bettte davis wanted to play scarlette o'hara in gone with the wind,but b/c jack warner wouldn't loan her out to david o'selleznick, and the part went to unknown actress named vivian leigh. ms.davis was so mad that they made a movie taken place in that same time period. and the character julie is also very similar to scarlet o'hara
sharethat is true. but i think that b/c of the circumstances people compare it to gone with the wind. and truly bette is no vivien and jezabel is no gone with the wind. its a so-so immatation
share"and truly bette is no vivien and jezabel is no gone with the wind. its a so-so immatation"
Well that is your opinion. I think they both did an equal job. Though Gone with the wind is a better movie over all, William Wyler did an outstanding job with Jezebel. No other director could tame ms. davis like he could and the scene when Pres comes home and Julie kneels to him is one of the BEST moments on screen. Bette Davis over all range is far superior to Vivien. As for the "so-so immatation" thing... Jezebel was filmed and in the theater before thay had even cast Gone With the Wind.
With GWTW in colour and Jezebel B&W, comparison is invidious.
Many anti-fur protests, few anti-leather. Seniors & models must be easier to bully than bikers.
Viv was a better actress over all and starred in some of the most important movies of all time- Gone with the wind and a streetcar named desire. thats not opinion, its fact.
and gone with the wind may have just been in casting but the book was obviously already written no one could possibly argue that the stories are not similar and sense GWTW came out first it was obviously wat was immatated.
Jezabels a good movie, but not a great one
Have pity on the people who try to decipher your posts, folks - learn to spell (there's no excuse for incorrectly spelling a star's name or a character's name here on IMDB) - people will take your posts more seriously, too, no matter how wide of the mark your opinions.
"I don't use a pen: I write with a goose quill dipped in venom!"---W. Lydecker
This thread is a little off the mark. Jezebel was based on a play (starring Miriam Hopkins), Hopkins thought she would get the lead in the movie but the play was a flop and Davis - her arch enemy - was cast instead. Hopkins and Davis hated each other and when Davis got the Oscar nod in a part Hopkins originated it only added a little color to their legendary feud.
The role was not given to Davis as compensation for the loss of the GWTW role, this film was made and cast far ahead of the "Gone" decisions and released in 1938, that story is just Hollywood myth. The direction and casting choices of this picture were William Wyler's. I won't argue the merits of Davis versus Leigh but Wyler thought Davis was better for this role and ... well he was a pretty decent director. Actually I can't think of anyone else who could have pulled it off, Davis is at her best here.
The similarities with this movie and GWTW are there I guess but the movies really don't have much in common other than period and I don't think they are comparable. I can understand why people would make the comparisons though. It is tempting.
Wyler made the calculated choice to film this movie in black and white and I think it was the correct one. This was never really intended to be an in your face movie and relies on subtlety for it's effect. For me it works perfectly, I don't need to see the red of the dress to know it's red or that it is shocking to southern sensibilities.
All in all this is a great classic, somewhat forgotten that deserves better treatment and regard. It deserves to stand on it's own right and be seen as it's own movie. Having watched several of Wyler's recently including this one he really was an amazing director.
The last part about Warner not letting Davis out of his contract for Gone with the Wind is true but it is doubtful she would have gotten the part anyway. There are lots of reasons as explained in both the biographies of Davis and Vivien Leigh.