Typically overheated vehicle for Joan Crawford, a comeback movie for her at the time, one she lobbied hard for, eventually winning the Best Actress Oscar. James M. Cain's novel about a penniless single mother who works to make herself a success, losing control of her daughter in the process, was ripe opportunity for any actress to emote; Crawford takes the role over-the-top with rigid relish, shoulder-pads intact. She doesn't quite carve out an original characterization here, instead offering us another portrait in the Joan Crawford gallery (which is intriguing nonetheless). One can almost sense her go-for-broke determination, which certainly propels the movie through its standard soap clichés. Director Michael Curtiz gives the picture a rich, film-noir feel, Eve Arden is wonderful in a small part but, ultimately, this is just a notch or two above superficial melodrama. **1/2 from ****
Review of Mildred Pierce
