I found this movie engrossing and worth seeing and having as a DVD. It is a lavish production, in glorious color and crystal clear image, the era is represented perfectly, with splendid costumes and superb settings. It is true that the script does not go into the depths of the characters' personalities, but presents the drama as it "appeared" to the public eye at the time. With the real Evelyn Nesbit acting as consultant, it is to be expected that the story would be embellished and the hard edges rounded. So we do not have a "shocker", but the plot has sufficient dramatic elements to make the movie interesting and original. Rather than exposing the naked truth, they lead us to guess what is hidden, by reading between the lines and correctly translating the innuendos provided. E.g., it is plain that White is a womanizer, we see him being friendly with show girls and keeping a notebook full of female names, to be summoned for his amusement in his private quarters. Evelyn, though depicted as an innocent, is also shown eager to enter the circle of the "rich and famous" and ready to pop up from a cake at a stag party or to accept presents from men she hardly knew. As for Thaw, his madness is evident throughout the movie. Avoiding to present him also as a drug addict does not signify much, as it would rather give him another excuse for his acts, being "under the influence". There are two points that bothered me about the direction: The inauguration ceremony at the Hall of Fame, if I remember well, which was obviously made at the studio against a background photograph, and the same goes for the scene in the Alps, where Thaw proposed to Evelyn. With so much money spent on the movie, I think they could have shot these scenes in the actual locations.... Also there are not quite so many close-ups of the actors as I would like. Otherwise, the direction was very effective. About the performances: I believe the movie would greatly benefit, if Marilyn Monroe had played the role of Evelyn. Joan Collins was surely very beautiful, but lacks Marilyn's sensual magnetism and therefore is not so believable as the object of such fatal obsessions... Monroe would be ideal, because both physically and in the acting department, she was superior to Collins. In such a case, of course, her co-stars would have suffered from her tantrums and insecurities, but that is another story... Ray Milland as Stanford White, is exactly what the role demands, once more delivering the essence of the character in his usual effortless way, never over the top, but always realistic and human. We see him as a very authoritative figure of his time, respected and admired, a bit cynical and stand-offish, charming and classy, with a sense of humor and basically a decent man. One would easily understand that the attraction for his "conquests" was his charm and not his high position. The scene with the swing in really a piece of cinematic anthology. It is a love scene, the act of love disguised as a game, and it is easy to imagine what follows after that.... Pity that we did not see the real thing, but it seems that an actual love scene with a minor would be taboo at the time. Hollywood was very hypocritical then and Milland himself had a personal experience only the year before, 1954, when his involvement with the much younger Grace Kelly almost jeopardized his career. As for Granger, he succeeds in making Thaw appear disturbing --and disturbed-- as well as irritating, which is enough to make him believable. Thaw's trial and Evelyn's manipulation and callous rejection by her husband's family are drawn in large and effective strokes. And there could not be a more appropriate epilogue to this story than the final scene with the swing -- so different from the first one, as bitter and degrading as the other was romantic and delightful.. The loss of innocence and the harsh realities of life, again disguised as a game. Love is a very dangerous game to play, indeed...
Review of The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing
