Queen Bee (1955)

Director:

Ranald MacDougall

Writers:

Edna L. Lee (novel)
Ranald MacDougall (writer)

Release Date:

7 November 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

She's so excitingly good . . . when she's so wonderfully bad!

Plot:

Eva Phillips is a Southern socialite whose manipulation and ruthlessness ruins the lives of everyone around her...

Plot Keywords:

Manipulation | Land Owner | Alcoholic | She Devil | Grief

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars.

Cast

Joan Crawford	...	Eva Phillips
Barry Sullivan	...	Avery 'Beauty' Phillips
Betsy Palmer	...	Carol Lee Phillips
John Ireland	...	Judson Prentiss
Lucy Marlow	...	Jennifer Stewart
William Leslie	...	Ty McKinnon
Fay Wray	...	Sue McKinnon
Katherine Anderson	...	Miss Breen
Tim Hovey	...	Ted Phillips
Linda Bennett	...	Trissa Phillips

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Christina Crawford, Joan Crawford's adopted daughter, recounted in her autobiography "Mommy Dearest" that she had to leave the theater midway through a showing of this film because it was too true-to-life in her mother's portrayal of the main character.

Quotes:

Eva Phillips: I'm an outsider. They hate outsiders. Oh, they're polite enough - that's how they are. You don't know the things they've made me do trying to protect myself. And how ashamed I've been sometimes because of them. You don't know how they are. But you'll find out, as I have how they whisper, small talk, laugh! As if you have to be from the South to be any good! Oh, they're so smug, and namby-pamby! I wish I could get rid of them as easy as this trash!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Die, Mommie, Die! (2003)

Gotta Love Joan!

There's only one real reason to see this film, and it's for Joan Crawford, who is a hoot in nearly every scene she is in. Though there is no real depth to any of the characters here, it does feature a pretty good supporting cast: Barry Sullivan, John Ireland...even Fay Wray turns up. Joan dishes out one nasty one-liner after the next...shredding apart the people around her. You can tell she must have had a lot of fun "playing" this role. Lucy Marlow is a little annoying as Jennifer, but her character gradually changes. Betsy Palmer as Carol, is pretty good. I wasn't too fond of the ending, it just seemed like it was tacked on, but that didn't keep me from enjoying the rest of the film. I'd watch it again, just because of Joan.