A Few Words About A few words about...™ Mildred Pierce -- in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[old mole]

I can't agree. Veda is not entirely the product of Mildred's obsessive love. She is who she is, a totally self absorbed and manipulative person who uses everyone she can to obtain her objectives. The Todd Haynes version really hones in on these aspects of her character with numerous examples of her exploiting her mother's dotage. Parents are not totally to blame for who their children are or what they end up doing.

 

[Douglas R]

Criterion have just released MILDRED PIERCE in the UK, locked to region B. What a fabulous looking Blu-ray it is! TCM HD have been showing the film recently in HD which I thought looked good until I saw this disc, with picture and sound quality vastly better.

David Frost's New York based shows were never broadcast in the UK so it was good to see the interview.

 

[Doug Otte]

I tried to get through the HBO miniseries, but I thought it was too remote and lacked the immediacy and force of the novel (which I like as a pulp novel.)...

In the case of Winslet, I think she adds an additional remoteness....

Todd Haynes seems to approach his period films with a kind of ironic distance. See also: Far From Heaven. It's as if he wants that distance to highlight the themes (women's rights, race and gay issues, respectively). Either that, or he just doesn't know how to direct some actors effectively. Winslet is very good in other roles.

Maybe I'm wrong about Haynes. The Velvet Goldmine didn't seem to have this distance. Looking at his filmography on IMDB, I realize I haven't seen anything else of his. But, I did tune in to the middle of Carol the other night, and for the few minutes I watched, I also felt that remoteness.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I watched my Blu-ray disc this morning. A beautiful job by Warner and Criterion. Michael Curtiz probably the most underrated director from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Just look at the body of his work, so many great films. Veda Pierce, one horrible individual. God, I love this 1945 film. Just great entertainment from the beginning with Mildred and the cop on the pier to the end of the film at the Police Station.

 

[Rob_Ray]

I'm not one to rank films numerically (I can't understand how someone can say that Such-and-Such ranks number 14 on my list of favorite films) but MILDRED PIERCE has to be up there toward the top. I first saw it at a theatre revival as a teenager and was instantly caught up in the story. It's pictures like this one that made me fall in love with films of the 1930s and 1940s.

It's funny -- back when I was young, in the 1960s and 70s, I never would have thought that Michael Curtiz was underrated. He was always a giant in my estimation by virtue of having directed everything from THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD and CASABLANCA to this picture and WHITE CHRISTMAS, every one of them on my list of favorite films. It's only been in the last twenty years or so that I've wondered why Michael Curtiz isn't given more attention. Part of it may be because he died before the era of Richard Schickel's Men Who Made the Movies.

 

[Doug Otte]

I finally started watching it last night (but got sleepy before the end). I agree that the picture quality is beautiful. The audio is also surprisingly good, with deep bass extension and clear but not strident dialogue. Over time, I like Steiner's soundtracks less than I used to. I know he was a pioneer in movie soundtracks, and much of his work was very good. But, the "Mickey Mousing" to emphasize certain action bothers me a little bit. I haven't seen any of the extras yet, nor read the essay, but the painting in the insert is gorgeous.

 

[Race Bannon]

I'd never seen the David Frost interview with Miss Crawford, which is among the superb extras, but its an extremely interesting piece, as the star comes off as honest and self-demeaning, and thoughtful.

Is it acting, or are we seeing an actual side of the actress? Not a clue.

I think that's actually her. I'm a huge fan, and for some reason I've always noticed the little touches like the Frost interview. I know there are all these stories, but I think she's a decent human being.

 

[Robert Harris]

I think that's actually her. I'm a huge fan, and for some reason I've always noticed the little touches like the Frost interview. I know there are all these stories, but I think she's a decent human being.

She may have reached a point in her life at which she wanted to be honest in discussing things such as education.

 

[benbess]

I finally opened my blu-ray of Mildred Pierce, and wow—what great picture quality for (most of) this movie. And, of course, what a stunning performance by Joan Crawford in the title role. The wonderful production design and cinematography are even better revealed with this restoration. I just got through that tear-jerking scene in the middle of the movie, and Crawford got me just as much as last time. And apparently that's how she got director Michael Curtiz too.

From wikipedia:

"Curtiz originally wanted Barbara Stanwyck for the role. However, Crawford, who by then had not been in a film for two years, did her best to get the part. Rare for a major star, she was even willing to audition for Curtiz. She was already aware that "Mr. Mike Curtiz hated me ... I don't want those big broad shoulders," he said. During her reading of an emotional scene as he watched, she saw him become so overwhelmed by her delivery that he cried, and he then said, "I love you, baby."[66]

To help Crawford prepare for certain court scenes, Curtiz took her downtown, where they spent time visiting jails and watching criminal trials.[67] In photographing her, he used careful film noir camera techniques, a style he learned in Europe, to bring out Crawford's distinctive face, using rich black-and-white highlights.[68] He was aware that Crawford guarded her screen image very carefully, and that she truly cared about quality. Crawford learned to appreciate Curtiz's genius with the camera.[69] Eve Arden, who was nominated as Best Supporting Actress for the film, said "Curtiz was one of the few directors who knew what he wanted and was able to express himself exactly, even in his amusing Hungarian accent."[69]

Mildred Pierce was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Only Crawford won, for Best Actress, her first and only Oscar.[65] The novel's author, James M. Cain, gave her a leather-bound copy of Mildred Pierce, which he inscribed: "To Joan Crawford, who brought Mildred to life as I had always hoped she would be, and who has my lifelong gratitude.'"

 

[Doug Otte]

From wikipedia:
"[...]In photographing her, he used careful film noir camera techniques, a style he learned in Europe, to bring out Crawford's distinctive face, using rich black-and-white highlights.[...]"[69]

Thanks for sharing. The only nitpick I have about that article is the above quote. At that time, there was no such thing as "...film noir camera techniques...a style..." Later on, scholars might use that term, but at the time it was just "...camera techniques..."

 

[benbess]

There are good extra features on this blu-ray, including a feature length documentary on Joan Crawford that has little clips and thoughts about most of her movies.