Editing All About Eve (section)

===Thematic content===
[[File:Gary Merrill in All About Eve trailer.jpg|thumb|right|237px|[[Gary Merrill]] as Bill Sampson]]

Critics and academics have delineated various themes in the film. Rebecca Flint Marx, in her ''[[Allmovie]]'' review, notes the antagonism that existed between Broadway and Hollywood at the time, stating that the "script summoned into existence a whole array of painfully recognizable theatre types, from the aging, egomaniacal grand dame to the outwardly docile, inwardly scheming ingenue to the powerful critic who reeks of malignant charm."<ref>Marx, Rebecca Flint. [http://www.allmovie.com/work/all-about-eve-1546/review ''All About Eve'' review] on ''[[AllMovie]]''. Retrieved August 8, 2009.</ref> Abel Green, writing in ''Variety'' said, "The snide references to picture people, the plug for San Francisco ("an oasis of civilization in the California desert") and the like are purposeful and manifest an intelligent reflex from a group of hyper-talented people towards the picture business."<ref name=Variety/>

[[Roger Ebert]], in his review in ''[[The Great Movies]]'', says Eve Harrington is "a universal type", and focuses on the aging actress plot line, comparing the film to ''[[Sunset Boulevard (film)|Sunset Boulevard]].''<ref name=Great>Ebert, Roger. [http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20000611/REVIEWS08/6110301/1023 "All About Eve (1950)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070709051542/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20000611%2FREVIEWS08%2F6110301%2F1023 |date=July 9, 2007}}, "Great Movies by Roger Ebert" on [[RogerEbert.com]], November 6, 2000.</ref> Similarly, Marc Lee's 2006 review of the film for ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' describes a subtext "into the darker corners of show business, exposing its inherent ageism, especially when it comes to female stars."<ref>Lee, Marc (July 7, 2006). [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/3653627/Must-have-movies-All-About-Eve-1950.html "Must-have movies: All About Eve (1950)"]. ''The Daily Telegraph''. (London). Retrieved August 8, 2009.</ref> [[Kathleen Woodward]]'s 1999 book, ''Figuring Age: Women, Bodies, Generations (Theories of Contemporary Culture)'', also discusses themes that appeared in many of the "aging actress" films of the 1950s and 1960s, including ''All About Eve.'' She reasons that Margo has three options: "To continue to work, she can perform the role of a young woman, one she no longer seems that interested in. She can take up the position of the angry bitch, the drama queen who holds court (the deliberate [[Notes on "Camp"|camp]] that [[Susan Sontag]] finds in this film). Or she can accept her culture's gendered discourse of aging which figures her as in her moment of fading. Margo ultimately chooses the latter option, accepting her position as one of loss."<ref>{{cite book| editor-last=Woodward| editor-first=Kathleen M.| title=Figuring Age: Women, Bodies, Generations| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1ZqUIsprChYC&q=margo| publisher=Indiana University Press| year=1999| pages=242–243| isbn=978-0-2532-1236-8}}</ref>

[[File:George Sanders in All About Eve trailer.jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[George Sanders]] as Addison DeWitt]]

''All About Eve'' has long been a favored film among gay audiences, likely due to its [[campy]] overtones (in part due to the casting of Davis) and its general sophistication. Davis, who long had a strong gay fan base, expressed support for gay men in her 1972 interview with ''[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]]''.<ref name=TimesOnline>Burston, Paul (November 22, 2007). [https://web.archive.org/web/20080706161156/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article2915384.ece "She's better, she's Bette"]. ''[[The Times]]'' (London).</ref><ref name=Camp>Cleto, Fabio (1999). [https://books.google.com/books?id=4QKtjdIa7AwC ''Camp: Queer Aesthetics and the Performing Subject'']. University of Michigan Press. {{ISBN|978-0-7486-1171-3}}, {{OCLC|928236270}}</ref><ref name=DarkVictory>{{cite book| last=Sikov| first=Ed| title=Dark Victory: The Life of Bette Davis| url=https://archive.org/details/darkvictorylifeo00edsi/page/406/mode/2up?q=advocate| location=New York| publisher=Macmillan| date=September 30, 2008| page=406| isbn=978-0-8050-8863-2}}</ref>