November 2, 2014, 5:30 p.m. — A Child’s Introduction to the Wonders of Space (1979), Another Man’s Poison (1951)
Directed by Irving Rapper. Great Britain. Producer Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., lured Bette Davis and her new husband, Gary Merrill, to England to film this little-seen independent production, a feebly plotted thriller that quickly becomes a chance for Davis to slip back into her high camp mannerisms from All About Eve, filmed one year before. Luckily, Davis also has a malleable director of her own choice, Rapper, who lets her get away with murder in more ways than one. Screenplay by Val Guest, based on a play by Leslie Sands. As Janet Frobisher, a suspense novelist with a home on a misty moor, Davis has to deal with a murdered husband, a young lover (Anthony Steel), and her husband’s blackmailing partner in crime (Merrill), while an epicene local veterinarian (Williams) hovers about, suspecting foul play. 90 min.
