recommended

good film but with many flaws

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

In other words,this film is a surreal ride.

Bette is good when she's bad and better when subdued. Sometimes and this is one of these times. Bette is a spinster. Novak is a war hero. Actually I can see Novak falling for her over Janis Page. The key line was when he told her I could have her if I wanted her. Grieve and Novak were similar personalities. What I liked about it was their meeting was awkward and the movie was realistic in that sometimes things don't go smoothly, things move slow, but sometimes two people click just because they do. They both had baggage and could understand each other. This is one of the films that proved Bette could act. Another is the Star. This time Bette is being bad and another unlikely paring of Sterling Hayding and it still works!

"Winter Meeting" was released in 1948 -- the waning years of Bette Davis Warner Brothers career. Davis plays Susan, a wealthy, cosmopolitan New Yorker. She has never married, choosing to focus on a life of having a career and mixing with like-minded friends, such as Stacy (John Hoyt). She meets a military guy whom she calls Novak (Jim Davis), a man fresh from WWII and a war hero. For whatever reason, he woos her and the two begin an odd relationship. After all, she is New York City all the way, he is an awkward, small-town guy. The two escape to the country, where both are forced to confront their own demons. Davis' demons have to do with her parents; her mother abandoned her father, causing his later suicide. Novak's are he always wanted to be a priest! Yikes -- this after leading Susan on throughout the entire movie. This movie, although unfairly maligned, has lots of problems. The biggest problem is the choice of Jim Davis to play Novak, the war hero. He seems out of place and acts it too. Being fair, his part is also terribly written, so I don't know what actor could have pulled this off with any credibility. Bette Davis fares better -- she never steps out of her character as Susan, a woman who has shut herself off from even the possibility of love until she meets this man. This part shows why Bette Davis was a real star; the script wasn't great, and it shows, but she shines regardless. There are two good supporting performances -- John Hoyt as Davis' friend, a man who clearly enjoys the good life, is terrific and adds some life to a film that drags a bit at times. We assume he is gay, although obviously this wouldn't be uttered in a 1948 film. A young Janis Paige plays a somewhat loose and bitchy woman, upset that the spinster Susan snared the war hero for herself. She seems to steal every scene she is in. Sadly, this film flopped when it opened. By this time, audience tastes had changed, and Bette Davis wasn't given better scripts as she aged at the studio. She would leave Warner Brothers the following year. But what a legacy of films she left behind.

I agree with another commentator that this is not a good Bette Davis picture. Jim Davis was indeed a weird choice for his part. The ending was about as unsatisfactory as one can be.However, I found three elements fascinating: 1. John Hoyt was never better as the unctuous, insinuating friend to Bette's poetess. Whether or not he was supposed to be homosexual, as is implied by some critics, he was clearly also in a kind of overly-well-bred love with her. 2. Florence Bates, as always, was fine in an unusually subdued role for her (remember her over-the-top self in "Rebecca"!) 3. I just love the cat painting in Bette's apartment that Jim Davis refers to! Isn't it creepy and interesting??? If anyone out there knows who painted it or how to get a copy, I'd love to know.

A story about a female and male searching for real love, both with very strong convictions and also very bad hang ups about where they are going in life. Betty Davis,(Susan Grieve),"Wicked Stepmother",'89 sort of gave up on marriage and ran into Jim Davis,(Slick Novak), and began to fall head over heels in love with him. There is a scene where Susan and Jim confront each other about each others faults and Susan wonders why Jim is not able to just plain get on one knee and propose marriage. Also, the fact that he has never attempted to make love to her, but only an occasional kiss or two. The actors gave great performances and you have to take into account that it was produced in 1948. This is truly a great Betty Davis Classic Film!@