Mildred Pierce

Mildred Pierce

2DCS12
Director:Michael Curtiz
Cast:Joan Crawford, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, Eve Arden
Premiere:19. November 2022
Length:111 minutes
Genre:Drama

Director: Michael Curtiz  •  Cast: Joan Crawford, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, Eve Arden, Ann Blyth, Bruce Bennett

Mildred Pierce, based on James M. Cain's novel of the same name, is divided into two parts. The framing narrative, in which we twice witness the murder of Monte Beragon - once in the opening, the second (and slightly different) time in the closing - is pure noir: dominated by nocturnal, expressively lit shots and a confusing narrative that puts the viewer on a false trail. The inserted flashback, which forms the dominant part of the footage, is instead a classic melodrama, in which we follow Mildred's efforts to work her way up from a downtrodden housewife to the owner of a successful restaurant chain, while simultaneously ingratiating herself with her spoiled daughter Veda. Michael Curtiz's film, however, goes beyond the personal and reflects on more far-reaching social issues: the transformation of women's status during the war, the disintegration of the nuclear family, the utopianism of the American dream, and the intractability of class differences.

Length: 111 min

Year: 1945
Local premiere date: 19. November 2022

Country of origin:

  • United states of America

Director: Michael Curtiz  •  Cast: Joan Crawford, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, Eve Arden, Ann Blyth, Bruce Bennett

Mildred Pierce, based on James M. Cain's novel of the same name, is divided into two parts. The framing narrative, in which we twice witness the murder of Monte Beragon - once in the opening, the second (and slightly different) time in the closing - is pure noir: dominated by nocturnal, expressively lit shots and a confusing narrative that puts the viewer on a false trail. The inserted flashback, which forms the dominant part of the footage, is instead a classic melodrama, in which we follow Mildred's efforts to work her way up from a downtrodden housewife to the owner of a successful restaurant chain, while simultaneously ingratiating herself with her spoiled daughter Veda. Michael Curtiz's film, however, goes beyond the personal and reflects on more far-reaching social issues: the transformation of women's status during the war, the disintegration of the nuclear family, the utopianism of the American dream, and the intractability of class differences.

Year: 1945
Local premiere date: 19. November 2022

Country of origin:

  • United states of America