The Best of Everything (1959)
The Best of Everything is one of the great staples of one of my favorite genres: 1950s melodramas. A cross between Peyton Place and Three Coins in a Fountain, this luscious drama follows several secretaries who try to pursue both love and a career, although as Johnny Mathis sings in the title song during the opening credits, “Romance is still the best of everything,” they learn that sometimes, a woman can’t have both.
This is one of my favorite movies, so obviously I’m going to recommend it. Although it varies drastically from Rona Jaffe’s racy novel, it was still very shocking given the earlier films of the 1950s. Pregnancy, mistresses, torrid love affairs, infidelity, and casual sex are all topics within this film. Oh, the mischief an innocent girl can get into when she goes to the big, bad city in search of a job! Feminists will probably dislike this movie and prefer the book, since it’s an overwhelming theme that love is preferable to a career and choosing the latter will lead to a hardened heart. Joan Crawford, a senior editor at the magazine office, is a spinster and very bitter. She’s unhappy and drives the secretaries crazy with her strict demands because she constantly fears someone will steal her job and she’ll have nothing in her life. Sue Carson, a secretary with less screen time, is saving her money so that she can get married and become a housewife. A famous line from both the movie and the novel is said about her: “She’s the smartest of us all.”
Since I’m not a feminist, I have no problem with this message, as it’s a very common one in pre-1960s films. I actually really like Sue’s character because she’s smart with her money, has a practical relationship with her boyfriend, and doesn’t take things so seriously.
Hope Lange, Suzy Parker, and Diane Baker are the three leads with different work ethics and goals in the magazine office. Suzy is a wannabe actress who often misses work for auditions and soon becomes consumed in a passionate affair with famous playwright Louis Jourdan. They have sizzling chemistry together and are perfect counterparts to each other, with her devotion and desperation to his aloofness and selfishness. He plays such a cad, but you’ll be able to find a moment of remorse in his performance. Just as Suzy plays an independent woman, but with moments of insecurity.
Diane Baker is naïve and comes across as easy prey to Brian Aherne, the stereotypical bottom-pincher in the office, as well as smooth, snobby cad Robert Evans. Her foolishness is quite irritating at times, but it doesn’t have to do with her performance because she’s written that way. Martha Hyer, whose part was greatly reduced from the novel, is a single mother who needs the income, but juggles her love for a married man at the office. And finally, there’s my favorite: Hope Lange. She starts the film engaged and only interested in her work to pass the time while he’s away, but after her fiancé leaves her for an oil heiress, she learns to crave a career, much like Joan Crawford turned to her work instead of love. The handsome, kind, and savvy Stephen Boyd is one of the lead editors, and he and Hope quickly start up a romance. Can you blame her? He’s gorgeous! But can she do what no woman has done before her, balance work and love?
You’ll have to watch this amazing movie to find out what happens to each woman in her own dramatic journey. Everyone who’s ever worked in an office will sympathize during the company picnic, the office party when too many people get too drunk, and lunch breaks that last longer for the executives than the underlings. With lush, beautiful colors, pretty costumes, a fantastic title song, you’re in for a wonderful movie you can enjoy over and over again.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. When Suzy Parker starts hiding out on the fire escape, the camera tilts for the next few scenes and that will make you sick. In other words, “Don’t Look, Mom!”
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru, and thanks "Classic Cinema Central Seleus B" for posting!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of Rona Jaffe's novel here!
More Brian Aherne movies here!
More Joan Crawford movies here!
This is one of my favorite movies, so obviously I’m going to recommend it. Although it varies drastically from Rona Jaffe’s racy novel, it was still very shocking given the earlier films of the 1950s. Pregnancy, mistresses, torrid love affairs, infidelity, and casual sex are all topics within this film. Oh, the mischief an innocent girl can get into when she goes to the big, bad city in search of a job! Feminists will probably dislike this movie and prefer the book, since it’s an overwhelming theme that love is preferable to a career and choosing the latter will lead to a hardened heart. Joan Crawford, a senior editor at the magazine office, is a spinster and very bitter. She’s unhappy and drives the secretaries crazy with her strict demands because she constantly fears someone will steal her job and she’ll have nothing in her life. Sue Carson, a secretary with less screen time, is saving her money so that she can get married and become a housewife. A famous line from both the movie and the novel is said about her: “She’s the smartest of us all.”
Since I’m not a feminist, I have no problem with this message, as it’s a very common one in pre-1960s films. I actually really like Sue’s character because she’s smart with her money, has a practical relationship with her boyfriend, and doesn’t take things so seriously.
Hope Lange, Suzy Parker, and Diane Baker are the three leads with different work ethics and goals in the magazine office. Suzy is a wannabe actress who often misses work for auditions and soon becomes consumed in a passionate affair with famous playwright Louis Jourdan. They have sizzling chemistry together and are perfect counterparts to each other, with her devotion and desperation to his aloofness and selfishness. He plays such a cad, but you’ll be able to find a moment of remorse in his performance. Just as Suzy plays an independent woman, but with moments of insecurity.
Diane Baker is naïve and comes across as easy prey to Brian Aherne, the stereotypical bottom-pincher in the office, as well as smooth, snobby cad Robert Evans. Her foolishness is quite irritating at times, but it doesn’t have to do with her performance because she’s written that way. Martha Hyer, whose part was greatly reduced from the novel, is a single mother who needs the income, but juggles her love for a married man at the office. And finally, there’s my favorite: Hope Lange. She starts the film engaged and only interested in her work to pass the time while he’s away, but after her fiancé leaves her for an oil heiress, she learns to crave a career, much like Joan Crawford turned to her work instead of love. The handsome, kind, and savvy Stephen Boyd is one of the lead editors, and he and Hope quickly start up a romance. Can you blame her? He’s gorgeous! But can she do what no woman has done before her, balance work and love?
You’ll have to watch this amazing movie to find out what happens to each woman in her own dramatic journey. Everyone who’s ever worked in an office will sympathize during the company picnic, the office party when too many people get too drunk, and lunch breaks that last longer for the executives than the underlings. With lush, beautiful colors, pretty costumes, a fantastic title song, you’re in for a wonderful movie you can enjoy over and over again.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. When Suzy Parker starts hiding out on the fire escape, the camera tilts for the next few scenes and that will make you sick. In other words, “Don’t Look, Mom!”
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru, and thanks "Classic Cinema Central Seleus B" for posting!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of Rona Jaffe's novel here!
More Brian Aherne movies here!
More Joan Crawford movies here!
Hot Toasty Rag Awards:
Best Original Song of 1959: "The Best of Everything"
Hot Toasty Rag Nominations:
Best Picture
Best Dramatic Screenplay