The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing (1955) User Reviews

The trial of the century

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 19 February 2011]

Joan Collins is Evelyn Nesbit, the beautiful "Girl in the Red Velvet Swing" in this 1955 film also starring Ray Milland, Farley Granger, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Frances Fuller, and Glenda Farrell. The film purports to tell the story of the White-Nesbitt-Thaw triangle that ended with the murder of White, the arrest of Thaw, and the testimony of Nesbit.

The facts are there, but as others have pointed out, the personalities are not. White (Milland) in fact was a notorious womanizer, and Evelyn was but another conquest. And while it may surprise people that beautiful, sexy "Dynasty" star Joan Collins could play demure and innocent, Evelyn probably wasn't. The unbalanced Thaw (Granger) was also a drug addict, not mentioned in the movie.

This film, which initially was to star Marilyn Monroe and later Sheree North, should have been much more exciting, given a) the story and b) the money spent on it. Unfortunately, the lack of character development holds it up. The White character remains elusive; Milland never loosens up. Granger does an excellent job as Thaw. Collins is absolutely beautiful and does a good job with the character, but the character as written doesn't give the film much of an edge.

The scene on the swing between Evelyn and White is dizzying and dazzling; and the end of the film is one of the best things about it.

Evelyn Nesbit overcame the trial, rejection by Thaw's family, suicide attempts, alcoholism, and addiction to morphine, living until the age of 82 in 1967. She served as an adviser on this film.

Whitewash All the Way-- Evelyn's Way.

[AnnieLola · 6/10 · 20 September 2022]

"I Love My Wife, But Oh! You Kid"...

Of course the Production Code limited depiction of the more lurid elements of this story, but it was largely due to Evelyn's participation as Consultant that "Red Velvet Swing" turned out as a nearly G-rated version of a very R-rated, even X-rated, story. We see Stanford White and Evelyn presented as something like star-crossed lovers-- oh, if only he'd been younger and single! Quite a fairy tale. Still, the picture makes it pretty clear that they made whoopee; watch for White's swing hanging empty, still gently swinging...

White was a dissolute roué with a taste for Young Stuff, and didn't scruple to drug the winsome Evelyn and 'have his way' with her while she was unconscious. Yuck. Nice start to a relationship. But after all, he was such a brilliant architect that such minor foibles could be overlooked, right? Milland's Nice Guy portrayal doesn't even include any attempt at a physical resemblance; the real White sported an enormous mustache. Possibly if a 'stache was tested, it may have been concluded that it made him look too much like a melodrama villain. In the 50s screen good guys were cleanshaven, no matter how historically inaccurate that might be.

As I understand it, White's hedonist lifestyle had so run down his health that at the time Thaw killed him he may have had only about six months to live. But Harry had the satisfaction of taking him down personally. We trust that it was worth the subsequent whirlwind... At least in the movie Evelyn permitted Farley Granger to play Harry Thaw as the unstable and abusive creep he was. It's rather chilling when his mother provides a tragic back story to excuse Harry's nasty nature-- but somehow it's still hard to feel much sympathy for him.

We see White trying to do the Right Thing by little Evelyn in sending her away to school. He actually did so, but not out of any noble motivation; he was getting her away from impossibly handsome John Barrymore, with whom she was having a torrid affair.

I'm giving this six stars instead of fewer, because (despite flaws) the colorful turn of the century period re-creation is enjoyable (how about those watermelon petticoats in the cakewalk? Whew!), and it can be appreciated as a 1950s period piece as well. But it's largely fictional, and as others have mentioned is clearly overdue for a new treatment, and not just a remake. Now, who should play the principals this time around?

THE GIRL IN THE RED VELVET SWING (Richard Fleischer, 1955) **1/2

[Bunuel1976 · 6/10 · 6 June 2007]

This is a glossy melodrama (scripted by Charles Brackett, who also produced, and Walter Reisch) about a famous early 20th century crime of passion. The love triangle comprises Ray Milland (ideally cast but who isn’t particularly stretched by his role of architect Stanford White), Joan Collins (in one of her better Hollywood parts – by the way, the real-life Evelyn Nesbitt acted in a few Silents herself and served as a consultant on this film!) and Farley Granger. The latter is a revelation: usually playing self-effacing types, here he’s arrogant, temperamental and possessive; he reminded me of Robert Ryan’s equally neurotic millionaire in Max Ophuls’ CAUGHT (1949). Besides, Granger’s jealous probing into Collins’ past relations on their wedding night basically replicated a scene from Luis Bunuel’s EL [1952]; and, likewise, his murder of the Milland character over Collins presents a similar situation to a subplot in the Pre-Code BABY FACE [1933] – which, interestingly enough, I watched the very next day!

Fleischer handles the proceedings efficiently enough (he was certainly adept at real-life crime stories, as his later dramatizations of the lives of other infamous murderers such as Leopold and Leob, Albert De Salvo and John Christie – in COMPULSION [1959], THE BOSTON STRANGLER [1968] and 10 RILLINGTON PLACE [1970] respectively – can attest) but, here, he’s somewhat bound by the commercially-minded formula approach of the studio system which, for instance, necessitated the inclusion of corny musical numbers…even if Collins’ character does start off as a dancer in a variety act. Unfortunately, too, the courtroom scenes aren’t the most compelling ever put on film – but they’re nonetheless elevated by Luther Adler’s presence as Granger’s defense attorney. Another valued appearance is that of author Cornelia Otis Skinner: this was one of only 4 films she did (which include the classic ghost story THE UNINVITED [1944], also with Milland, and the existentialist drama THE SWIMMER [1968], starring Burt Lancaster); she has one interesting scene towards the end where Granger’s mother recounts his overly-protected childhood to Collins, and which inevitably marked his character forever. Collins’ mother, then, is nicely played by veteran character actress Glenda Farrell.

