Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)
A long, campy but well made Bette Davis Gothic thriller with a deep classic cast.
The short version
- Fans of Bette Davis and Olivia de Havilland
- Viewers who enjoy Southern Gothic and classic black and white horror
- Anyone exploring the films that followed Baby Jane
- You want a tight, fast paced thriller
- Camp and heightened acting put you off
- You prefer colour films
What owners like
- Davis gives a big, committed performance
- Gothic black and white photography sets the mood
- A deep cast of classic Hollywood names
- The Eureka Blu-ray has a strong transfer and extras
Common complaints
- Runs longer than the story needs
- Camp and melodrama can tip into silliness
- Less satisfying than What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, per one critic
Based on Wikipedia's film entry, a Blueprint Review of the Masters of Cinema Blu-ray, Emanuel Levy's review and the digital listing..
Research scores
Scored from the maker's specs and what owners report. Drew's own notes and photos will refine these.
Ownership
Drew's hands-on notes for this product are on the way. Long-term updates will be added to this timeline.
What it does
Robert Aldrich's black and white Southern Gothic thriller starring Bette Davis as a recluse haunted by a decades old murder, with Olivia de Havilland and Joseph Cotten.
- Bette Davis as a Southern recluse suspected in a murder from decades earlier
- Olivia de Havilland as the cousin who arrives to help her
- Seven Academy Award nominations, including Agnes Moorehead for supporting actress
- Black and white photography by Joseph Biroc
- Score by Frank De Vol, with an Oscar nominated title song
A strong pick for fans of Bette Davis, classic Hollywood horror and the campy psycho thriller cycle that followed What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? Critics praise the cast and the moody photography, but the film runs long at over two hours and leans into melodrama that some find silly.
How it compares
Specs
- Director and producer
- Robert Aldrich
- Screenplay
- Henry Farrell and Lukas Heller, from an unpublished story by Farrell
- Cast
- Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead, Cecil Kellaway, Mary Astor
- Studio
- 20th Century-Fox
- Released
- December 1964
- Runtime
- About 133 minutes, black and white
- Home media
- DVD from 2005, Blu-ray from Twilight Time (2016) and Eureka Masters of Cinema (2019), plus digital rental
Worth knowing
- The digital listing carries a 16+ rating and notes violence, smoking, foul language and flashing lights.
Questions
Who directed Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte?
Robert Aldrich, who also produced it and had directed What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
How long is Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte?
About 133 minutes.
Was Joan Crawford in Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte?
Crawford was originally cast but left the production, and Olivia de Havilland took the role.
Is Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte a horror film?
It is usually called a Southern Gothic psychological thriller with horror elements.
How many Oscars was it nominated for?
Seven, including Agnes Moorehead for best supporting actress and black and white cinematography.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte
- Blueprint Review: Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte, Masters of Cinema Blu-ray
- Emanuel Levy: Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)
- Product listing: Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte
Researched 2026-10-02. We bought this product; our page is built from the maker's details and what owners report across reviews and forums. We never copy Amazon customer reviews.