The Letterbox



I LOVE LOSEY I’m itching to clarify some­


thing about the two versions of Joseph Losey’s EVA/EVE [VW 73:60]. Richard Harland Smith catalogues most of the differ­ ences (without elaborating on their significance) and remarks that the longer version is as close to a “director’s cut” as we’re likely to see. There’s one more sequence


unique to the so-called “dir­ ector’s cut,” a lengthy shot (41:25 - 44:53) involving Tyvian, Francesca and Branco, in which Branco reveals his love for Francesca and his suspicions of


Tyvian’s authorship. This is the most important addition in the longer version, since it explains the later tensions between these characters. Eva’s ambiguous childhood anecdote is next in importance, but the shorter ver­ sion does make sense without these moments, while this “director’s cut” makes no sense due to the absence of several sequences unique to the shorter version (as mentioned by Smith). The most essential of these se­ quences are: 1) The pan shot introducing


Eva on the yacht. The longer version has the following shot of Tyvian looking distractedly over


his shoulder, but we never know why. This is also the first of three magical moments when the au­ dience meets Eva, who is always conscious of Tyvian, before Tyvian does (she reclines on a gondola in the manner of the Goya picture on her wall, and she breaks into his house), establish­ ing her as the more important and dynamic character. 2) The extended baccarat


game where Eva calls Tyvian a loser, echoing her remark from


Sister Clodagh (Deborah Kerr) puts pen to paper in


BLACK NARCISSUS. 77

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