While THE GIRL IN THE RED VELVET SWING has been a regular on Italian TV over the years, I had first watched it as a kid; I decided to check the film out again now in view of Fox’s upcoming SE DVD, as part of THE JOAN COLLINS COLLECTION. By the way, the final scene – with Collins doing the titular stage act for impresario Emile Meyer, who’s eager to exploit her new-found notoriety – ends the film on a satisfyingly ironic note.

Engaging and interesting with good character development and performances

[bob the moo · 19 April 2006]

In a magazine with some of his work in it, wealthy and influential Stanford White comments on the model on the cover. When he sees her in the flesh he asks that she be brought to his house. Meeting her there he talks to her and the two quickly kiss. He asks her mother not to bring her back but he cannot help himself and soon falls into an affair with her as she falls in love with him. The young and innocent Evelyn Nesbit also attracts the attention of the newly rich but arrogant Harry Thaw, who charms her despite herself. With the attentions of two so wealthy men, it is no wonder that Evelyn is affected by it and the two men are brought into conflict, neither particularly caring for the other anyway.

The title made me think this film would be a light romantic comedy from the 1950's that would be distracting but not that interesting. Watching it proved to me why I should never turn away a film on the grounds of such sweeping judgements because I found it much more interesting, engaging and morally darker than I expected it to be. The plot is supposedly a true story and, not knowing the total truth of this I can only assume that it takes liberties in the way that any "true" film does – regardless though, it only adds to the value that it is based on a real case. It sees a sweet young girl be torn between two men who are both far beyond the level in society that she could have expected. The text after the titles give away that this story is leading up to a court case of some sort but the development is still good and I found the basic facts to be interesting and made all the better by the subtexts and character development that the script brought out. The character dynamics worked well but also the way the characters (specifically Stanford and Evelyn) grew and changed across the film.

Responding to this the cast were surprisingly impressive. Well, perhaps that is unfair to paint them all with this brush because the person that surprised and impressed me was Joan Collins. Maybe it is because I am the "Dynasty" generation but I never really rated her as an actress, so here I was quite taken by her range, her subtlety and her awareness of her character. It is not a perfect performance but she is a big part of the material working at more than just the narrative level. Milland is not as good because his character isn't as good but he is still convincing and seems bought into his character. Granger is betrayed by the character and falters as a result – the script puts him in one place at the start and leaves him there with little to do – he is the "conclusion" to the story but other than that he is of little interest. Support is solid enough but the film belongs to Collins and, to a lesser degree, Milland, and both do well with it.

Overall an engaging and interesting film that is a lot more morally complex that I expected from the period. The basic facts of the story are good but it is the character development that makes the film interesting and the main two actors respond well to it to produce a solid film that I found interesting, a bit melodramatic but well worth a look.

The Most Famous Sex Triangle Of The Ragtime Era

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 8 October 2010]

If you made a completely factual account of the famous Thaw-Nesbit-White triangle which scandalized the folks of the Theodore Roosevelt era, I suspect none of these people would be regarded as innocent. But with 20th Century Fox entitling their film about the case The Girl In The Red Velvet Swing you know the accent will be on Joan Collins as Evelyn Nesbit as a wronged woman.

Collins with her involvements first with the married Stanford White played by Ray Milland and later marrying the homicidal Harry K. Thaw played by Farley Granger is shown as a girl just in over her head before she realizes it. In real life pushed by an ambitious stage mother, chorus girl Evelyn was well aware of her spectacular beauty even as a teen and it was as a teen that she met Stanford White who seduced her.

White on the other hand was a notorious rake, a fact his wife in the film played by Frances Fuller realizes and accepts. In the beginning he sees her off to Europe and Ray Milland is off to fun and frolic. If you see a picture of the real Stanford White he had a huge handlebar mustache which no doubt tickled many fancies. Milland plays him clean shaved.

And Harry Thaw was definitely a candidate for the rubber room. Of the three in the triangle Farley Granger more closely captures his character than either Milland or Collins. What is not shown is that in addition to his psychological problems, Thaw was also a drug addict. That was not something discussed in polite society and in fact a subject rarely brought up by Hollywood during the rule of the Code. The same year The Girl In The Red Velvet Swing came out, Hollywood finally an honest film about dope addiction with Otto Preminger's The Man With The Golden Arm.

None of these people are candidates for sainthood. White, the most brilliant architect of his time was a rake, Nesbit was a gold digger and more than likely may berated have husband Thaw with tales of Stanny's sexual prowess and Thaw was just nuts.

So tilting this film toward Nesbit gave us the film we have which is not a bad one. Collins, a third choice to play Nesbit after Marilyn Monroe and Sheree North, was definitely great in the role. The film is more or less factually true, but it's all a question of spin.

Fatal beauty.

[jotix100 · 7/10 · 21 March 2009]

As if by coincidence, we had watched "La fille coupee en deux", directed by Claude Chabrol, last night, and lo and behold, this earlier Hollywood version of the same story was shown the following night on cable. This is the third version of the same story, the other came out in Milos Forman's "Ragtime", that we have seen about the life of Evelyn Nesbit, a beautiful woman, who at the turn of the twentieth century found herself at the center of a love triangle. That the real Ms. Nesbit was an adviser of this 1955 Hollywood version, lends one to believe the screenplay was tilted to show her in a better light, as is the case with this film.

Stanford White, a famous New York architect, builder, among other things of the Washington Square Arch, was a man who loved beauty wherever he saw it. At the time when one first meets him, he was forty eight years old. Married to Elizabeth, who was his same age, he is left alone as Mrs. White departs for Baden-Baden because of her arthritis. This man falls for the gorgeous Evelyn Nesbit, a poor young woman, whose main talent was her beauty.

Evelyn also breaks young Harry Kendall Thaw's heart. This young man about town, a rich heir to a large fortune, wanted Evelyn, at all costs. His passion was his downfall. His infatuation with the ravishing beauty proved to be fatal. Harry's mother had a lot at stake, as she tried everything to get his son away from the woman she perceived to be a threat to her son's well being.

