[.ca] Mildred Pierce

Amazon.com essential video:
For a full dose of pure, unfiltered Joan Crawford, look no further than this slab of scorching film noir. Crawford is in her element as the heroine of James M. Cain's pulp-fiction classic, a ditched wife and mother who is forced to become a waitress. On the strength of Crawford's steely willpower (and maybe those intimidating wide-wing shoulder pads), she constructs an empire of eateries, only to be disappointed by her rotten daughter (Ann Blyth) and a ferret-faced new husband (Zachary Scott). Director Michael Curtiz (Casablanca) whips up a storm of atmosphere, and the script is a series of tartly written exchanges. The best lines go to perennial wisecracker Eve Arden, as Crawford's acid-tongued pal--she earned her only Oscar nomination for the role. Commenting on the ungrateful daughter, Arden says, "Alligators have the right idea. They eat their young." Crawford herself took home the best actress Oscar, and the film was a triumphant personal comeback: her longtime studio MGM had released her from her contract before Mildred Pierce came along. Is this great acting? (Pauline Kael called it "heavy breathing.") Whatever Joan Crawford is doing in this movie, it's movie presence at its most formidable. --Robert Horton

Ultimate Crawford:
Here is the story of your average post-World War II housewife who believes that nothing is too good--or too much--for her two precious daughters. By the time this great soap opera is over, she has buried one child, experienced the murder of a cheating, mooching sleazeball of a husband, sent the other daughter off to prison, and gone into bankruptcy. But at least Eve Arden's character is good for a few laughs. At the end, though, she seems to reconcile with her first husband, whom she kicked out of the house in the first reel for losing his job. It's nice to know one can sometimes start out all over again.

Mildred pierce a true gem who never directed Douglas Sirk:
Mildred pierce in his spirit the film together with The Pastoral Symphony of Jean Delanoy who better explores the female world in this decade so filled with trouble and fear. The close experience of the Second World war in a certain way was a crossroad for a huge crowd of directors. 1945 is the birth of the italian neorealism, the full comittment of the film noir, the first aproximations of the social film (Remember Kazan , Wilder , Dmytrik , Losey, Wyler,) and I think it was the starting point of the sparkle for the new wave cinema ten years after. If you watch this movie, you`ll forget you`re in the a a film from the forties. Because the story is told so perfectly and the matter in question is so related with everyone of us that all the explored universe of feelings , the proud, the anger and the constance of the main character in a ravishing performance of Mrs. Crawford and the astonishing Anne Blyth, makes that film not only a cult movie but a obligated reference for those who love the art of cinema. If I coukd, I`d give it ten stars instaed of just five.

Essential for Old-Movie Fans:
Everyone who has a weakness for old movies should have this one in his/her collection. Steely Joan Crawford evokes sympathy as an abandoned, financially-strapped wife and mother, though you know all along that Mildred will make it somehow. Make it she does, stumbling into the restaurant business and making a success of it in spite of the fact that men find her so darned irresistible that she has to stop and peel one off every few steps. Adding to Mildred's troubles is the fact that oldest daughter Vida(played by dewy-eyed young beauty Ann Blyth) has become an insufferable snob somewhere along the line, in spite of her middle-class upbringing. Mildred worships Vida, in spie of the fact that Vida is moody, verbally abusive, and impossible to please.Vida wants to be "rich", but when Mildred makes lots of money, it still doesn't suit Vida because her mother worked (ew, yuck) for it. You wish that Mildred would shake her, or at least ground her. Eve Arden, one of my all-time favorites, is her usual wonderful self as Mildred's shrewd secretary and loyal friend. Butterfly McQueen gets wasted once again in the role of the family's maid. Even if you're not a Joan Crawford fan, buy this one; it makes terrific rainy-night viewing.

Crawford at her best---DVD features are great!:
Wonderful DVD of Crawford's still-wonderful portrayal of "MILDRED PIERCE." She acts all over the place, earning that Oscar, scene by sumptuous scene! And this is what DVDs are all about...you will enjoy not only assorted Crawford trailers from her years at the Warner Brothers studio, but the excellent documentary on "Crawford: The Ultimate Star." A real bargain! The only thing that is missing would be a commentary track by someone in-the-know about the making of this great picture.

A classic!:
A fantastic movie! Beautifully directed, wonderfully acted, and a great story! If you enjoyed the movie, read the original by James Cain. There are a few things about Mildred that the movie didn't tell - it may surprise you!