Watch Born to Be Bad For Free

One of my all time favorites.

Fantastic!

I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

With a long camera closeup lingering on her, you know that sweet looking Joan Fontaine is truly trouble. With the soap opera sounding name of Christabel Kane, Fontaine could be the aunt that Erica Kane of "All My Children" picked up a thing or two from. In fact, the whole plot line has a soap opera plot set up: distant relative Fontaine showing up at the home of Joan Leslie's, expected a day later, and passive aggressively setting up her scheming from the moment Leslie finds her sitting in her living room.Between the two women and three men (Robert Ryan, Zachary Scott and Mel Ferrer), there's enough soapy plot to fill an entire afternoon. Fontaine had played vixens before, but no one like Christabelle. Her murderess in "Ivy" was a period femme fatale, basically the American version of a Margaret Lockwood character, so in modern dress, she gets to be openly a modern women, basically a sort of Eve Harrington type schemer breaking into society rather than theater.The anti-hero bad boy, Robert Ryan, sees through her from the start, but is intrigued by her two sides. But if homewrecker has a picture in the dictionary, Fontaine's likeness in character should be there as she sets her eyes on Leslie's fiancée (Zachary Scott), with a painting by Mel Ferrer opening his eyes about her, and not taken in by her lady like facade. This goes for the gold as a camp classic, quite over the top, especially when Ryan refers to her painting as a cross between Lucretia Borgia and Peg o my heart.As for Leslie, she has a major makeup call as she's brought to life by the revelation of who this dangerous vixen really is and how she became the hand that not only rocked the cradle, but cracked it as well. Psychological darkness of the soul even opens the eyes of the amoral men, making this one of the few film noir where no crime is committed. Like the same named Erica Kane of daytime legend, God help any woman who gets any more male attention than her.

Taking her 1940's films into consideration the only thing Joan Fontaine might have been born to be was a mouse or, as she was portrayed in 1939's "The Women", a deer but as Joan got older Joan got bolder and by 1950 she was "Born to be Bad" and was holding the likes of Robert Ryan, Zachary Scott and Mel Ferrer in thrall. The director of this 'woman's picture' was Nicholas Ray who brought a steely edge to proceedings. Actually I've always thought Joan was born to play a bitch; that patrician air of hers was never suited to being simply 'nice' and it was to her credit that she could slip so easily between darkness and light, Here, though, she's almost too good to be true and I'm surprised no-one, other than good girl Joan Leslie, saw through her scheming earlier. Performances throughout are uniformly good; even Ferrer is first-rate here, (he hadn't yet developed that stiffness that marred his later work). Interestingly his character is probably meant to be gay but you really have to read between the lines and use a lot of imagination to get that. From a novel called "All Kneeling" by Ann Parrish.

Not a Typical Movie from the Big Studios, RKO Delivers, once again an Atypical Attraction of the Human condition in very Flawed People. It would be a Stretch to call this Film-Noir but some may do so. Let us call it that only in the most Liberal Confines. Even Scholars have been Uneasy about a Definitive Definition that has been Extremely Elusive.The Story is Sudsy to say the least and has been a Literary Lexicon forever. Movies, on the other hand, use to Tread Softly on this kind of Sultry, Seductive, and Immoral Behavior. After the War things did begin to Change, but Slowly and not without Careful Consideration. The word "Sex" in an Amorous sense, as in We have a "Sexual" Attraction in common, is used here, for example. That just wasn't said and You would be Hard Pressed to find it used that way during this Era, and from Unmarried People no less.The Film has quite a few Witty Quips and it is Better Verbally than Visually. As so, it can be Entertaining in a Romance Novel kind of way and probably Enjoyed more by Women.

I also think this is an excellent melodrama, although Joan Fontaine was completely unbelievable as the scheming Christabel. She was too fawning and too old to play such simpering innocence. How every man fell at her feet - there is a line in the film where, Donna, I think, comments on the men being over there "all kneeling" at Christabel's portrait. "All Kneeling" was the title of Anne Parrish's book that this film was based on. Joan Leslie is a different story. I have always felt Leslie was an under-rated actress, who, unfortunately, only came into her own at the end of her film career. In this film she, of course, plays the "good girl' (typpecasting she could never escape) but she has so much class and sophistication - she runs rings around Fontaine.Christabel (Joan Fontaine) arrives early (and she knows it) in spite of her innocent protestations. She is expected at Donna's (Joan Leslie) the next day but comes in the middle of preparations for a big party. She then proceeds to charm the men at the party - especially Nick (Robert Ryan), a brooding writer, who sees in Christabel a cold ruthlessness that he can't resist. She really wants Curtis Carey (Zachery Scott - again proving his versatility), Donna's extremely wealthy fiancée. Christabel thinks he will give her the life she feels she deserves and Donna is a mere stepping stone.Curtis wants to pick out an engagement present for Donna and Christabel, with a few "innocent" barbs about the expense of the present, manages to sow seeds of dissent between Curtis and Donna. Donna breaks her engagement and goes to London for a break. Uncle John (Harold Vermilyea) is the only who can see through Christabel and wants her to go back to her aunt. She wangles one more night and by the end of it is engaged to Curtis. She leaves behind an embittered Nick.After her marriage Aunt Clara comes to stay and she and Curtis become great friends. Christabel breaks up their friendship and sends Aunt Clara packing!!! Christabel throws herself into a social whirl of committees and balls, then Aunt Clara becomes ill. She uses Aunt Clara's illness as an excuse to snatch a few hours with Nick before he goes away. Things go horribly wrong (for Christabel) when Clara dies and Curtis realises that Christabel has neglected her and lied to him. He also realises who he should have married all along.Recommended.