Joan Collins, who was at the height of her beauty, plays Evelyn. It was one of her earlier screen appearances, although not her first. Her take of Evelyn, perhaps influenced by the real Ms. Nesbit, shows us a naive young woman who falls prey to forces that were bigger than her. There was also a sexual undercurrent in the story, something that in those days was not dealt with reality. Ray Milland and Farley Granger play Stanford White and Harry Thaw, respectively. A good supporting cast was assembled for the picture. Luther Adler, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Glenda Farrell, Gail Robbins, and Phillip Reed, among others, are seen in the background.

The film was directed by Richard Fleischer and based on the screenplay by Charles Brackett, long associated with Billy Wilder, and Walter Reisch. Milton Krasner's cinematography contributed to make this a better film.

Life and Times of a early Super Model

[marbleann · 7/10 · 24 September 2005]

I first saw this movie years ago. The older I got the more I got it. Collins played Gibson Girl Evelyn Nesbitt Todays version of the Super models. So it is not surprising that is exactly the way she acts. She hangs out in nightclubs. Goes out with rich and famous men, some married some not. One day she double dates with one of her co workers and she meets Sanford White the very famous, very married, very rich architect, whose apartment the date takes place. She is smitten at once, he just seems like a lecherous old man. Evelyn lives with her mother, but for some reason her mother disappears and moves back down to Pittsburgh.

So Evelyn is living on her own. In the meantime she catches the eye of a younger man. The very rich and very spoiled Harry Thaw. We know he is smitten with her but she doesn't really notice it because she is so taken with Sanford White. We know that they are sleeping with each other because of a very metaphoric scene which involves this velvet swing White has in his apartment. The swing is definitely used as some sort of seduction tool. And when Evelyn's mother returns home she remarks that Evelyn has not picked up her messages in days. So we know they are past the kissing and hugging stage. She is obsessed with him and she admits that she will do anything to see him. After a while Sanford admits to Evelyn that he loves his wife as he does her, but he can't see her anymore. So he sends her away to a finishing school. Where because she is separated from Sanford has a nervous breakdown.

Now to me this movies veers off to Splendor in the Grass meets Back street. In Splendor young Natalie Woods has a nervous break down because of her break up with boyfriend Bud. Back street because Rae the main character will do anything and go anywhere to be with her rich married boyfriend. Instead of Sanford saving her we see Thaw coming to get her out of the Finishing school. She decides to take a trip with him overseas. This is racy stuff for a 50's movie. Now all am going to say is that the story picks up until the climax of the movie.

This incident was touched upon in the movie Ragtime. Norman Mailer played the Sanford White role and Elizabeth McGovern played Evelyn. We learn more about Evelyns fate from the movie Ragtime. Farley Granger IMO was very good in this movie. He usually plays namby pamby types, but in this movie because of his boyish looks he plays a psychopath to the hilt. He was truly scary. Ray Milland is one of the great actors. According to reports Sanford White was a ladies man. I think Mr Milland played him very well. He looked like the lecherous old man he was. I hear complaints about Ray Milland in this movie, but his part was not the showy part. Milland was the type of actor that wanted to act and because of this he made many movies that did not help, but this was not one of them. Joan Collins was playing Joan Collins. She was good enough, even though she looked a little too old for the part of the teenage Ms Nesbit I think Elizabeth McGovern played her more true to the character. This a very entertaining movie. If you can get past the innuendo's you will see this is a very racy movie too. All in all a good movie. BTW watch Ragtime to see more of the trial and what happened to Evelyn.

Excellent film bio given Hollywood restrictions

[bbmtwist · 7/10 · 3 July 2013]

First some truths and then a review of the film itself.

Evelyn Nesbit, from my own impressions of her recent bio, American Eve, and a clip of her singing from 1930, was a coarse, cheap, nearly talentless beauty of 1906 - all this faded by 1930, when she looked quite plain and homely. Stanford White was obese, a womanizer and a trafficker in underage virgins. Harry Thaw was a madman, pure and simple, protected by his wealth. He also was quite plain and homely. Evelyn's mother was also a trafficker, for her daughter - she makes GYPSY's Madame Rose look like Melanie Hamilton.

Hollywood could not have produced a film true to the characters in 1955. It would never have passed the censors. You didn't touch motherhood then. GYPSY on stage was four years later.

Given the basic narrative structure of the facts, and allowing for Hollywood's restrictions, THE GIRL IN THE RED VELVET SWING is for me an excellent filmization of this narrative. Beautifully photographed and given sumptuous production design as well as excellent casting, it stands as a very interesting "take" on the "crime of the century."

I applaud it and its makers. For something truer to the original characters, visit the segments in RAGTIME devoted to this story. Elizabeth McGovern's turn as the passive, dim-witted Evelyn is much truer to the real woman and deservedly brought her an Ocar nomination.

Shame on the Academy for denying it any noms- it deserved recognition in the Cinematography, Art Direction and Costume Design categories. Farley Granger gives his best performance as the deranged Thaw. Glenda Farrell as Mrs. Nesbit also deserved consideration in the supporting category.

Interesting to note that the love theme is a blatant steal from Max Steiner's Melanie and Ashley love theme in GONE WITH THE WIND, borrowing the first two stanzas of that theme.

If they ever film the bisexual Granger's fascinating life, consider Michael Ellison, the sensitive young actor of THE BEST MEN - a look alike with hidden depths.

Do see THE GIRL IN THE RED VELVET SWING and RAGTIME in succession to get an overall impression of this fascinating triangle.

red velvet in color by DeLuxe

[RanchoTuVu · 8/10 · 31 March 2011]

Set in New York in the early years of the 20th century, a stunning Joan Collins plays the title role, in which there are actually two scenes where she is the girl in the red velvet swing, both of which are fantastic. Both scenes give a lot of credit to the director, cinematographer, set designers, and art director. The film is beautiful to watch throughout, mixing sets from early Broadway stage to crowded fancy New York restaurants. Collins' part as a teenage chorus girl whose beauty is such that she bowls over both Ray Milland who plays a wealthy and well-established New York architect and Farley Granger an heir to a fortune from Pittsburgh, who both throw tons of money her way. What starts off looking like it's going to be a musical comedy actually gets fairly involved and intense, leading to a great and ironic ending.

