What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

I will say this is the first film during this classic kick of mine that didn't quite meet my expectations. I had heard of this film for quite some time, ever since I heard about the TV show Feud (2017) back in college. I didn't watch Feud, but I was in a Wikipedia rabbit hole over the beef between Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, so I really did look forward to this.

Unlike All about Eve, where I had to take extensive notes to remember and connect dots between all the directions the script was going off in, I found myself getting hyped thinking that they'd introduce an interesting conflict, only to see the story doing a trope-ier and more vapid of version of what I'd hoped to see.

The film sets Blanche up to be a calculating woman with an early childhood flashback but it never really materializes. I wanted to see emotional/intellectual manipulation vs raw impulsive abuse, but power ever only flowed in one direction in the whole story. There is that twist at the end, but what was supposed to be the nuanced part of the argument did not feel earned to me. Also, I was hoping that addition of Edwin the middle aged adult baby would result in some brilliant interplay with the deranged elderly barbie, but that became a dud too. Over the course of the runtime, the film's inability to surprise me also made its flaws more obvious. I was less forgiving of plot holes and characters inconsistencies that I normally would have tolerated in a film from 60+ years ago.

Still, this film is delightfully unhinged and super campy. It builds tension and suspense well and keeps you engaged. Bette Davis gave a stellar performance as always. Super appropriate for watch parties where you want to honor a classic but still focus on having laughs with friends. And the lore behind the lead actresses's longstanding feud certainly adds to its appeal. I really do wonder how real that slap was.

Lastly, can someone tell me what is shown in this movie really reflects what Vaudevillian theater was like? Who would watch that? I am very concerned for people who would consume something like this during its time