The Little Foxes (1941)

What a beautiful movie!

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Blistering performances.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

This is my favorite Bette Davis film. I lifelong never warmed to her. (Barbara Stanwyck either, but that's another bias.) Because I was young and she was rarely nice, I generally liked BD's movies despite her, but this I liked top to bottom, with her near the top. And nice she ain't. Certainly you can see its theatrical roots and if ever a play translated well to the screen, this is it. Almost everybody in it came from the theater and they are masters. In fact, I am in danger of overusing the word 'masterful' when it comes to this. That the script and dialog can still work so well today is a sign of how mast... If you like Davis; if you like old movies; if you like morality tales of greed and bloodless malevolence...It is also has my favorite performance by young Dan Duryea, who's character for many years after I first saw it embodied the concept of 'human weasel'.

While not quite one of my favourite William Wyler films like Roman Holiday, Ben-Hur, The Best Years of Our Lives, Wuthering Heights, Mrs. Miniver and Dodsworth (also remember great things about The Heiress), The Little Foxes is an excellent film and another one of his near-classics).The Little Foxes, as always with Wyler's films, looks great with photography that is both sumptuous and clever (like Jezebel, one does feel like they are not just surveying the action but are being part of it), atmospherically shadowy lighting and elegant costuming and sets. Meredith Wilson's score is effectively haunting and induces some suspense that adds a lot to the atmosphere of the story, while never overbearing the drama. The Little Foxes is superlatively directed by Wyler, his use of the camera is relentless, he keeps the drama taut and does such a great job engrossing the audience into the story and its atmosphere to the extent it's like being there.Incredibly powerful writing, with razor sharp and chillingly vicious dialogue, and a story that's paced smoothly, darkly cruel, acutely dramatic without being melodramatic or ham-fisted but still entertaining and very compelling in its realism are also great assets, and there are scenes that stay with you for a long time like Regina and Alexandra's climactic scene on the staircase, the interaction between the characters and especially Horace's death scene (and that was mostly because of some chilling acting from Davis). The characters are interesting and well-written if mostly unsympathetic apart from Alexandra, David and Horace, and like the story compellingly realistic.Herbert Marshall is on excellent form, bringing poignant tragedy to the role, while Patricia Collinge is heart-breaking, Teresa Wright is radiant and touching with a touch of feisty spirit in her later scenes and Richard Carlson makes for a sympathetic boyfriend. On the other end of the spectrum, there is also Carl Benton Reid and Dan Duryea is greedily calculating brothers and Charles Dingle is entertainingly devious and intelligently deceptive as a scheming character. Best of all is the towering portrayal by Bette Davis, playing one of the most monstrous characters of her career along with Whatever Happened to Baby Jane and The Anniversary, even her appearance is enough to give you the creeps.Only the somewhat abrupt and not quite resolved enough ending isn't so good, other than that The Little Foxes is an excellent film, that while not among Wyler's best it does deserve to be seen more. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Based on a play, feels like a play. Slow-moving, overly melodramatic, overly scheme-filled, overwrought. Not entirely dull, but it is very difficult to stay focused it moves so slowly. The excessive malevolence and greed on display is also very off-putting.On the plus side, it is a mildly interesting morality tale. It is just that the immorality/amorality is so overdone that the movie doesn't feel balanced. There are glimpses of goodness, but these are often extinguished quickly, and/or are always fighting a losing battle.Bette Davis is evil personified as Regina Giddens. While her character is incredibly unsavoury, Davis' performance is spot-on. Good support from Herbert Marshall and Teresa Wright.

I liked this movie and I didn't at the same time. Is that even possible?? Well, here goes. I loved the overall plot of the movie, it is very wicked! That is intriguing to an audience...a plot that makes you raise a brow. I liked the character that was played by Davis. Davis lights an extremely stern kind of evil spirit into her character. The costume and lighting came to aid in this evil persona. The music also caused a dramatization for the overall movie. The hairstyles really portrayed the personalities of the characters quite well. Regina's(Davis)hair was never out of line. It was always kept tight and put together. Not a single strand was out of place. The styles were very rigid, like her character. Facial expressions were key in this film. Davis' expressions were nothing but chilling and cold. This I believe was exactly what the film needed. The downside was, in my opinion, the movie was a bit too drawn out for my liking. However, this is just my opinion. The overall production of the film was great though.