Edwardian Celebrity Culture

[JamesHitchcock · 7/10 · 20 September 2013]

On 25th June 1906 Stanford White, one of America's most famous architects, was shot dead in Madison Square Gardens (a building he had designed himself) by a millionaire rail and coal tycoon named Harry Kendall Thaw. Thaw's motive was sexual jealousy; he believed that White was having an affair with his beautiful young wife Evelyn. White certainly had at one time been one of Evelyn's numerous lovers, but their relationship had in all probability ended before her marriage to Thaw. Thaw was tried for murder, but was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

What made the crime one of the notorious causes celebres of the Edwardian era, apart from the fame of the victim and the wealth of the perpetrator, was the fact that Evelyn, under her maiden name of Evelyn Nesbit, had been a famous model and actress in her own right, one of America's first "pin-up girls" and an early example of what would today be known as the "celebrity culture".

The film relates this story in a somewhat fictionalised form. The main change is to soften the character of Evelyn Nesbit, which is perhaps not surprising as she was still alive in 1955 and even served as a technical adviser on the film. (Thaw had died in 1947). Her relationship with White is kept rather ambiguous; the two are portrayed as having been in love, but not necessarily lovers in the sexual sense. Although White loves Evelyn, he is unable to marry her because he is still fond of his wife Elizabeth and does not want a divorce, so he treats her almost as an adopted daughter, paying for her to attend an exclusive girls' finishing school.

The leading role was originally intended for Marilyn Monroe, who turned it down; it eventually went to Joan Collins, who bore a greater physical resemblance to the historical Evelyn Nesbit than did Monroe. After her roles in films like "The Bitch" and television series like "Dynasty", Collins today has gained a reputation for specialising in playing seductive villainesses, but during her Hollywood heyday in the fifties and sixties she was as much at home playing heroines, and here she plays Evelyn as a sweet and naïve young thing bemused by the passions she arouses in men, especially the obsessively jealous Thaw. (Whether the real Evelyn Nesbit was quite as innocent is another matter).

Ray Milland bears little physical resemblance to the real Stanford White, who was a burly, red-headed man with a very prominent moustache. By all accounts he was a practised womaniser, with a particular liking for teenaged girls, and probably less kindly and avuncular than the character portrayed here. The film's rather odd title derives from the fact that one of White's sexual fetishes was to have Evelyn, and his other mistresses, perform for him on a red velvet swing at his home. Another change which the film makes to the facts of the real case is that Stanford and Elizabeth are here portrayed as being the same age; in reality she was considerably younger than him.

The best acting contribution comes from Farley Granger as the arrogant, self-obsessed and pathologically jealous Thaw. Granger is today perhaps best remembered for the two films he made with Alfred Hitchcock, "Rope" and "Strangers on a Train", and there are certainly similarities between Thaw and Phillip Morgan, the character Granger played in "Rope". Both are spoilt young men, from wealthy, privileged backgrounds and both have an ineradicable sense that their background entitles them to have anything they want. Both are so arrogant that they literally believe that they can get away with murder, Morgan because he believes himself to be intellectually superior to anyone who might try to investigate his crime, Thaw because he believes that his wealth will effectively enable him to buy his acquittal. (He is partially correct in this belief; the verdict of "not guilty by reason of insanity" means that he escapes the death penalty).

The film was directed by Richard Fleischer, a versatile director who seemed able to work in virtually any genre, including film noir ("The Armoured Car Robbery"), science fiction ("20,000 Leagues under the Sea", "Fantastic Voyage"), the historical epic ("The Vikings"), and sword-and- sorcery fantasy ("Conan the Barbarian", "Red Sonja"). He did, however, also make a number of films based on real-life murder cases, including this one, "Compulsion" (loosely based upon the Leopold-Loeb case which also inspired "Rope") and "Ten Rillington Place" (based upon the career of the British serial killer John Christie).

These three films are very different in terms of their visual style. "Compulsion" was shot in black-and white, influenced by the films noirs in which Fleischer had specialised in the earlier part of his career. "Ten Rillington Place" was filmed in a bleak, washed-out colour with a palette dominated by greys and dull browns and greens, giving a look appropriate to Christie's seedy lifestyle and to the run-down London of the post-war austerity years. "The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing", by contrast, was shot in a much richer, brighter colour, reflecting the glamorous worlds of New York high society and of the turn-of-the-century theatre. In its emphasis on recreating the fashions and styles of the Edwardian era it can be seen as an early example of "heritage cinema".

I wouldn't rate "The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing" quite as highly as highly as Ten Rillington Place", possibly Fleischer's finest film with two particularly strong acting performances from Richard Attenborough as Christie and John Hurt as the hapless Timothy Evans. It is, however, a very entertaining account of a "true crime" scandal of sex and violence in high places. 7/10

Trial Of The Century!?... I Hardly Think So.

[strong-122-478885 · 4/10 · 25 June 2014]

Here's my guess as to why this 1955 "Trial-of-the-Century" drama (which highlighted the real-life Thaw-White murder case from 1906) failed to deliver a substantial enough wallop and, thus, hold onto this viewer's rapt attention.

It was because the real-life Evelyn Nesbit (who, at a much younger age, had played a pivotal part in this murder case) was now playing "technical adviser" on the set of this 1955 picture. And, as a result, nothing in the story could be filmed without her prior consent.

And because of this veto power that Nesbit (72 at the time) wielded, her youthful character in the story was white-washed, and made out to be the sweetest, most naive, little innocent bystander in the scheme of things.

And, on top of that, the sexual implications of Nesbit's torrid affair, at 17, with a man 3 times her age was down-played so unrealistically as to make it appear as if she and Stanford White were merely platonic friends.

As a result of all of this down-playing (at Nesbit's insistence) this film's story was virtually rendered flat and uninspired, with only shallow and apathetic performances given by all of its principal players.

