Mommie Dearest, best selling memoir, turned motion picture, depicts the abusive and traumatic adoptive upbringing of Christina Crawford at the hands of her mother...screen queen Joan Crawford.
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Director:
Julian Schnabel
Stars:
Jeffrey Wright,
Michael Wincott,
Benicio Del Toro
Based on the book about Joan Crawford, one of the great Hollywood actresses of our time, written by her adopted daughter Christina Crawford. Joan decides to adopt children of her own to fill a void in her life. Yet, her problems with alcohol, men, and the pressures of show business get in the way of her personal life, turning her into a mentally abusive wreck seen through the eyes of Christina and her brother Christopher, who unwillingly bore the burden of life that was unseen behind the closed doors of "The Most Beautiful House in Brentwood." Written by
Geoffrey A. Middleton <gamidd01@morehead-st.edu>
The lobby cards issued for the film contain scenes from several sequences that were deleted from the final cut of the film, including: - Joan driving through the MGM lot in her car, apparently just before she visits L.B. Mayer & finds out she's fired. - Joan talking to young Christina on the beach. - Adult Christina talking to Joan while wearing the same dress she wears to the awards ceremony at the film's conclusion. See more »
Goofs
During the bedroom scene when Joan is fighting with Greg and he shakes her, she loses a clip-on earring. The ear ring appears and disappears on Joan between shots. See more »
Quotes
Christina Crawford:
[pretending to be Joan]
Oh yes, it was thrilling. I'm so grateful to you all... my WONderful fans, who made me a star. Oh yes. It was thrilling. I'm so grateful to you all. My WON-der-ful fans, who made ME a star... MOMMIE?
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This may very well be one of the most loathsome and sloppy screen treatments to ever have been derived from a literary memoir. I only noticed four distinct areas in which "Mommie Dearest" is a complete disaster: the screenplay, the acting, the direction and the editing. Other than that, this is a fine film. Director Frank Perry delivers what could be one of the sloppiest directing jobs ever released by a major studio. He simply sits back and lets Dunaway rip. He was either supremely untalented or he purposefully intended to sabotage her. The narrative is chopped up worse than a Thanksgiving turkey, with a bizarre and fragmented collection of scenes showcasing little but mass hysteria. Dunaway does not chew scenery. Dunaway starts neatly at each corner of the set in every scene and swallows it whole, costars and all. Oy Faye!
7 of 9 people found this review helpful.
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This may very well be one of the most loathsome and sloppy screen treatments to ever have been derived from a literary memoir. I only noticed four distinct areas in which "Mommie Dearest" is a complete disaster: the screenplay, the acting, the direction and the editing. Other than that, this is a fine film. Director Frank Perry delivers what could be one of the sloppiest directing jobs ever released by a major studio. He simply sits back and lets Dunaway rip. He was either supremely untalented or he purposefully intended to sabotage her. The narrative is chopped up worse than a Thanksgiving turkey, with a bizarre and fragmented collection of scenes showcasing little but mass hysteria. Dunaway does not chew scenery. Dunaway starts neatly at each corner of the set in every scene and swallows it whole, costars and all. Oy Faye!