Search - The Three Faces of Eve on DVD

Strong performance makes this "Face" memorable

Wayne Klein | My Little Blue Window, USA | 11/19/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

""The Three Faces of Eve" broke new ground when it was released. It was the first examination of multiple personality disorder in a dramatic setting. Joanne Woodward gives a stunning performance as Eve a southern housewife who suffers from migranes, seems in constant emotional turmoil and has memory lapses. Her psychiatrist Dr. Luther (played by the marvelous character actor Lee J. Cobb) believes he's treating a common form of depression but he's startled to discover during one of his sessions that he's not speaking with Eve but with a whole different person. Based on the famous book documenting the real case (and not a "novel" as per the DVD case) by Corbett Thigpen, MD and Harvey Cleckley MD, Nunnally Johnson's script may be a bit pedantric for audiences today but there's still powerful performances and sharp direction that makes it worthwhile.

This special edition from Fox part of its "Studio Classics" collection includes a commentary by film historian Aubrey Solomon. Solomon's commentary provides precise and fascinating tidbits about how the film varied from the book and from the real case in addition to the usual background on the production of the movie. There's also a Movietone News Reel included of the Academy Awards (Joanne Woodward won for Best Actress). The original theatrical trailer is included and the restored image and sound are quite good.

Well worth picking up for fans of classic Hollywood movies from the 50's. My only complaint is Fox should have done a featurette on the making of the movie with interviews of Woodward and others and/or an alternate commentary track from the actress discussing the making of the movie."

An Actress' Dream Role

James L. | 07/17/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Joanne Woodward gets one of those roles that most actresses must dream about - the opportunity to play a character with three distinct personalities. The film centres on this woman's attempt to regain her life with the assistance of a psychiatrist played by Lee J. Cobb. Woodward does a very good job of creating various personalities and balancing the role. I wish I knew more about multiple personalities and psychiatry to know how accurate the film is, because I found parts of it hard to believe. The way the hypnosis is presented seems to me to be far too easy and simple, and to be honest, we don't actually get to see very much of how the doctor helped the young woman. If you look to the film less as a case study and more as a piece of drama, you will find much to enjoy about it. And regardless of how factual and accurate it is, The Three Faces of Eve was an important step in presenting mental illness to the public, and for that reason also, it deserves to be seen."

Breaks New Ground

Golden Girls fan | 03/01/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The film is effective as an introduction into the realm of multiple personality disorder, but that's as far as it goes. Joanne Woodward is functional in the role, but I agree that it is in no way an Oscar performance. I have also witnessed multiple personality change under clinical conditions, and the person does not change in any dramatic fashion (like the lowering of the head). It's an imperceptible change at first. I read that Joanne Woodward studied film of Eve White's real life counterpart going through the change. She said there was no obvious physical punctuation whenever the other peronalities came out, and that she wanted to play it that way. According to the article, the studio wanted the lowering of the head, etc. so that the audience wouldn't become confused whenever a change occured. No faith in the public. David Wayne is superb in his role, and I feel he is underrated in the part. I've known people like his character, and he was right on the mark with his performance. His role is easy to get lost in the overall dramatic screenplay. It's a brave film that enters relative virgin territory. It held my interest."

Joanne Woodward's greatest performance

Byron Kolln | the corner where Broadway meets Hollywood | 07/25/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"THE THREE FACES OF EVE remains to this day a riveting and fascinating glimpse into the mind of a person afflicted with multiple personality disorder, with Joanne Woodward in her Academy Award-winning tour-de-force.

The story concerns a meek young married woman called Eve White (Joanne Woodward) who begins to have regular consultations with Dr Luther (Lee J. Cobb) when she starts experiencing moments of blackout and amnesia, which are later discovered to be the manifestations of multiple personality disorder. When Eve White passes out, the more-seductive and confident Eve Black emerges and wreaks her own kind of havoc. Then there is the third personality, the well-grounded and assured Jane. All three fight for the ultimate and permanent control of Eve White's body, but only one will win...

Joanne Woodward's performance is truly phenomenal. She deserved her Oscar win and then some. Lee J. Cobb is fantastic as the patient Dr Luther with David Wayne as Eve White's bewildered husband. This was based on the well-documented medical case of Chris Costner-Sizemore, a woman with several fragmented personalities who later successfully recovered from her illness. The bulk of the dialogue comes verbatim from the original medical case-notes by Corbett H. Thigpen MD and Hervey M. Cleckley MD.

Also featuring Edwin Jerome, Nancy Kulp and Douglas Spencer. (Single-sided, dual-layer disc)."