this little known 1955 melodramatic gem star joan crawford and barry sullivan and betsy palmer and john ireland and lucy marlow be not only incredibly over dramatic ( sometimes hilariously so ) but a great opportunity for joan crawford to show off her inner diva and those great act skill of hers . emotion run high a ruthless southern socialite eva phillips ( the queen bee play by else but the magnificent joan crawford who be absolutely in her element ) manipulate those around her and turn them against each other . the story begin when her sappy cousin ( badly play by lucy marlow you be almost happy when she get slap ) arrive at eva mansion and boy and be she in for one wild ride . affair and suicide and car accident and love and manipulation all drive this movie . it be such a pleasure to watch eva phillips tear people apart and see the cunning way in which she work and get her own way . the script be and a i previously say and insanely dramatic ( and sometimes the line aren not deliver well bad act ) and sometimes it get very funny a it just seem really pathetic . that doesn not mean i do not enjoy it though no and i love every minute of it . i love eva phillip ability to torment the people around her ( for example call her drunk and scarred husband beauty ) it be incredibly fascinate to me . and the end be very reward too . undoubtly over the top to the point of laugh and but a very entertaining ride perfect for a day in . i enjoy every minute of it and i thoroughly recommend it to comedy and drama fan alike both could get some enjoyment out of this .