Mildred Pierce

Although "Mildred Pierce" was originally a novel, the story is familiar to most people as a glossy 1945 film noir in which Joan Crawford suffers in furs as her ungrateful daughter (Ann Blyth) steals her boyfriend (Zachary Scott). Strangely enough, the most engaging and gripping sections of this nearly 6-hour extravaganza of middle-class yearnings are not just the more heated of the mother-daughter battles but the painful struggle of the title character to find a job in a Depression-ravaged economy and a micro-examination of the frantic and messy business of running a restaurant, including the heartening camaraderie of the kitchen and wait staff.

There is much attention to the details of craftsmanship – pianistic, vocal, culinary, architectural, managerial and sartorial. When the movie concentrates on these matters it zips by, so sure is the treatment. The musical underscoring, always a key element in the evocation of the antique past, is too shrill at first but improves as the episodes unfold. For some reason Todd Haynes and his composer Carter Burwell have chosen to hammer us over the head at the start with a very loud jazzy piece, which is a bad idea because it obstructs the establishment of our acquaintance with the Pierce family. As the series progresses the musical elements are toned down. Mildred's theme song throughout is, appropriately enough, "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows."

The accomplished Kate Winslet flattens out her melodious native Britspeak yet again to impersonate a drab American housewife. How many such roles has she played by now? I've lost count. It's a consciously colorless rendering of an intelligent, strong and very feminine woman, but not the type of woman who would stop traffic or even try to. The supporting actors are the ones with personality texture: Melissa Leo as a good-natured neighbor and business partner, Mare Winningham as a tough but sweet co-worker (speaking with a "New Yawk"-style twang like one of those sassy blondes from 30's movies), Guy Pearce as the corrupt hedonistic boyfriend, Morgan Turner and Evan Rachel Wood as child and adult versions of Mildred's warped and snobby daughter Veda. Brian F. O'Byrne as Mildred's estranged husband is just warm and tender enough to evoke some sympathy.

The production is so meticulously produced and masterfully photographed that you can get lost in the visual details but the scale is too large for the smallness of the story.

This movie, recently presented in separate airings, was highly addictive. At first you think how can a movie based around a woman who makes great pies be that good but, IT REALLY WAS! My husband was hooked as soon as he saw the first episode I had recorded. It was PERFECTLY cast and all the performances were awesome! The setting based in the 1930's was absolutely gorgeous as was the music from back then. It made you wish you could go back in time, before technology, when things were so much simpler! The main theme of the story is universal to this day. This is one of those that if you are just channel surfing and you see it on, you just keep watching it over and over again. There is some nudity; but that aside, this is a a must see!

This is a good mini-series but has some flaws. But first I have to praise Kate Winslet and Evan Rachel Wood for their acting and chemistry (even if their characters nearly hate each other). But the thing is that the story gets sooooo stretched to fill the 5 episodes that from episode 3 on may feel a bit boring and kinda repetitive.

I get that we need to see Mildred's ups and downs but it just feels the same until the fifth episode. I haven't read the book yet but I think it wasn't structured to be adapted into a miniseries. Maybe a movie (I mean the one with Joan Crawford) but not a 5-hour series. Some dialogues are full of wit and deepness but, some feel very dull. Todd Haynes directed flawlessly but the scripts he co-wrote needed to be fixed or shortened.

Kate Winslet just nails every scene she's in and gives a powerful performance mostly in the scenes with young and adult Veda. The relationship between these feels so real even if it's a toxic one, a VERY toxic one. Kate gives us a character that has been beaten by life but, tries to go on and give her daughters a better life even if the world is falling down.

The sets and costumes are just brilliant. Anything you would expect coming from a period production.

It is a beautiful story and production, feminism at its best, but the writing needs some fixing.

-> continuing from the title <- But it is not for everyone.

Mildred pierce is not like other movies/series "based" on novels. This one is more like it "picturization " of the novel. If you have read the James Cain novel by the same name, you will be stunned how this movie 'sticks' to the source faithfully. So this should be great right? Ironically we learn from this that sometimes being too faithful to the novel has its drawbacks.Read on:

This is a film about a middle class divorced , single mom raising her kids , trying to be successful and riding the waves of success but making the mistake of trying to woo her 'rotten' daughter that leads to her downfall.

Here is Kate winslet as the heroine, Mildred Pierce. She is in every frame of the film and this must have been an extremely tiring performance for her. But Ms.Winslet is nothing short of spectacular. She gets every emotion right and delivers every dialogue flawlessly. Morgan Turner as the young Veda Pierce is rightly cast and builds up a neat foundation for Evan Rachel Wood to play her adult counterpart. Wood plays the role just right. Mellisa Leo and MAre Winningham as Pierce's friends Lucy and Ida, are perfectly cast. Brían F. O'Byrne as Bert is surprising good and in the final scene, he truly shines.

Now we have a good story and perfect cast so what could go wrong? Its the faithfulness! The novel is a good read, but picturizing it frame by frame into a movie would not attract many audiences. Its a film noire and is very realistic. The scenes unravel slowly and in detail. for some this may seem like a 'drag'. So if you find yourself yawing at movies like 'Revolutionary Road' or 'The English Patient' then stay away. Also the devotion Mildred shows to her, clearly sick and evil daughter is something I found hard to understand. In today's sensibility a mother wouldn't go this far I assume but this is debatable.

Other than that the film is a joyful companion to the novel. It would actual be difficult to imagine Mildred Pierce as anyone other than Kate Winslet, if you both, read and watch the movie over the same course of time. In conclusion, If you like good acting, good music, Pre-World war II era-films with a touch of realism then do not miss this.

Although the performances of Kate Winslet, Guy Pearce and Evan Racel Wood were all top notch in this 2011 remake, I preferred the original 1945 film. I just found the updated version to be too long. And it really didn't explain things as well as the 1945 version, such as the real reason why Mr. Pierce left his family. I know they make it seem like it was because he had another woman. But in the 1945 movie, it explained why he sought companionship with another woman. He was getting into a lot of arguments with Mrs. Pierce spoiling their daughters--especially Veda. And that's another thing too. In the 2011 version, it really didn't explain why Veda was a spoiled brat. But in the 1945 version, Mrs. Pierce said that she wanted to give the best things for her daughters. Anyway, another reason I liked the 1945 version more was because it had more style. I liked the film-noirness of it. I found the 2011 version to be all so typical and common. Nothing special. I don't know why they even bothered remaking this movie since the original was so much better. 5/10