Reviews

This movie is a disgrace to history and period pieces of the 30's. The true story of Peggy Eaton was so much better and I have no idea why they didn't follow the storyline the way it played out in real life. Peggy Eaton was a flirt and married while she was having an affair with Sec. of Agriculture John Eaton. It didn't make any sense in this movie to have Joan Crawford's character not be turned on by Francot Tone, who she was married to in real life. Instead she was attracted to John Randolph, who was a Senator and this part was fictional for no reason. Why not have her fall in love with her future husband? Her husband, at the time, did die at sea and it was rumored that he committed suicide because Peggy was having an affair with John Eaton, who she married a month later. That would have been a real drama. Then, when she went calling on the Washington Ladies, they snubbed her and called her a "hussy." Andrew Jackson was so mad, he fired his whole cabinet, like in the movie. This movie didn't make any sense and to call it "Gorgeous Hussy" made people think they were going to get a good soap opera, which they could have if they would have written a script that stuck to the story. I can just see a good scene with Peggy calling on the ladies only to kept waiting in a hallway and head held high as she had to leave in shame. Joan Crawford can't act. Vivien Leigh, she is not. She spends every scene trying to look radiant and only looks like a deer in headlights.

Andrew Jackson was not Jed Clampett, as he is portrayed here. For God's sake, he was a lawyer, Senator and General at the time of his inauguration. He would not have been brawling at his inauguration party and he didn't say "ain't". Rachel was not Granny Clampet either. She was from a wealthy family in Tennessee and did smoke a pipe, but then a lot of independent minded women smoked. I was just appalled at the portrayal of these characters. No plot was developed and the political issues of nullification, states rights, Bank of America and Peggy Eaton as the 'hussy' were not developed and if the viewer doesn't know history, this whole movie would be perplexing to say the least. As the last scene fades, when the "heroine" who doesn't love her "hero" sails off to Spain, we are left feeling cheated of history. This movie is only good to see the beautiful sets and costumes of the time. I don't even understand why Beulah Bondi, who was great as Rachel was nominated for an Academy Award for her 3 or 4 scenes. There must have been other actresses who had more complex roles that year. Joan Crawford was just awful and Lionel Barrymore should have done a little more study on Andrew Jackson, who was a strong and noble gentleman, not a country bumpkin.

I only rate this movie as high as I did for the costumes and set design. Don't take any of the history seriously. They shamelessly bungled this movie.