Mildred Pierce (2011– )

Divorced single mom Mildred Pierce decides to open a restaurant business, which tears at the already-strained relationship with her ambitious elder daughter, Veda.

Stars:

Kate Winslet, Brían F. O'Byrne, Guy Pearce

Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 10 wins & 31 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Kate Winslet	...	Mildred Pierce (5 episodes, 2011)
Brían F. O'Byrne	...	Bert Pierce (5 episodes, 2011)
Melissa Leo	...	Lucy Gessler (5 episodes, 2011)
James Le Gros	...	Wally Burgan (5 episodes, 2011)
Murphy Guyer	...	Mr. Pierce (5 episodes, 2011)
Mare Winningham	...	Ida Corwin (5 episodes, 2011)
Marin Ireland	...	Letty (5 episodes, 2011)
Guy Pearce	...	Monty Beragon (5 episodes, 2011)
Diane Kagan	...	Mrs. Pierce (4 episodes, 2011)
Miriam Shor	...	Anna (4 episodes, 2011)
Halley Feiffer	...	Arline (3 episodes, 2011)
Hope Davis	...	Mrs. Forrester (3 episodes, 2011)
Robb Webb	...	Radio Announcer (3 episodes, 2011)
Christopher Koron	...	Archie (3 episodes, 2011)
Margaret Hall	...	Mrs. Floyd (3 episodes, 2011)
Morgan Turner	...	Veda Pierce (3 episodes, 2011)
Erwin Falcon	...	Pancho (3 episodes, 2011)
Elvy Yost	...	Sigrid (3 episodes, 2011)
Laura Esterman	...	Mrs. Kramer (3 episodes, 2011)

Storyline

Glendale, California, 1931: Mildred Pierce, a young mother with a talent for baking, is left a "grass widow" after throwing her husband, Bert, out of the house. Forced to hunt for work to support herself and her two young daughters, 11-year-old Veda and seven-year-old Ray, Mildred visits an employment agency, only to encounter job opportunities she feels are beneath her. Amidst her job search, she receives dating advice from her friend and neighbor, Lucy Gessler, and begins an unexpected affair with an ex-business partner of her husband's, Wally Burgan. When Mildred receives a call from the agency regarding an opening as a housekeeper to a wealthy socialite, she reluctantly agrees to meet with her. After cutting the acerbic interview short, Mildred seeks refuge at a local diner, Cristofor's Café, where fate, and a waitress named Ida, will play a role in shaping her future.

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Plot Keywords:

glendale california | restaurant | california | single mother | friendship | 

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Taglines:

Having It All Would Cost Her Everything.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Also Known As:

Prosdokies

Filming Locations:

Blauvelt, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Home Box Office (HBO), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Killer Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

336 min 336 min (total run time)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the DVD commentary, director Todd Haynes mentions that while on the set of this movie, Kate Winslet told Guy Pearce that he had been one of her biggest crushes when she was a teenager in the UK and he had a role on the long-running Australian soap opera Neighbours.

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Connections

Featured in 2011 Primetime Creative Arts Emmys (2011)

User Reviews

"Intriguing character piece .."

American screenwriter and director Todd Haynes' first mini-series made for television which he co-wrote with American writer Jonathan Raymond, is an adaptation of a novel by American writer and journalist James M. Cain (1892-1977) from 1941. It was screened Out of competition at the 68th Venice International Film Festival in 2011, was shot on locations in New York, USA and is an American production which was produced by Todd Haynes, American film producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler and American producer, screenwriter and director John Wells. It tells the story about middle-class housewife Mildred Pierce who lives with her husband Bert and two adolescent daughters in Glendale, California during the Great depression, and who's life changes immensely when she and Bert breaks up and she is left on her own to raise and be the sole provider of her daughters Ray and Veda.

Distinctly and engagingly directed by American filmmaker Todd Haynes, this nuanced period piece, a character-driven and dialog-driven psychological drama which is narrated from multiple viewpoints though mostly from the main character's point of view, draws a pervasive portrayal that spans over nine years of an independent and courageous woman's rise from struggling housewife to influential business woman in the early 1930s. While notable for it's colorful, naturalistic and mostly interior milieu depictions, production design by production designer Mark Friedberg, cinematography by American cinematographer Edward Lachman, costume design by Ann Roth, fine editing by Affonso Concalves and Camilla Toniolo and use of colors, this character-driven, dialog-driven and narrative-driven fictional tale depicts a stately study of character and contains a prominent and jazzy score by American composer Carter Burwell.

This rhythmic, atmospheric and melodramatic coming-of-age story about a competitive, and obsessive relationship between a loving mother and her eldest daughter which examines themes like class distinctions, family relations and love, is impelled and reinforced by it's cogent narrative structure, substantial character development, colorful characters, the memorable acting performance by English actress Kate Winslet, the fierce acting performance by American actress Evan Rachel Wood as the protagonist's ambitious daughter Veda and the notable acting performance by Australian actor Guy Pearce as the wealthy playboy Monty Beragon. An intriguing character piece which gained, among other awards, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Miniseries or Television Film at the 69th Golden Globe Awards in 2011.