That the film ends with an extended shot of Diana Scarwid’s Christina defiantly proclaiming that her mother will not get the last word, even posthumously, confirms for the audience that everything they’ve watched is from a slanted perspective. I used to think that “no more wire hangers” was comedic, even knowing the context of the scene, but, within the scope of the film proper, it’s an absolute horror show from which no laughs are earned or gained. The performance may be exaggerated at times, but Dunaway captures the truly frightening visage and persona that children see when their parent comes for them violently with words or actions. It is, in many ways, a triggering experience for survivors of childhood trauma. While it can be easy to see where some see hilarity (Dunaway’s performance could be seen as an impersonation, a caricature, rather than an honest portrayal), there’s literally nothing funny or fun about the film. It’s a terrifying one in which Christina was gaslit, physically abused, and cast off whenever she failed to meet Joan’s idealized version of parenthood. What the film portrays is more than a contentious relationship. The film itself excises Christina’s other siblings, twins, entirely, focusing primarily on Christina’s interactions with her mother from early childhood to adulthood. This means that Joan is introduced as an adult in both her private and public-facing personas before she adopts both Christina and her brother Christopher. On this, its 40 th anniversary, Paramount Pictures welcomes Mommie Dearest onto the Paramount Presents label with a brand-new restoration on a first-time Blu-ray release, as well as two new bonus materials accompanied by previously available special features.įaye Dunaway as Joan Crawford in MOMMIE DEAREST.įor the unaware, Mommie Dearest isn’t so much a biography of an actor as it is a recreation of events from the perspective of Joan’s daughter Christina. The film is considered camp due to Faye Dunaway’s ( The Thomas Crown Affair) exaggerated, almost too-far-reaching performance of Joan, making her seem more Soap Opera-dramatic versus anything grounded in reality. Most modern audiences, however, know her from director Frank Berry’s ( Last Summer) 1981 film Mommie Dearest, itself an adaptation of Christina Crawford’s memoir/exposé centered on her adoptive mother’s private persona. In addition to acting, she was a producer and an uncredited writer for several of her projects.
MOMMY DEAREST 1981 FILM SERIES
Home › Recommendation › Home Release › 4K restoration of Frank Perry’s “Mommie Dearest” joins the Paramount Presents label.ĤK restoration of Frank Perry’s “Mommie Dearest” joins the Paramount Presents label.īy Douglas Davidson on SeptemĪctor Joan Crawford started acting in 1925 with the short The Casting Couch and worked her last job in a guest role on the television series The Sixth Sense in 1972, five years before her passing.