0
0
Rating: 5 out of 5
I haven’t had the pleasure of having children yet, but I hope they are not spoiled brats. I’m talking about Veruca Salt spoiled. All the way down to the core. Who wants everything, and if they do get it, they throw hissy fits and need an ass whipping. I would probably lose my mind if they were spoiled. Take it from someone who has dealt with many spoiled children in his lifetime so far. As a parent, this begs the question: I know you try to give your child a better life than yourself, but when is it too much? When does a parent stop and say, I can’t give you the life you want, and you need to go out in the world and get it yourself?
I think I found a movie that almost answers those questions. Ladies and gentlemen welcome to the film Mildred Pierce. Directed by Michael Curtiz, Mildred Pierce is a mystery that might leave any parent shaken. The film begins with Mildred Pierce (Crawford) discovering her second husband’s body, Monte Beragon (Scott). Mildred contemplates suicide but tries to frame the murder on Wally Fay (Carson). Mildred is picked up by police who question her. She tells them about the circumstances of her life, starting with the break-up with her first husband, Bert Pierce (Bennett), who the police are charging for the murder.
Mildred soon goes into the backstory of her life as she and Bert split when financial times hit them hard, and Bert was putting his winky in another woman. Mildred decides to make homemade goods to afford what she wants but mostly provide a better life for her two daughters, Veda (Blyth) and Kay (Marlowe). The daughters couldn’t have been different from each other. Kay is a tomboy who is just happy with having fun. Veda, on the other hand, always wanted more, and whatever was given to her never seemed like it was enough until she wanted a lavish life. Mildred also states that Wally has helped in the past but always pursued her with sexual advances, which she rebuffed. Mildred soon gets a bright idea to start a restaurant, and through it, she establishes a successful restaurant empire. She got her start by purchasing a property from Monte. When Monte and Mildred begin a relationship, it opens Veda’s eyes to living a bigger high life. As Mildred tries to state what happened in her life, police soon realize that her story may reveal who the real murderer is.
First, I want to give props to Mildred and her hustle. Homegirl hustled her ass off when her first husband left her to raise two kids, and she seemed to get no respect at all. Wally was always trying to sleep with her, which is major sexual harassment. When Mildred decided to get her hustle on with being a waitress in the morning and baking pies at night, Veda looked down on her because she didn’t like that her mom wasn’t rich. You know what you can do, Veda, get a f-in job!!! Yet, it didn’t stop there. Mildred found a place for a restaurant and had to hustle to get that. When it was successful, people still looked down on her, especially Veda, who stated she didn’t want her mom smelling like grease. Get a f-in job, Veda. In the end, Mildred always seemed to work hard for Veda than herself. She should’ve left that punk ass girl behind and got hers. She should’ve been proud of what she created in a few years but let trifling people take advantage of her repeatedly.
Let’s get to Veda right now. I have some major choice words for you, girl. You are a straight-up spoiled, rotten, selfish asshole. You had an amazing, fantastic, wonderful mother who tried to give you the world. Your mom hustled, scratched, and clawed her way up to the top, and you looked down on her like some peasant. When you align yourself with Wally and Monte to scheme people out of money, there is a special place for you. I am happy with the ending. Don’t drop the soap girl because you will end up someone’s girlfriend.
Now for the acting because this is where the movie really stands out. Joan Crawford was an absolute G in this film. I enjoyed watching her. I have some hesitation about her because of Mommie Dearest, but in this film, she was amazing to watch. She showed how people should hustle but not for their damn kids. She showed that through everything, if you work hard, you can achieve a better life, and I love watching Crawford do her thing on the big screen.
The two supporting characters must be given props also. Eve Arden as Ida Corwin was fabulous. She told it how it was when she was first Mildred’s boss and then her worker. I highly enjoyed watching Arden tell people off because she knew that people were taking advantage of Mildred.
Finally, Ann Blyth as Veda Pierce Forrester. Holy shit, did I not like you at all. You know what? That is why you did a fantastic job as Veda. You deserve some major props when you make a character as despicable and rotten as Veda.
Mildred Pierce is a great film to watch when you realize your kids are spoiled and they should get a freakin job. The story is fantastic, watching a woman work her ass off for her spoiled daughter. Crawford is at her best and deserves any award she receives. Watch this movie, and then look at your kids with a major side-eye.