I honestly believe that this 1955 picture could've been real dynamite story-telling had Evelyn Nesbit not had such a strangle-hold on its subject matter, as she adamantly insisted that her once ravishing "Gibson Girl" image remain intact, thus making certain that she was portrayed as the absolute epitome of "Turn of the Century" innocence.

Directed by Richard Fleischer (a fairly notable director), this disappointing melodrama suffered, as well, from a curious lack of essential close-ups.

Based on true events.

[gkeith_1 · 10/10 · 6 February 2016]

Observations, reflections and musings:

Evelyn Nesbit is here, plus in the film Ragtime. In Ragtime, she is played by a young Elizabeth McGovern (mama in Downton Abbey, anyone?). In Red Velvet Swing, she is played as a young, generally innocent girl by Joan Collins (Dynasty, swanky and sexy, you betcha,).

Who said that 1906 was the Edwardian Era??? In the United States, this occurred in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. Edward was the King of England, not America. We actually have our own Eras here in the U.S., witness how we broke away from England in the 1770s. Witness our Revolutionary Era. Did we want to be British anymore? No. A resounding NOOOOOOO.

A little historical background: King Edward reigned in England from 1901 to 1910. He was the eldest son of Queen Victoria, who passed away in 1901.

The United States had quite a unique history during that time period. Late 19th and early 20th American centuries were the eras of steel industrialists, factory strikes, robber barons, talk softly and carry a big stick, railroad kings, oil gazillionaires, et al. This was also the American age of hordes of unwashed immigrants, bad meat being sanitized, and poor children forced to leave the factories and go to school and actually get an education. Jim Crow laws were big.

The United States was still the land of freedom and democracy, not monarchichal reigns and Parliament. This is still true. In 1906 America some people were availing themselves of these glorious attributes, and building huge wealth and making tons of money $$$$$$$$.

This film is about rich people, the extremely wealthy. Murder is the jealousy solution to sexual dallying or a crazed person's paranoiac ideas of same. This film is based on a true story. White and Thaw were very wealthy men. Golddiggers abounded, then as now. Jealousy and criminal revenge at high financial levels still make good press (or tabloids or sleazy "entertainment" talk shows).

Great story, if whitewashed for 1950s censors and Nesbit the consultant and paid observer, plus tear-jerky heirs of White and Thaw. Mustn't try to play legal, character assassination games with heirs of the deceased(s).

Farley Granger was menacing and creepy, yet smiling at other times. I consider him one of Hollywood's most handsome and dashing actors, however.

Marilyn Monroe? James Dean? They were probably too expensive.

Great Props: The Oscar goes to: (Drum Roll:) THE RED VELVET SWING!!!!! It was a beautiful, lush and bright red, with soft, luxurious velvet fabric covering the chains/ropes and seat, plus there was some awesome red fringe falling from the bottom of the seat. Reach for the moon, Evelyn!!!!!

I am a cinematic historian, and I am involved in film studies at university. I have a Bachelor of Arts Degree in American History from that same university.

10/10

A Good yarn and a true one

[MOscarbradley · 6/10 · 17 April 2008]

A good yarn and a true one although with some modifications to the facts I have no doubt. It's about the events leading up to the murder of the American architect Standord White by playboy Harry Kendall Thaw and briefly, about what happened afterwards. I suppose you could say it's a prestige production, lavishly done in widescreen, (it certainly looks the part), and with two 'stars', (Ray Milland and Farley Granger), in the roles of White and Thaw. I use the term stars cautiously, however, as Milland was, by now, getting on a bit and Granger never really made it to the front rank.

The girl of the title and the cause of all the trouble is one, Evelyn Nesbitt, (Joan Collins, being launched here in America). She's barely adequate and one can hardly imagine men being driven to murder over her, but no matter, it moves at a good lick and Richard Fleischer, while never the most imaginative director in the movies, wasn't one to let us down and keeps everything on a very professional level. The same story served as a segment of "Ragtime" with a much more convincing Nesbitt from Elizabeth McGovern.

Aching for a remake...

[planktonrules · 4/10 · 26 November 2010]

The story of the love triangle of Stanford White, Evelyn Nesbit and Harry Thaw was a HUGE story back in the early 20th century. The resulting trial was dubbed 'the trial of the century'...that is until the NEXT trial of the century occurred soon after!!! The story had it all--sex, insanity, jealousy, a beautiful young nymph and murder! And, as a result, the story really could not have been adequately told until more recently--mostly due to the Production Code which forbade a frank discussion of the sex lives of these folks. So, when I watched "The Girl on the Red Velvet Swing", I realized that it was so sanitized that it was practically a work of fiction--after all, the real story never would have passed the censor boards! In the early 1980s, the film "Ragtime" explored this sensational crime, but only on the periphery. The sensational murder was portrayed, but the lives and personalities of those involved were pretty much a cypher. You can't entirely blame the film makers, as the trial and murder were not the main focus of the film. So, because of a sanitized and sketchy version of this affair, you are left wanting more--the true and complete story--a story that I still do not fully understand.

"The Girl on the Red Velvet Swing" is mostly told from the viewpoint of Stanford White and Nesbit. While Harry Thaw is definitely in the film, he's mostly shown as a quick-tempered and one-dimensional nut. While this might just be the real Thaw, it just seemed a bit vague. And as for White and Nesbit, you'd think that their relationship was 100% platonic...which it wasn't. In fact, no real hint of sex between ANYONE is really evident in the film! As a result, the actors all seemed a bit flat--like there was so much more that was unsaid. Joan Collins (Nesbit) was very pretty and did fair in the film but not much more. Ray Milland (White) was rather gallant...too gallant. And, Farley Granger (Thaw) was mostly angry and nutty throughout! None of these characters were written well and the actors had little with which to work. As a result, the looked pretty but was pretty empty as well. It's actually pretty remarkable how dull this story was considering how exciting the actual tale was! By comparison, the story of Leopold & Loeb (in "Compulsion"--the next 'trial of the century' that took place in the 1920s) was fascinating, deep and involved (with a hint of a homosexual undercurrent)--even though it, too, was made in the 1950s. This movie is aching for a complete remake. In fact, it might even do well as a mini-series--as there is a lot to this weird story.

