La femme aux maléfices

Joan Fontaine plays a real conniver hiding beneath a soft exterior in "Born to Be Bad," also starring Robert Ryan, Zachary Scott, Mel Ferrer, and Joan Leslie.

Fontaine is Christabel, a young woman from the poor side of the family who comes to town to work for her Uncle John once his assistant (Leslie) has married a wealthy, eligible bachelor Curtis (Scott). Fontaine sets her sights on the big money right away but finds herself in the heavy clinches with an author (Ryan) who's in love with her. She's reminiscent in her way of a non-show biz Eve Harrington.

Using her soft voice and all that gossamer femininity, Christabel manages, with an innuendo here, an innuendo there, a suggestion here, a hint there - to totally break up the engaged couple and drive Joan Leslie right out of town.

Since Christabel has dropped out of business school, her uncle says she can't work for him and needs to return home. In a panic, she throws herself at Curtis at a ball and wins him. The question then is, what did she win? What did he lose?

This potboiler was directed by Nicholas Ray, and I have to believe the man had a sense of humor. Otherwise, how do you account for those love scenes? Every time a man went to kiss Fontaine, he swept her around and dipped her, nearly breaking her neck as the music crescendos. Then there were the shots of Joan, her face in a state of rapture, as she realized she was getting what she wanted. Very campy.

Joan Fontaine is excellent in the role, very sweet in the beginning but becoming austere after she marries Curtis. It's a subtle change but definitely demonstrates her acting ability. She looks lovely in a variety of gowns and dresses.

Robert Ryan is extremely handsome in this, as well as charming, funny, and a real catch. His character sees right through Christabel but wants her anyway. The acting is uniformly good. Mel Ferrer plays an artist who also has Christabel's number and paints her portrait.

"Born to Be Bad" is fun to watch though it's certainly not Ray's best work. I do think one has to allow for the fact that he saw this as a potboiler and directed it the way he did on purpose. If you can't beat 'em - and with this script, how could he - join 'em.

By the way, there's a mistake in the letter that Christabel leaves for Curtis.

Most people remember Nicholas Ray for his most famous films, Rebel Without A Cause and Johnny Guitar being the ones most talked about . Born To Be Bad is ensconced in the category reserved for ignored treasures and guilty pleasures, since Director Ray's characteristic "signature" as a director was just as canny in this film as in any of his lesser discussed works, On Dangerous Ground (which also featured Robert Ryan) being another example. This reviewer sees the same sophistication in Born To Be Bad as in another 50s Ray piece, In A Lonely Place; Born To Be Bad is just as cynical in its own way, guised as a superficially lighter "high society" melodrama. Although there are no dark staircases, ominous shadows or oblique camera angles here, Born To Be Bad has subterfuge and alienation at its core in Joan Fontaine's central character, Christabel Caine. The misery depicted here is the type that afflicts the rich and the venal, where wealth, not poverty, is the variable behind their alienation, and their betrayals are carried out in swank apartments and elite mansions instead of typical "noir" territory. The stylistic dimensions of the film aside, Born To Be Bad also features Robert Ryan and Joan Fontaine together romantically. For Ryan devotees searching for the few romantic roles that came his way, they should certainly see the film: the chemistry between Ryan and Fontaine simmers in furtive trysts that were somewhat risque for cinema of that era (a comparable romance between Ryan and a female lead can also be found in the 1952 "noir" masterpiece, Clash By Night). Still available on laserdisc, Born To Be Bad features a crystal clear video transfer worthy of any film buff.

Unscrupulous Christabel uses her wiles to break up her cousin's engagement to a wealthy man so she can marry him herself.

Considering the talent involved, the movie's a disappointment. The plot turns on the scheming Christabel and her ability to attract men. The trouble is Fontaine looks more like a wallflower than a temptress since neither costuming nor make-up has done her rather plain looks any favors. Thus, having her out-compete the vibrant, young Donna (Leslie) for Curtis's (Scott) affections, becomes a real stretch. Then too, Fontaine underplays the role, perhaps to a fault, such that it can't be her winning personality that gets the men. So what we're left with in the movie's middle is a credibility gap where there should be a compelling presence.

At the same time, the results suggest any one of a hundred Hollywood directors could have helmed the workman-like production. Looks to me like cult director Ray found nothing to engage his formidable talents and simply went through the motions. I suspect he took the script on assignment, viewing the project mainly as a vehicle for its celebrity-star.

On the other hand, is the colorful array of male cast members— a commanding Robert Ryan, a shrewd Mel Ferrer, and a sympathetic Zachary Scott (for once). In fact, Ryan's dark features and towering masculinity as Nick almost blot out Fontaine's recessive presence in their scenes together. As Christabel's secret lover, he's totally believable even when she isn't. Add to them, the lovely young Leslie, who shows an impressive range as both trusting soul and wronged woman, and the movie does have its compensations, including a well-calculated ending.

Nonetheless, the film as a whole fails to gel, suggesting that Fontaine the actress is much better at playing the innocent rather than the wanton.

I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed BORN TO BE BAD (1950). The plot, about a woman who infiltrates a circle of friends and destroys their relationships, suggests a lot of melodrama. But the movie is buoyed by an excellent cast of characters and a script that sparkles with wit.

There is drama, to be sure, but there's some nice humor that comes from the characters and their relationships with one another. Nothing gets so serious that somebody pulls a gun or commits suicide or anything. There are no shrill histrionics. The movie is a little racy for Hayes Code fare, but it's not terribly dark or gritty. It's a rather pleasant tale about a selfish woman who only hurts herself in the end.

Robert Ryan is great as the cynical, rough-edged author. Mel Ferrer is great as the witty painter. Joan Fontaine is lovely as always as the maneater who conceals her scheming behind a façade of sweet innocence. This is a sexier, sneakier Joan Fontaine than viewers may be accustomed to. Joan Leslie, still only twenty-five, is fine in her adult role, after years of playing ingenues. Zachary Scott rounds out the principal cast as Leslie's rich fiancé.

Nicholas Ray deftly handles the directing duties, in both the busy party scenes and the noir-ish love scenes.

The movie isn't very deep or compelling, but it is very watchable thanks to the terrific performances and some wonderfully witty lines. Robert Ryan steals the show.

After years of watching films and studying their art for my own pleasure, I've decided that some of the most interesting and least appreciated movies are those released under the RKO logo. Born to be Bad is a prime example. Made in 1948-49 (not released until '50) under the aegis of Howard Hughes while he was alternately pursuing and manipulating Joan Fontaine, this movie has a unique, non -studio look. Very little location work was done, but doesn't it feel like San Francisco (more than Vertigo!). Literate script, intelligent casting, stylish sets and costumes (New York designer Hattie Carnegie for Fontaine, RKO in-house man Michael Woulfe for Joan Leslie) add up to an engrossing, adult 90 minutes. Speaking of adult; there's been some comments here about the Mel Ferrer character: "Is he or isn't he gay?" IS THERE ANY DOUBT? And check out one scene, unbelievably adult for 1950 Hollywood: When Fontaine returns home after a torrid sexual encounter with Robert Ryan, she quickly takes a hot bath before husband Zachary Scott returns home. Scent of another man? Pretty hot stuff in retrospect. Check this movie out when you get the opportunity!