The Little Foxes [1941] [DVD]

It may have been something to do with the fact that director William Wyler and star Bette Davis were romantically involved that gave their many celluloid collaborations such an exciting buzz. This is a splendid example of Davis at the height of her powers as the deeply nasty Regina Giddens, the power-hungry schemer of a once wealthy southern clan. The critics always said of Wyler that he "understood women"; they meant that he was not afraid to give a talent like Davis's full flight while also managing to contain her worst histrionic excesses. The result here is a quite magnificent movie.