This film is like a pie made entirely of meringue. It looks nice but is too sweet and not particularly filling.

Swing high ,sweet Evelyn Thaw;

[dbdumonteil · 7 July 2010]

Richard Fleischer remains one of the most underrated of the American directors.His influence is huge,particularly in Europa:Chabrol's last movie "La Fille Coupée En Deux" is a disguised remake of "girl on the red velvet swing" -and not nearly so good.His movies dealing with criminal affairs are all interesting and form,in spite of their differences ,a well-knit group:"Follow me quietly" "Compulsion" "Crack in the mirror" and his more accomplished works "Boston strangler" and " 10 Rillington PLace" ."The girl on the red velvet swing" ,in spite of its costume drama side,belongs to the genre too.We're told since the beginning it's a criminal affair.The title is a transparent metaphor:Evelyn is not only caught between two men;she is a proletarian ,close to French writer Colette's "Gigi" in the world of the wealthy and the mighty.One of her men doesn't want to divorce and to marry her ,not because she is young enough to be his daughter but because the world he lives in is not prepared to accept such a monstrous union.If she were a rich heiress ,the daughter of one his rich customers who have him built desirable mansions ,all would be forgiven .And if the girl marries a millionaire ,it's only because he is impotent ,under an over possessive mother's thumb :in an amazing scene the mother recognizes the facts.People who know Mankiewicz's "The barefoot Contessa" will notice the similarities between the two "rich" marriages .

Like Max Ophuls' "Lola Montès" ,when her family-in -law denies her,it only remains for her to make a spectacle of herself in a theater ,a place she should never have left.The two scenes in which the girl is on the swing are the most impressive ,with a dazzling camera:there's something disturbing in the first one,when the girl asks for the moon (true and figurative sense)..But "it's only a paper moon sailing over a cardboard sea...it's only a canvas sky..hanging over a muslin tree"

Joan Collins in her Hollywood debut

[didi-5 · 6/10 · 10 April 2008]

An age-old tale, based loosely on fact, where a young and innocent girl gets taken up by older man purely on her beauty and allure. Evelyn Nesbit was still alive when this film was made, which presumably accounts for the fact that she comes out of it very well - causing the death of one man and the internment of another for insanity just looks like carelessness! Joan Collins was not the first choice for Nesbit - that was Marilyn Monroe, but she was on suspension and out of favour, allowing the British starlet to step in. There's no denying she's pretty, but she doesn't have Monroe's mix of wide-eyed innocence and plain sex appeal. You kind of understand why Ray Milland's architect gets distracted, but not enough to become an obsession.

Meanwhile, pouting Farley Granger, never the world's greatest actor, is jealous and unhinged as Henry Thaw, who goes from giving flowers to showgirls to brandishing a gun in Madison Square Gardens as if it is the most natural thing in the world.

In support as Nesbit's mother is spiky Glenda Farrell, who at least is a distraction from the humdrum storyline. There's nothing special here, 'The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing' is simply a time-filler with nice colour and a nice line in showgirls.

Dying On Velvet

[writers_reign · 7/10 · 10 April 2008]

Although he had several scenes in the film and was referred to - by surname at least - several times IMDb in their wisdom fail to credit the actor who played artist Charles Dana Gibson who inspired both a look and a cocktail - a Gibson is a martini with an onion instead of an olive. This apart Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder's ex-writing partner, turns in a reasonable script based very much on real events. Ray Milland, as architect Stanford White walks away with the acting honours, Farley Granger mistakes looking petulant for acting and Joan Collins barely registered as Evelyn Nesbitt, an innocent caught between two powerful men, one with scruples, one with demons. Pleasant diversion but there is still a film to be made of this star-crossed trio.

Great job by Joan Collins; Ray Milland is always a treat; Farley Grainger was a revelation.

[phawley-251-115921 · 7/10 · 21 February 2024]

Great actors here. Joan Collins did a beautiful job. It was supposed to be Marilyn Monroe. It seemed kind was a better fit.

Good acting always by Ray Milland, and their love seemed authentic but corrupted. It's not clear. Implement why she married granger character as he didn't provide enough calm, stability, peace. Granger did an excellent job being spoiled and unbridled and obsessed.

Some good twists and turns and Edie silly on the witness stand. Hard to imagine someone sort of defending your husband who created a murder f your favorite lover. And the turn of the mother in law was chilling.

The downside of this romantic story is that a lot of it is Hollywood washed. The Millard character didn't really love Joan's character. He was a huge womanizer. And di everyone was less caring, less invested, and it just made it all unsavory lives, although interesting.

Lavish color highlights the tainted story of love and deception.

[mamalv · 9/10 · 18 November 2013]

The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing is based on the real life scandal and murder of Stanford White, the outstanding architect of his time. Evelyn Nesbit was such a beauty that she graced the covers of many magazines, including being chosen for a Gibson Girl. The Technicolor of this film is outstanding. The glorious costumes the backdrops all shine through. The film is a loose adaption of the affair between Everlyn (Joan Collins) and Stanford White (Ray Milland). Joan Collins is at the peak of her own beauty and a perfect choice for this role. The Flora Dora girl was supposed to be swept into the affair by the much older White, but in the film she is willing. Although we can only believe what we see, White was a notorious cad, who charmed many a under-age girl, with champagne and caviar. But of course we see Milland at his best and so dashing no wonder anyone would fall for him. She is also pursued by Harry Thaw, a wealthy younger man, full of contradictions and madness. This is possibly Farley Granger's best appearance. Sometimes he almost makes you believe he is crazy. He is so jealous of White that Evelyn is just a win for him. In the end, she marries Thaw and he never lets her forget that she was taken in by White. So crazed with jealousy even after he has her, he kills White in a dramatic shooting on top of Madison Square Garden. One also wonders why they made White's wife look so old in the movie? In real life she was quite lovely. So do we go along for the ride and the movie version or the real life drama. I prefer to believe the movie.

