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What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?

  • 1969
  • M/PG
  • 1h 41m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
3.1K
YOUR RATING
What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice? (1969)
Home Video Trailer from MGM Home Entertainment
Play trailer1:59
1 Video
41 Photos
Dark ComedyCrimeDramaHorrorMysteryThriller

An aging widow hides a deadly secret which she will do anything to keep buried.An aging widow hides a deadly secret which she will do anything to keep buried.An aging widow hides a deadly secret which she will do anything to keep buried.

  • Directors
    • Lee H. Katzin
    • Bernard Girard
  • Writers
    • Theodore Apstein
    • Ursula Curtiss
  • Stars
    • Geraldine Page
    • Ruth Gordon
    • Rosemary Forsyth
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.8/10
    3.1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Lee H. Katzin
      • Bernard Girard
    • Writers
      • Theodore Apstein
      • Ursula Curtiss
    • Stars
      • Geraldine Page
      • Ruth Gordon
      • Rosemary Forsyth
    • 74User reviews
    • 33Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice?
    Trailer 1:59
    Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice?

    Photos41

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    Top cast19

    Edit
    Geraldine Page
    Geraldine Page
    • Mrs. Marrable
    Ruth Gordon
    Ruth Gordon
    • Mrs. Dimmock
    Rosemary Forsyth
    Rosemary Forsyth
    • Harriet Vaughn
    Robert Fuller
    Robert Fuller
    • Mike Darrah
    Mildred Dunnock
    Mildred Dunnock
    • Miss Tinsley
    Joan Huntington
    Joan Huntington
    • Julia Lawson
    Peter Brandon
    • George Lawson
    Michael Barbera
    Michael Barbera
    • Jim Vaughn
    Peter Bonerz
    Peter Bonerz
    • Mr. Bentley
    Richard Angarola
    Richard Angarola
    • Sheriff Armijo
    Claire Kelly
    Claire Kelly
    • Elva
    Valerie Allen
    Valerie Allen
    • Dottie
    Martin Garralaga
    Martin Garralaga
    • Juan
    Jack Bannon
    Jack Bannon
    • Olin
    Seth Riggs
    • Warren
    Lou Kane
    • Telephone Man
    Spike
    • Chloe
    Howard Wright
    Howard Wright
    • Mourner
    • Directors
      • Lee H. Katzin
      • Bernard Girard
    • Writers
      • Theodore Apstein
      • Ursula Curtiss
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews74

    6.83K
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    Featured reviews

    10Queen Bea

    Geraldine Page is the poster woman for psycho-biddies everywhere with her chilling performance in `Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice?'

    What's a poor widow to do when her husband dies and leaves her penniless? Move to the Arizona desert, start a pine tree garden, and fertilize it with human mulch? Well.wouldn't you?? Geraldine Page has quite the green thumb as Mrs. Claire Marrable--the wicked widow with the pine tree fetish--in the chilling thriller "Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice?"

    Grand dame Bette Davis once quipped: "Fasten your seatbelts, it's gonna be a bumpy night!" Bette, you are so right! If you remember Geraldine Page as the sweet li'l ol' lady from `Trip to Bountiful'.FUGETABOWTIT! Page does a 180 as she transmogrifies from helpless Southern widow to cool, calculating murderess with money and murder on the brain--and a means to achieve both. Page hits the bulls-eye with each scene. All of her nervous ticks are appropriately timed. She is at her best when putting on airs and verbally sparring with unarmed opponents. What a stellar performance! Geraldine, girlfriend, you is flawless!!

    Many deliciously diabolical scenes abound, like when pesky canine Chloe threatens to dig up the dirt on her murderous past-time, Page as Marrable barks back: "I have not taken loving and diligent care of my garden to have it wrecked by this vagrant bitch!" Page's character is equally disenchanted with her new next door neighbor, Ms. Vaughn, whom she refers to as "crabgrass, never really quelled, only cropping up secretly and victoriously in another spot". The only one Page can stomach is Ruth Gordon as the inquisitive Aunt Alice--an undercover housekeeper on a mission to get to the root (haha) of all evil and discover the whereabouts of a friend last seen in Page's employ. But when she's tardy serving up cocktails, an impatient Geraldine rips her a new one: `Punctuality is essential to a gracious way of life, which I do not intend to give up on account of you.' Ruth returns fire: `If you wanna live like some Dutchess of Maharati, you better learn how to behave like one!' Geraldine shakes furiously from head to toe after a fiesty Ruth flat-out inquires: "How MANY women have you killed?" Try to suppress a snicker as you watch a pint-sized Ruthie scamper away from Page, who smugly stalks her throughout her secluded desert home to the beat of bongos and a psychotic musical score. Page's wicked laughter is sprinkled spuriously throughout the film to the backdrop of swaying pine trees-how ingenious! Not even Bette Davis cackled with such nefarious mirth as Baby Jane Hudson!

