THROUGH THIS LENS: FOCUS ON BETTE DAVIS
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True West turns its lens on the influential career of trailblazing Hollywood icon Bette Davis with a five film retrospective spanning four decades. Never one to shy away from complicated and morally-compromised characters, Davis paved the way for a new screen heroine with her intense and combative style and radical physical transformations. Beginning with her breakthrough role in Michael Curtiz’ The Cabin in the Cotton (1932) and ending with Robert Aldrich’s Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962), we’ll trace her evolution into the grande dame of Hollywood and the highest paid woman in America.
Join Board Chair Hillary Kambour and Artistic Director Mike Traina as we do a deep dive into Davis’ life in front of and behind the camera as well as the changes that took place in the Hollywood studio system and American cinematic storytelling. Additional titles include William Wyler’s noir masterpiece The Letter (1940), John Huston & Raoul Walsh’s pulpy melodrama In This Our Life (1942), and Joseph Mankiewicz’s Oscar-winning showbiz satire All About Eve (1950).
Location: True West Film Center - Screening Room - 373 Healdsburg Ave, Healdsburg, Ca
Time: 5:30pm Doors, 6:00pm Intro Presentation, 6:30pm Film begins, Discussion to follow the film.
Price: $20 per screening, $80 for a series pass for all 5.
Concessions available for purchase - Popcorn, soda, candy, wine + beer.
HOT TIP: Bring dinner with you!
WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?
Robert Aldrich, 1962, USA
When ‘Baby Jane’ (Bette Davis) is left to care for her celebrated older sister (Joan Crawford), an aging screen icon now confined to a wheelchair, it provides the perfect opportunity for the revenge she has always dreamed of. Expertly crafted in a Gothic style with virtuoso performances from two Hollywood legends, the film devolves into chaotic madness and represents one of the most thrilling and disturbing rivalries in the history of cinema both onscreen and off. Nominated for five Oscars including Best Actress for Davis. 132 minutes.