Barbara Stanwyck played her share of angelic mothers and the like (SO BIG (1932), THE TWO MRS. CARROLLS (1947), STELLA DALLAS (1937)), but my favorite Stanwyck roles are when she played a smart-talking chiseller Often, Stanwyck was even able to bring a certain degree of empathy to the dastardly of characters (excepting Phyllis Dietrichson, of course). Many of her swindling characters weren't really bad women, they were just involved in some pretty seedy dealings. Here is my list of Stanwyck anti-heroines. Whichever way you take your Stanwyck, these movies are definitely classic cinema gold.
THE LADY EVE (1941) comedy, romanceDirector: Preston Sturges
Co-starring: Henry Fonda and Charles Coburn
Synopsis: After spending a year studying snakes in the Amazon, wealthy beer heir Charles Pike inintentionally falls head-over-heels in love with a card shark's daughter.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: Jean Harrington (Stanwyck) pulls some fast ones on Pike, before they fall in love, that is. Unfortunately, Pike discovers who she is before she can come straight with him. This leads her to continue to deceive until she can earn back his love, while teaching him a few lessons in the process!
"You see, Hopsi, you don't know very much about girls. The best ones aren't as good as you probably think they are, and the bad ones aren't as bad. Not nearly as bad."
MEET JOHN DOE (1941) comedy, drama, romanceDirector: Frank Capra
Co-starring: Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan Spring Byington, James Gleason, Gene Lockhart
Synopsis: After she is fired from the paper, reporter Ann Mitchell (Stanwyck) writes a fictional letter from a fictional John Doe who threatens to commit suicide in protest of social ills. The paper rehires her and employs a man to play out the John Doe character for the public, starting a radical political movement.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: Ann Mitchell intended to stir things up for her own benefit, to let off steam and to harm the institution that had just put her out of the job. Little did she know that her selfish angst would spark a national movement.
BALL OF FIRE (1941) comedy, romanceDirector: Howard Hawks
Co-starring: Gary Cooper, Oskar Homolka, Henry Travers, S.Z. Sakall, Dana Andrews, Gene Krupa and his Orchestra
Synopsis: A nightclub singer moves in with seven professors working on an encyclopaedia while she hides out from the cops. What she doesn't wager on is falling in love with the youngest brain, who employs her assistance for his article about American slang. (Here's a great article about Stanwyck's costume)
Stanwyck anti-heroine: At the start of the film, Sugarpuss (Stanwyck) is in with a bad crowd. When her boyfriend gets in trouble with the cops, she does her best to help him stay out of trouble, believing he actually intends to marry her. But when she starts associating with the gentle professors, she learns that other people, people she has come to love, are effected by her choices. This causes her to rethink what she really wants out of life.
"Yes, I love him. I love those hick shirts he wears with the boiled cuffs and the way he always has his vest buttoned wrong. Looks like a giraffe, and I love him. I love him because he's the kind of a guy that gets drunk on a glass of buttermilk, and I love the way he blushes right up over his ears. Love him because he doesn't know how to kiss, the jerk!"
LADY OF BURLESQUE (1943) comedy, musical, mystery, romance
Director: William A. Wellman
Based on a novel by Gypsy Rose Lee
Synopsis: When a burlesque performer's rivals are murdered, she hunts down their killer so as to prevent herself, the prime suspect, from being arrested for a crime she didn't commit.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: Although Stanwyck plays a stripper, and though she is surrounded by other catty stripper, this film is actually one of the best examples of communities of professional women that I have seen. The camaraderie and friendship exhibited by the showgirls as they work through this case is pretty stellar. The dialogue is also fast-paced, witty, and freaking hilarious!
CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT (1945) comedy, romance, CHRISTMAS!!!!
Director: Peter Godfrey
Co-starring: Sydney Greenstreet, S.Z. Sakall, Una O'Connor, Dennis Morgan
Synopsis: Although single New York "Smart Housekeeping" journalist Elizabeth Lane doesn't even know how to boil an egg, when her editor invites a heroic sailor to spend Christmas at her "farm," she must recreate the fiction she has established in her column - that she is an excellent cook, wife, mother, and housekeeper.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: As in MEET JOHN DOE, this female journalists fictitious writing is mistaken for real life and lands her in a whole heap of trouble. Elizabeth (Stanwyck) has to jump through hoops of lies in order to save her job and, eventually, her relationship.