Crime-of-passion served as a stuffy dish

[moonspinner55 · 5/10 · 23 February 2022]

The beautiful, naïve daughter of a costume seamstress in New York City falls for an older, already-married architect; his rival in society circles, a young multi-millionaire, hopes to woo the girl away, talking her into marriage, but her unwavering affections for his competitor drive him to murder. True life crime case from 1906--Hollywoodized but not energized by 20th Century Fox--comes to the screen a stilted roundelay that may have proved delicious. As part-time model and showgirl Evelyn Nesbit, Joan Collins (stepping in for Marilyn Monroe, who turned down the role) is lovely and touching at times, but seems to have been wiped clean of a personality; only at the very end does she get to show a self-satisfied sparkle. As the two men obsessed with her, Ray Milland and Farley Granger are dull (Granger, pancaked to a fare-thee-well, more so). The supporting players tend to show up the stars, particularly Frances Fuller playing Milland's very patient wife and Glenda Farrell as Collins' mother, a wise old bird. The censors likely curtailed the more sensational aspects of the triangle--and what we have left is unhappy soap opera. The picture looks good in CinemaScope, and has a camp montage of Collins suffering a nervous breakdown while ocean waves and laughing dancers roll across the screen, but it is neither exceptional nor exciting. The story was partially revisited in the 1981 film "Ragtime". ** from ****

As Realistic as the Sumptuous Technicolor!!

[kidboots · 8/10 · 2 November 2011]

After "The Moon is Blue" was released, when words like "virgin" and "pregnant" were spoken in it, movies seemed to enter a more permissive age and what better story to tell than one of the greatest sex scandal murders of the 20th century. The lurid romantic tangle involving an ageing lecherous architect and an insane wealthy playboy - the prize being one of the most beautiful showgirls of the age - Evelyn Nesbit. Gibson Girl and Flora Dora girl, Evelyn was also the victim of an unscrupulous mother who saw her daughter as a way out of the poverty that her husband's death plunged the family into. I agree with the other reviewer the movie could be remade today pulling no punches because however sumptuous the Technicolor and however flawless Joan Collin's beauty, the movie is just more Hollywood gloss, none of the principals were anything like their "real" characters (except maybe Farley Granger's interpretation of Harry K. Thaw).

Within 10 minutes the characters are established - devoted husband Stanford White (Ray Milland)is dining with his wife (Frances Fuller) when erratic Harry Thaw creates a scene because his regular table is taken. Meanwhile sweet and innocent "Gibson Girl" Evelyn Nesbit (Joan Collins) has caught the eye of a stage manager and is put in the Flora Dora lineup. The real Evelyn Nesbit served as a consultant on the film and as she always claimed that Stanford White was the love of her life, he was always going to be portrayed as a benevolent, almost kindly uncle.

Their affair begins when Evelyn takes a job jumping out of a pie at a stag party. White won't hear of her doing it (they had met before) and takes her back to his flat and the pleasures of a red velvet swing suspended from the dome like roof. White finds sexual pleasure from pushing Evelyn back and forth on the swing and the scene is one of the most eerie in the movie. Evelyn's mother is away and unaware in Pittsburgh but in reality Evelyn's mother created a scandal by leaving her in White's care (Evelyn was only 17 at the time) even though she knew what a womanizer he was. She was the original stage mother and treated her daughter horribly but good old Glenda Farrell played her in her usual tough, no nonsense way and made the audience feel a lot of sympathy for her. In one scene Mrs. Nesbit dismissed some flowers sent from "a young fellow named John Barrymore" - again in real life Evelyn and John had an affair and almost eloped but Evelyn's mother put a stop to it - she didn't think he had any prospects!!!

Back to the movie - Stanford White looks upon her more as a daughter and doesn't want to have any more contact with her in "that way", so he enrolls her at an exclusive boarding school but she pines away and who should suddenly be there to pick up the pieces but Harry Thaw!!! He marries her to everyone's amazement as it is common knowledge among New York society that he is crazy. While he is charming beforehand, on their honeymoon the recriminations start - he tyrannizes her into revealing all the sordidness of her affair with Stanford White. Things come to a head when Thaw murders White at the Madison Square Garden (ironically one of the many buildings that White designed) for ruining his young wife as he proclaims to the crowd. The subsequent trial shows how the wealth and might of the Thaw family is able to help Harry avoid the death penalty by reason of insanity. Evelyn's taking the stand against advice of her friends and having her character blackened certainly helps his family in seeking a more lenient sentence but they soon desert her and at the end Evelyn is left with nothing but a seedy vaudeville contract to become the "Girl in the Red Velvet Swing" to leering patrons.

Reading with horror that first Marilyn Monroe, then Sheree North, of all people had been considered for the role - Joan Collins at least looked similar to the real Evelyn Nesbit, although no star could match Evelyn's astonishing beauty.

Fairly Horrible Movie

[cookiela2001 · 3/10 · 18 October 2009]

It's curious that such a DEAD film can be made about what was considered "The Crime of the Century" at one time. A young Joan Collins is unbelievably lovely as the title character, but plays the role in a humble, eyes-downcast, saccharine-sweet way that, while it may possibly be what Nesbitt was really like, has an unvarying dullness to it.

The rest of the cast is wooden as well, and the entire design of the movie is obviously expensive, yet completely unimaginative. But the real problem with this movie is the script, which not only is too leisurely, but features some of the stuffiest, most phony-sounding dialogue I've heard.

This isn't actual dialogue from the movie (which I refuse to re-listen to), but it may as well be: "Oh my goodness, I thought this room was empty." / "No, my dear, it is not." / "I am sorry that I have disturbed you. I am afraid that you shall think me a goose." / "There is no need to run away, my child. Come here, and let me look at your face. Why, you are most beautiful. Yes, indeed. Most, most beautiful. But, you blush?" ETC. ETC. AD NAUSEAM! Again, Collins is beautiful to look at here (even though the movie curiously avoids spectacular closeups), but she's the film's sole virtue. (And even saying that, her contribution is her physical appeal rather than her acting performance.)

