‘Feud’ Rages With Crawford And Davis’s “Hagsploitation”

With the great Oscar 1963 under its garter belt, Feud continues with “Hagsploitation,” documenting the beginning of the end for Joan Crawford.

Critics of FX’s Ryan Murphy anthology series Feud: Bette and Joan seem to check out once the What Ever Happened To Baby Jane recreations finished. The “Oscars of 1963” episode provided a high point, but most critics seem to consider the series drawn out. I am not one of these critics. To me, the series only improved with age. In fact, I wasn’t a huge fan of their Baby Jane recreations, partially because no one seemed particularly interested in faithfully recreating the scenes. And how could you faithfully recreate such famous sequences?

Better to push forward and focus more on the actresses themselves. Well, one of the actresses anyway. My only other gripe about the series is the relegation of Susan Sarandon’s Bette Davis to the camp sidelines. Feud: Bette and Joan obsesses over Joan Crawford (Jessica Lange). Honestly, that’s a huge surprise to me given Murphy’s history with Davis. Still, each episode grows in Crawford content with Sarandon popping up here and there.

Sunday’s episode, “Hagsploitation,” illustrates Crawford’s fall from the heights of Baby Jane. She painfully engages in cheap, but profitable, William Castle horror flicks that provide zero gravitas. Nothing but cheap thrills and Crawford hacking through an audience with a fake axe. Then comes Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte…

Is Jessica Lange riding this one to another Emmy? Can anybody stop her at this point?

Hagsploitation | Season 1 Ep. 6 Trailer | FEUD: Bette and Joan

DESCRIPTION:  Hungry for another hit, Warner pressures Aldrich to bring the original team back together for a follow-up hag horror pic. Someone from Joan’s past poses a threat.