    Praise be the master of psycho-shrews on film, Robert Aldrich--who directed the cult smash "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?"--for producing this special gem, and a hearty kudos to Lee Katzin for his superlative directing skills. This movie will make you bow down and pray to the Church of Geraldine Page. So what are you waiting for? Rent it tonight.and START PRAYING!!
    Boyo-2

    Great fun

    This movie was a blast. Geraldine Page is appropriately over the top in this thriller. Ruth Gordon doesn't get to let loose as much as I would have liked, but they do have a showdown which is a joy to behold. The movie would have you believe housekeepers make terrific fertilizer for pine trees, in the Arizona desert, no less! I loved every minute of it.
    chadledwards

    Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice REALLY is more terrifying than what happened to Baby Jane!

    The original ads for this movie read, "Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice? was more terrifying than what happened to Baby Jane", and to my way of thinking, they weren't far off. The brilliant Geraldine Page heads the cast of this ultra-stylish shocker as Mrs. Marrable, a not-so grieving widow whose husband left her only a stamp album. Unable(and unwilling) to cope with poverty, Mrs. Marrable solves the problem of living up to her station by inviting a succession of women into her home to work as housekeepers, and later murders them for their private incomes. Mrs. Marrable's plan works quite well until she makes the mistake of eliminating Miss Tinsley(Mildred Dunnock) whose suspicious friend, Mrs. Dimmock(the delightful Ruth Gordon), promptly arrives at the Marrable residence to apply for a position as the next housekeeper and potential victim. It's a spine-tingling tale of suspense with some dark humor and unforgettable performances by Page and Gordon. Highly recommended!
    8phillindholm

    ''What a fraud you are!''

    Not-so-grieving widow Claire Marrable is horrified to hear that her supposedly wealthy husband has apparently left her penniless. But, being a practical (and resourceful) type, she hits on a scheme to keep her in the comfort to which she wishes to become accustomed. Relocating to the Arizona desert, she hires elderly housekeepers with no known relatives (but tidy nest eggs) and sends them to their rewards a bit sooner than they planned. And their remains become mulch for the widow's growing garden as each is buried under a quickly flourishing sapling. This later entry in the "horror hag" sweepstakes features absolutely wonderful performances from Geraldine Page, who has a high old time as the haughty, demented and thoroughly relentless Mrs. Marrable, and Ruth Gordon, as Alice Dimmock, her new housekeeper, who isn't quite what she seems to be. On the sidelines are Rosemary Forsyth, herself a (young) widow with a nephew, Robert Fuller as Miss Gordon's nephew, and Joan Huntington as the scheming wife of Page's nephew. With a cast made up of widows and nephews, how scary can "Aunt Alice" be? Not very. But it's a delicious black comedy which allows Page and Gordon the opportunity to give the performances of their lives. There's also a neat cameo from Mildred Dunnock ("Death Of A Salesman") as the luckless servant who precedes Miss Gordon. One of the best "Grand Guignol" films ever made!
    Teenie

    Creepy....

    Geraldine Page gives a stellar performance as a whacked-out nutzo who delights in making compost out of her housekeepers and then stealing their money. Alas, along comes Ruth Gordon (at her snoopiest, sneakiest best) to investigate her friend's death, and then the gray hair flies. The scene in which these two senior citizens duke it out makes you see that adrenaline still pumps after age 60 (see Laurence Olivier and Gregory Peck in the climax of "The Boys from Brazil" if you don't believe me). Ruth Gordon's character reminds me of a sweet yet feisty grandma who wouldn't hesitate to deck you with a right hook if her words didn't get to you. I actually wanted to jump in there and help her kick butt since I liked her character so much. If you like the kind of film that startles you to attention, check this one out. It's very much worth a look.

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    Crime
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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      The third installment in Robert Aldrich's loose trilogy of "Grand Guignol" films (horror-thrillers featuring older women going crazy), following What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) and Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964). Aldrich served as producer for this film.
    • Goofs
      In the beginning when Claire Marrable is talking to her husband's lawyer, a mirror hangs on the wall. Right after she gets up and walks over to it, a crew member carrying a camera can be seen.
    • Quotes

      Claire Marrable: You are the only mistake I made.

      Alice Dimmock: Didn't you ever think you'd be found out?

      Claire Marrable: No and I won't be.

      Alice Dimmock: Giving yourself away like that...

      Claire Marrable: To you? You are a dead woman.

      Alice Dimmock: Oh no, I'm alive. See, I'm very much alive. And I'm not gonna be your next victim.

    • Connections
      Referenced in The Dick Cavett Show: Woody Allen/Ruth Gordon/Gina Lollobridgida (1969)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • August 20, 1969 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • German
    • Also known as
      • Eine Witwe mordet leise
    • Filming locations
      • Tucson, Arizona, USA(location)
    • Production companies
      • Palomar Pictures International
      • The Associates & Aldrich Company
      • The American Broadcasting Companies
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 41m(101 min)
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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