well, what can i say about elia kazan's 'babydoll' that i haven't said already? it has a hard and fast place in my top five favorite black and white movies of all time. i can't tell you how many times i've seen it. it fascinates me on so many levels. even after repeated viewings, the performances crackle with fresh electricity. i've never seen a trio of actors in leading roles turn in finer performances than carroll baker, karl malden, and eli wallach in 'babydoll.' they're all so good its almost unsettling. its a dirty, hot, florid, unscrupulous, voyeuristic film. the main players never seen to know they're being watched. its wicked and funny and at times, even genuinely frightening. the famous 'hide and seek' sequence is every bit as scary as it is sexy. over the years, the image of carroll baker sleeping in the baby's crib has endured as an iconic image, but i would argue that the image of silva vacarro, (eli wallach) riding the rockinghorse with a whip in one hand, a pitcher of lemonade in the other, chewing on a piece of fried chicken, is every bit as provocative and brazen. if you've never seen it, go find it and watch it. i've never really seen anything quite like it.
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