Happy Jane Fonda Day! The greatest day, truly. And I decided to kick it off with a movie I have been excited for for a very long time, I cannot even tell you how many years it’s been on my watchlist. Walk on the Wild Side is a lesser known Fonda flick, but it also features Barbara Stanwyck, which actually made me almost watch it during Summer Under the Stars a few times but it never happened — until now!
So, with that much waiting, so much excitement — the movie better be amazing, right?
Well.
It starts out so promising, Laurence Harvey and Jane Fonda are making their way down the South, hopping trains, very much 60s rebellion, she’s amazing, they’re heading for New Orleans, one of the best places to set a story…
And then it turns into a fairly bland romance between Harvey and Capucine (look, I’m not gonna get mad at getting the opportunity to stare at Capucine for 90 minutes, but that’s, shockingly, not enough). Even the brothel-running lesbian Barbara Stanwyck doesn’t help. To be honest, the film’s biggest problem is probably Jane Fonda — she is just the best part of it, and when she’s not on screen (which is most of its runtime) Walk on the Wild Side ends up being disappointing.
But to the movie’s credit, it does feature what is now one of my favourite quotes of all time: “You’re crazy! Always getting hungry like you was a millionaire!”
Swingin' at the Seance 