author/Film Biographer; Christopher Mankiewicz - Director's Son
2. Sam Staggs - Author/Film Historian
Isolated Audio Track - Musical Score
Disc 2: ALL ABOUT EVE - Supplemental Material
Additional Release Material:
Additional Footage - "MovieTone News: 1951 Academy Awards Honor Best Film Achievements, 1951 Hollywood Attends Gala Premiere of "All About Eve," Holiday Magazine Awards, Look Magazine Awards"
Behind the Scenes -
1. "AMC Backstory: ALL ABOUT EVE"
Comparisons - Restoration Comparison
Documentaries -
1. "Joseph L. Mankiewicz: A Personal Journey"
2. "The Real Eve"
Featurettes -
1. "Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz"
2. "The Secret of Sarah Siddons"

Also included are some trailers and a stills gallery. This film is being released to DVD separately and as part of the Bette Davis Centenary Collection by Fox in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Bette Davis' birth.

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