Mildred Pierce (1945)

Directed by: Michael Curtiz | 111 minutes | drama, thriller | Actors: Joan Crawford, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, Eve Arden, Ann Blyth, Bruce Bennett, Lee Patrick, Moroni Olsen, Veda Ann Borg, Jo Ann Marlowe, William Alcorn, Betty Alexander, Ramsay Ames, George Anderson, Robert Arthur, Lynn Baggett, Leah Baird, Dorothy Barrett, Barbara Brown, Wallis Clark, Chester Clute, John Compton, David Cota, Manart Kippen, Perk Lazelle, Butterfly McQueen, Garry Owen

In classic Hollywood you still had real divas. Fierce aunts like Katherine Hepburn and Bette Davis who knew how to manage their own business and who could instill considerable fear in many a studio boss with their tough and extremely businesslike attitude. Joan Crawford also belonged to that list. She was best known for her perpetual rivalry with Davis; a feud that was masterfully brought to the silver screen by director Robert Aldrich with the cult classic ‘Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?’ (1962). And like it or not, Crawford had a lot in common with her nemesis. Like Davis, her career also had a flourishing period in the 1930s, after which the successes became much less. Crawford’s contract with MGM expired in 1943 and after a series of failed films, Crawford, now 38, was not offered a new contract. She was given another chance at Warner Brothers, but it would be another two years before she would achieve success again.

Mildred Pierce (1945) is the classic flashback film that redefined Joan Crawford’s career. The film begins as a typical film noir with four pistol shots resounding in the darkness. Victim is Monte Beragon (Zachary Scott), the second husband of Mildred Pierce (Joan Crawford). When the body is discovered, she and the other protagonists in this murder have to go to the police station, where Mildred tells her story. Her first husband Bert (Bruce Bennett) loses his job and the ensuing fights over money lead to a divorce. Mildred has to work for her money, much to the horror of her spoiled, megalomaniacal eldest daughter Veda (Ann Blyth). In order to support her two daughters, Mildred starts working as a waitress. She quickly becomes the owner of a successful restaurant chain, which she managed to set up thanks to real estate mogul Wally Fay (Jack Carson) and heir and new husband Monte Beragon. But daughter Veda and also epicurean Monte seem to demand more from Mildred than she can handle…

It wasn’t easy for the Warner Brothers studio to get ‘Mildred Pierce’ off the ground. The novel of the same name by James M. Cain – also known for ‘Double Indemnity’ (1944) and ‘The Postman Always Rings Twice’ (1946) – certainly for that time quite perverted – did not seem to be made into a film, but producer Jerry Wald through anyway. No fewer than eight different screenplays were rejected before director Michael Curtiz (‘Casablanca’, 1942) could get to work. It was Ranald McDougall’s (‘Stage Fright’, 1950) script that eventually won the approval of the big bosses. ‘Mildred Pierce’ is at once a real women’s film, a swirling soap and a sublime film noir that wipes the floor with the then prevailing ideals of maternal devotion and affection. Mildred is admirable for working hard and effacing herself. She is intelligent, ambitious and driven, qualities that are highly regarded in America. But when she breaks away from her decent but unsuccessful husband Bert and chooses the brash Veda over her much sweeter youngest daughter Kay (she even manages to get over the sad death of this child without any problem), the viewer realizes that Mildred is not quite spiritually. healthy anymore.

The melodrama is performed very convincingly. Even those who don’t like the tough Crawford must be impressed by her intense portrayal of the tragic Mildred. She rightly won her only Oscar for it and the role has been decisive for her further career. Ann Blyth – only seventeen at the time – is sensational as the very young haughty femme fatale. She was also nominated for an Oscar, as well as Eve Arden who steals the show as Ida, Mildred’s confidante with biting one-liners. Michael Curtiz was a director who put a personal stamp on films of all genres. Here he uses his actors masterfully. In addition to the wonderfully sarcastic Arden, there are excellent supporting roles from the slippery Zachary Scott and wolf in sheep’s clothing Jack Carson. The technical aspects are also of a high level. Oscar-winning cinematographer Ernest Haller for ‘Gone with the Wind’ created beautiful contrasts between sunny suburbs and dark, nightmarish scenes, while legendary composer Max Steiner in turn provided those images with beautiful music.

‘Mildred Pierce’ is the pinnacle of the comprehensive oeuvre of Joan Crawford, one of the greatest divas in Hollywood history. A salient detail is that the role of Mildred was first offered to her arch-rival Bette Davis, who declined. Crawford will be eternally grateful to her for it, though she wouldn’t be quick to admit it. ‘Mildred Pierce’ is drama with a capital D, combined with the basic elements of the ultimate film noir. A film in which the women once predominate and the men are only weak figures. The script of the film is excellently put together and, together with the strong acting, forms the greatest strength of ‘Mildred Pierce’, which has won a total of no less than six Oscar nominations. A must for anyone who likes classic drama or an unadulterated film noir. Joan Crawford in top form!