Based on a novel by Gypsy Rose Lee
Synopsis: When a burlesque performer's rivals are murdered, she hunts down their killer so as to prevent herself, the prime suspect, from being arrested for a crime she didn't commit.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: Although Stanwyck plays a stripper, and though she is surrounded by other catty stripper, this film is actually one of the best examples of communities of professional women that I have seen. The camaraderie and friendship exhibited by the showgirls as they work through this case is pretty stellar. The dialogue is also fast-paced, witty, and freaking hilarious!
CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT (1945) comedy, romance, CHRISTMAS!!!!
Director: Peter Godfrey
Co-starring: Sydney Greenstreet, S.Z. Sakall, Una O'Connor, Dennis Morgan
Synopsis: Although single New York "Smart Housekeeping" journalist Elizabeth Lane doesn't even know how to boil an egg, when her editor invites a heroic sailor to spend Christmas at her "farm," she must recreate the fiction she has established in her column - that she is an excellent cook, wife, mother, and housekeeper.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: As in MEET JOHN DOE, this female journalists fictitious writing is mistaken for real life and lands her in a whole heap of trouble. Elizabeth (Stanwyck) has to jump through hoops of lies in order to save her job and, eventually, her relationship.
"Where am I gonna get a farm? I don't even have a window box!"
"The things a girl will do for a mink coat."
Director: Billy Wilder
Writers: James M. Cain (novel), Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler (screenplay)
Co-staring: Fred MacMurray, Edward G. Robinson
Synopsis: An insurance salesman falls in love with the wife of one of his clients and they have an affair. The couple then plots the murder of her husband so they can collect his life insurance and begin a new life together.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: I saved this one for last because it is most definitely Stanwyck's cruellest character. Indeed, Phyllis Dietrichson might just be the most evil woman in the whole of movies. Her cold-blooded plotting, dieciet, and murder is just bone-chilling. This is not a Stanwyck that will reform. She does not have a warm heart under all that sinisterness. Just turn around and run a way now.
Barbara Stanwyck was nothing if not a versatile actress. And what talent! I honestly hadn't realized how many of her films I had seen, and there are still plenty more on my list. If you are a Stanwyck fan, or thinking of becoming one, do check out my profile on "Babs from Brooklyn," as well as the other contributions to the Barbara Stanwyck Blogathon from The Girl with the White Parasol. Thanks for reading!
Writers: James M. Cain (novel), Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler (screenplay)
Co-staring: Fred MacMurray, Edward G. Robinson
Synopsis: An insurance salesman falls in love with the wife of one of his clients and they have an affair. The couple then plots the murder of her husband so they can collect his life insurance and begin a new life together.
Stanwyck anti-heroine: I saved this one for last because it is most definitely Stanwyck's cruellest character. Indeed, Phyllis Dietrichson might just be the most evil woman in the whole of movies. Her cold-blooded plotting, dieciet, and murder is just bone-chilling. This is not a Stanwyck that will reform. She does not have a warm heart under all that sinisterness. Just turn around and run a way now.
"I was thinking about that dame upstairs, and the way she had looked at me, and I wanted to see her again, close, without that silly staircase between us."FINAL ANALYSIS
"It's just like the first time I came here, isn't it? We were talking about automobile insurance, only you were thinking about murder. And I was thinking about that anklet."
"How could I have known that murder could sometimes smell like honeysuckle?"
Barbara Stanwyck was nothing if not a versatile actress. And what talent! I honestly hadn't realized how many of her films I had seen, and there are still plenty more on my list. If you are a Stanwyck fan, or thinking of becoming one, do check out my profile on "Babs from Brooklyn," as well as the other contributions to the Barbara Stanwyck Blogathon from The Girl with the White Parasol. Thanks for reading!
An excellent list of Barbara as "anti-heroine". A lot of faves on this list!
ReplyDelete"Meet John Doe" is one that I haven't seen for too long. Thanks for reminding me -- I need to see it again.
Great article! As you said, Barbara was versatile and could play any character. Yet, I still prefer the anti-heroines in her career.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget to read my contribution to the blogathon! :)
Kisses!
You picked my favorite quote from The Lady Eve and one that perfectly sums up Barbara Stanwyck's career. I liked reading through your list of Stanwyck anti-heroines. The only one I might quibble with is Lady of Burlesque since I think she's pretty much straight-up heroine in that one, whatever her profession. But it's still a nice example of how Stanwyck could add spice to any role. I'd also add her performances in The Furies and in Baby Face as good examples of Stanwyck roles where you don't know whether to cheer her on or beg her to reform. Well, I have to admit, mostly I cheer her on :).
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining the blogathon!
You might be right about Lady of Burlesque. I haven't seen the other two you mention - I'll have to add them to the list. Thanks for dropping by!
Delete