"Joanie" soars, while the movie snores!

[bheyer · 27 October 2004]

Like the person that preceded me on this thread, I, too, saw this movie on the True Stories Channel, just this very morning. Over the years, I had seen bits and pieces of it, before, but never the whole movie in its entirety.

With that said, I must admit that I am a HUGE (!!!) Joan Collins fan, so it's doubtful that I would've subjected myself to the movie's excruciatingly slow pace had it NOT co-starred "Joanie." I mean, I've followed "Joanie's" career through muck ("Empire of the Ants") and mire ("The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing"), so I can honestly say that "Joanie" MAY star in bad motion pictures, but she NEVER gives a bad performance!

Yes, I agree with the other posters, Ray Milland DOES, indeed, deliver a VERY bland and wooden performance as architect, Stanford White. However, much the same thing can be said for Farley Granger, too, in the villain's role of Harry Thaw. While I can't speak for Granger, I feel I must stand up for Milland: In 1945, under Billy Wilder's superior direction, he won a much-deserved Oscar for his performance as an alcoholic in "The Lost Weekend." So, for his lackluster performance in this movie, I place the blame on the director, Richard Fleischer.

Look, this movie was supposed to be a break-out role for "Joanie." Alas, it wasn't to be. Sure, she'd go on to make other "A" movies, like "Land of the Pharaohs" and the rare Paul Newman clunker, "Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys!" However, after the final Bob Hope/Bing Crosby road movie, "The Road to Hong Kong," "Joanie" was lucky to get work in TV shows like "Batman."

Fortunately, OUR "Joanie" is a SURVIVOR! Super-producer, Aaron Spelling, remembered her from his salad days, and cast her as the Super-Bitch, "Alexis Carrington," in his night-time soap opera, "Dynasty," and the rest - as they say - is history!

"On ne badine pas avec l'amour", as the French say....

[skimari · 8/10 · 21 April 2013]

I found this movie engrossing and worth seeing and having as a DVD. It is a lavish production, in glorious color and crystal clear image, the era is represented perfectly, with splendid costumes and superb settings. It is true that the script does not go into the depths of the characters' personalities, but presents the drama as it "appeared" to the public eye at the time. With the real Evelyn Nesbit acting as consultant, it is to be expected that the story would be embellished and the hard edges rounded. So we do not have a "shocker", but the plot has sufficient dramatic elements to make the movie interesting and original. Rather than exposing the naked truth, they lead us to guess what is hidden, by reading between the lines and correctly translating the innuendos provided. E.g., it is plain that White is a womanizer, we see him being friendly with show girls and keeping a notebook full of female names, to be summoned for his amusement in his private quarters. Evelyn, though depicted as an innocent, is also shown eager to enter the circle of the "rich and famous" and ready to pop up from a cake at a stag party or to accept presents from men she hardly knew. As for Thaw, his madness is evident throughout the movie. Avoiding to present him also as a drug addict does not signify much, as it would rather give him another excuse for his acts, being "under the influence". There are two points that bothered me about the direction: The inauguration ceremony at the Hall of Fame, if I remember well, which was obviously made at the studio against a background photograph, and the same goes for the scene in the Alps, where Thaw proposed to Evelyn. With so much money spent on the movie, I think they could have shot these scenes in the actual locations.... Also there are not quite so many close-ups of the actors as I would like. Otherwise, the direction was very effective. About the performances: I believe the movie would greatly benefit, if Marilyn Monroe had played the role of Evelyn. Joan Collins was surely very beautiful, but lacks Marilyn's sensual magnetism and therefore is not so believable as the object of such fatal obsessions... Monroe would be ideal, because both physically and in the acting department, she was superior to Collins. In such a case, of course, her co-stars would have suffered from her tantrums and insecurities, but that is another story... Ray Milland as Stanford White, is exactly what the role demands, once more delivering the essence of the character in his usual effortless way, never over the top, but always realistic and human. We see him as a very authoritative figure of his time, respected and admired, a bit cynical and stand-offish, charming and classy, with a sense of humor and basically a decent man. One would easily understand that the attraction for his "conquests" was his charm and not his high position. The scene with the swing in really a piece of cinematic anthology. It is a love scene, the act of love disguised as a game, and it is easy to imagine what follows after that.... Pity that we did not see the real thing, but it seems that an actual love scene with a minor would be taboo at the time. Hollywood was very hypocritical then and Milland himself had a personal experience only the year before, 1954, when his involvement with the much younger Grace Kelly almost jeopardized his career. As for Granger, he succeeds in making Thaw appear disturbing --and disturbed-- as well as irritating, which is enough to make him believable. Thaw's trial and Evelyn's manipulation and callous rejection by her husband's family are drawn in large and effective strokes. And there could not be a more appropriate epilogue to this story than the final scene with the swing -- so different from the first one, as bitter and degrading as the other was romantic and delightful.. The loss of innocence and the harsh realities of life, again disguised as a game. Love is a very dangerous game to play, indeed...

Joan instead of Marilyn

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 26 September 2022]

In 1901, Evelyn Nesbit (Joan Collins) is a stage performer. She becomes the object of competition between wealthy industrial tycoon Harry Kendall Thaw (Farley Granger) and his rival architect Stanford White (Ray Milland). It results in murder and scandal.

Apparently, Marilyn Monroe was the first choice for the role. I would have loved to see it. I like Joan, but this role needs something more vivacious. She's darker than that. I want Evelyn to play up her girlish allure while these two men battle over her. The movie feels a little stiff. The camera moves, the staging, and the rest are all very static. It's a 50's movie. Director Richard Fleischer had a long and successful career with many differing movies. I don't want to blame him for anything, but this is probably not his best work. I wish that I didn't know about Marilyn Monroe. I just kept picturing her in this role. This is not necessarily bad, but I'm not drawn to these characters.