Mildred Pierce (1945)
The best thing about Mildred Pierce is the drastic change of story. The 2011 remake is incredibly faithful to John M. Cain’s written words, but since I found the original novel odd and unfulfilling, I like the 1945 story infinitely better. The movie starts after Zachary Scott gets murdered, and as he staggers around in the living room, his murderer speedily drives away from the beach house. The rest of the movie is told in flashbacks as Joan Crawford, Zach’s wife, tells the police about her entire life—which, let’s face it, isn’t mostly necessary to solve the murder. In the original novel, there is no murder! Talk about exciting, and talk about an improvement!
Joan and her first husband Bruce Bennett have a strained marriage, and after their divorce, Joan struggles to make ends meet while raising her two daughters, Ann Blyth and Jo Ann Marlowe. Ann Blyth is her raison d’être, and to give her a luxurious life full of piano lessons and beautiful clothes, Joan secretly gets a job as a waitress for extra money. This was during a time when a woman being the breadwinner was something to be ashamed of, let alone her waiting tables in a diner, so keep that in mind when Ann flies off the handle and shames her mother.
The original story turns the oldest daughter into an opera singer, and even though Ann Blyth had a beautiful voice, they chose not to utilize it in her film debut that won her an Academy Award nomination. However, the change in the story is a welcome one. This is a pretty famous movie, since it won Joan Crawford her only Oscar, so if you’re a fan, you’ll need to watch it. She gives a rather internal, stoic performance, relying on a stone face and wide, glistening eyes when any other actress—or mother in her character’s position—would have wailed and cried.
Eve Arden, snagging herself a ridiculous Oscar nomination for doing nothing different than her usual stock performance, and Jack Carson make up the supporting cast. Jack plays a smarmy heel, and nearly everything out of his mouth is irritating. The same could be said for Eve’s dialogue. The stars of the show are Joan and Ann. Ann is especially impressive, since it was her first movie and at sixteen years old, she was able to outshine Joan Crawford.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru, and thanks "1940's Classic Cinema Central" for posting!
More Ann Blyth movies here!
More Joan Crawford movies here!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of James M. Cain's original novel here!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of 2011's Mildred Pierce here!
Joan and her first husband Bruce Bennett have a strained marriage, and after their divorce, Joan struggles to make ends meet while raising her two daughters, Ann Blyth and Jo Ann Marlowe. Ann Blyth is her raison d’être, and to give her a luxurious life full of piano lessons and beautiful clothes, Joan secretly gets a job as a waitress for extra money. This was during a time when a woman being the breadwinner was something to be ashamed of, let alone her waiting tables in a diner, so keep that in mind when Ann flies off the handle and shames her mother.
The original story turns the oldest daughter into an opera singer, and even though Ann Blyth had a beautiful voice, they chose not to utilize it in her film debut that won her an Academy Award nomination. However, the change in the story is a welcome one. This is a pretty famous movie, since it won Joan Crawford her only Oscar, so if you’re a fan, you’ll need to watch it. She gives a rather internal, stoic performance, relying on a stone face and wide, glistening eyes when any other actress—or mother in her character’s position—would have wailed and cried.
Eve Arden, snagging herself a ridiculous Oscar nomination for doing nothing different than her usual stock performance, and Jack Carson make up the supporting cast. Jack plays a smarmy heel, and nearly everything out of his mouth is irritating. The same could be said for Eve’s dialogue. The stars of the show are Joan and Ann. Ann is especially impressive, since it was her first movie and at sixteen years old, she was able to outshine Joan Crawford.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru, and thanks "1940's Classic Cinema Central" for posting!
More Ann Blyth movies here!
More Joan Crawford movies here!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of James M. Cain's original novel here!
Be sure to check out Hot Toasty Rag's review of 2011's Mildred Pierce here!