Payment on Demand

Director: Curtis Bernhardt Curtis Bernhardt

Overview

Just before filming All About Eve, Bette Davis starred in the marital melodrama Payment on Demand. Davis plays Joyce Ramsey, the wife of David Ramsey (Barry Sullivan), who one fine morning demands a divorce. Most of the film is in flashback, recounting the events leading up to the marital schism. After David takes up with a school teacher (Frances Dee), Joyce heads for a Haitian vacation, hoping to spark a few affairs of her own. But after a chance meeting with an old friend (Jane Cowl) who's become hard and cynical since her own divorce, Davis heads back to the States and attempts to patch up her marriage. Director Curtis Bernhardt was particularly proud of the opening scene in Payment on Demand, wherein Barry Sullivan requests a divorce as calmly as if he were ordering breakfast.

Product Details

Release Date:	03/23/2009
UPC:	0883316127087
Original Release:	1951
Rating:	NR
Source:	Warner Archives
Presentation:	[Full Frame]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:30:00
Sales rank:	35,574

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Bette Davis	Joyce Ramsey (nee Jackson),Diana as a Child
Barry Sullivan	David Anderson Ramsey
Jane Cowl	Mrs. Emily Hedges
Kent Taylor	Robert Townsend
Betty Lynn	Martha Ramsey
John Sutton	Tunliffe
Frances Dee	Eileen Benson
Peggie Castle	Diana Ramsey
Otto Kruger	Prescott
Walter Sande	Swanson
Brett King	Phil Polanski
Richard Anderson	Jim Boland
Natalie Schafer	Mrs. Blanton
Katherine Emery	Mrs. Gates
Lisa Golm	Molly
Kathleen Ellis	Receptionist
Mack Williams	Pinkins
Ilka Gruning	Mrs. Polanski
David Leonard	Mr. Polanski
Sherry Merrill	Diana as a Child
Ruth Lee	Aunt Edna
Jay Brooks	Butler
Lela Bliss	Mrs. Filson
Moroni Olsen	David Ramsey's Attorney
Barbara Peterson Davis	Actor
Victor Young	Composer

Technical Credits

Curtis Bernhardt

Bruce Manning

Manning Bernhardt

Curtis Bernhardt	Director,Screenwriter,Screenwriter
Bruce Manning	Producer,Screenwriter
Jack H. Skirball	Producer
Manning Bernhardt	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Often thought of as a "neglected" Bette Davis film, Payment on Demand is a good, solid marital drama blessed with a spot-on star turn from the actress. Payment was overshadowed by the fact that it came right after All About Eve, and was considered inferior stuff after that true classic. On its own terms, however, Payment is an intriguing and involving look at a couple in the throes of divorce. True, it's a bit manipulative and more interested in scoring dramatic points than in delving with total honesty into the problems surrounding this marriage (and it also loses some impact due to having adhere to the Hays Code), but even so, Payment packs a nice punch and does manage to take a more truthful look at some of the issues it presents than many other films of the era would. And while it may be manipulative, the screenplay is also undeniably engaging, thanks in large part to the assured manner in which Curtis Bernhardt directs it. For example, while he makes sure there are plenty of fireworks scenes, he also finds opportunity for quieter moments, such as the opening "I want a divorce" segment for Barry Sullivan. Davis is in altogether excellent form -- a harridan one moment, a mass of vulnerability the next. Sullivan does quite well, and Jane Cowl is marvelous in a supporting role. Leo Tover's cinematography, especially in the flashbacks, is especially noteworthy.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler