Mildred Pierce (1945)
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A hardworking baker's desperate attempts to provide a high-society life for her daughter lead to a web of deception and tragedy.
The story
After the murder of her second husband, Mildred Pierce is told by police that her first husband, Bert, is the prime suspect. Mildred, a hardworking baker, protests the accusation and recounts her life story. To provide a high-society lifestyle for her social-climbing daughter Veda, Mildred works multiple jobs and eventually opens a successful chain of restaurants in Southern California. However, her ambition leads her into a complicated relationship with a wealthy playboy, Monte Beragon, while she struggles to manage her daughters' demands and her own growing business empire.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Following the murder of Monte Beragon, Mildred Pierce is confronted by police who suspect her first husband, Bert. Mildred reveals her history: she and Bert were unhappily married, and she worked as a baker and waitress to support their daughters, Veda and Kay. Veda, a bratty social climber, treats Mildred with disdain. After Kay dies of pneumonia, Mildred channels her grief into opening a restaurant. With help from her friend Ida Corwin and Wally Fay, she builds a successful restaurant chain in Southern California. Veda secretly marries Ted Forrester for money, then claims to be pregnant to blackmail him. Desperate to improve Veda's status, Mildred enters a loveless marriage with Monte Beragon, who takes a share of her business. The cost of maintaining their affluent lifestyles eventually bankrupts Mildred. After discovering Veda in Monte's arms and learning he intends to marry her, Mildred confronts him. When Monte insults Veda, she shoots him with Mildred's gun. Mildred agrees to help Veda conceal the murder. She then tries to frame Wally Fay for the crime, but the police eventually realize Veda was the killer. Mildred leaves the station to find Bert waiting for her.
- First release year
- 1945
- Runtime (minutes)
- 111
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Michael Curtiz
- Writers
- Ranald MacDougall · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Joan Crawford · Mildred Pierce; Jack Carson · Bert Pierce; Zachary Scott · Monte Beragon; Eve Arden · Ida Corwin; Ann Blyth · Veda Pierce; Bruce Bennett · Wally Fay
- Genres
- melodrama; film noir; crime drama
- Themes
- social class; mother-daughter relationships; ambition; greed
- Tone and mood
- bleak; melodramatic; moody
- Premise and plot tags
- business; murder; noir; social drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- 1941 novel by James M. Cain
- Reception
- The film was a box-office success and received widespread critical acclaim for Joan Crawford's performance, though some critics found the story lacked conviction or had overdrawn characterizations.
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Actress · win
- Production trivia
- The working title was House on the Sand.; The murder was added to the plot to satisfy the censorship code.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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