What Ever Happened To Baby Jane: Movie Analysis

Robert Aldrich’s What Ever Happened to Baby Jane is a 1962 psychological thriller. It is the story of the twisted dynamic of two siblings. Bette Davis plays Baby Jane Hudson, an aging actress who holds her paraplegic sister Blanche (Joan Crawford) captive in an old mansion. Throughout the film, Jane’s bitterness towards her sister sister escalates and even turns into torture and violence. While the film’s plot undoubtedly keeps the audience hanging on the edge of their seat, it 's the film’s commentary on ageism, sexism and sibling rivalry that truly make it a masterpiece. Throughout the film, ageism, sibling rivalry, and even sexism play a huge role in the film’s development. First, ageism is to blame for Jane and Blanche’s rancorous relationship. As Jane became older and less attractive, her ability to find entertainment work became more and more difficult. Her sister on the other hand, had no such problem as she retained much of her beauty as she aged. This difference is the direct cause of the two sister’s rivalry. The film cover sibling rivalry in depth as the plot focuses on Jane’s envy for …show more content…
However, it is safe to say that she did not make it. First, Blanche was is really bad shape. She was disabled to begin with and only got more weak as Jane deprived her of food and water. To make matters even worse, Jane dragged Blanche to the beach in her malnourished state and wrapped her in a blanket on a hot summer day. At this point in the film, Blanche was extremely weak and dehydrated. This is the point where Blanche finally told Jane her secret. She told her that she was the one who was responsible for crippling herself, not Jane. One could assume that the only way Blanche was going to tell Jane this secret was if he knew she knew herself that she was going to die as it was so important and the root of Jane’s guilt and