Plot: Monte Beragon has been shot dead in his home, and the police pull in his wife, Mildred Pierce-Beragon for questioning. Because, you know, it’s always the spouse, right? During questioning, Mildred recounts her life story: from a stay-at-home mother who loves her children, to a single working mother, to a successful businesswoman.
Best moment: OH. MY. GOSH. That ending. I did not see that end coming. I mean, I suspected it a little, but seeing as this was 1945 I did NOT think they were going to go there. Also, the film was directed by Michael Curtiz, who is becoming my favorite director (The Adventures of Robin Hood, Casablanca, Yankee Doodle Dandy), so every frame and his use of light and shadow is just *chef’s kiss*.
Worst moment: VEDA. All of her moments. Though I will say I’m adding this film to the list of resources I pull when people lament about “kids these days are the worst” or “moral decay has never been what it is now.” To those people I say, “Really? You should watch Mildred Pierce and then get back to me. I’ll wait.” Though I will say this about the writing–we’re never really given a good reason for why Veda is so awful. And maybe to a 2019 audience, we don’t need a reason; after all, Veda just reminded me of any number of teen Instagram influencers so it wasn’t a stretch for me to buy her “I’m so embarrassed that you work in the food industry” criticism of her mother as the sole reason she was so mean.
Fun facts: Joan Crawford was not Curtiz’s first (or second, or third) choice for the title role, but she was really quite good. HBO did a miniseries starring Kate Winslet (the film was based on a book) so now I want to check that out.
Recommendation: See it. I see movies by myself all the time, and I’m never bothered by not having someone around to react with. But I kinda wish someone had watched this with me, because at least three times I said “WHAT?” out loud. That doesn’t happen often. Also, it held my attention, probably because so many of the characters were flat-out unlikeable and I wanted to see if that changed at all.
