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Audio Commentaries with Todd Haynes, Jon Raymond, Mark Friedberg on parts 3 and 5
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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
In Michael Curtiz's hands, James M. Cain's novel Mildred Pierce became a suburban noir, but Todd Haynes spins a more class-conscious tale in this HBO miniseries. The Depression is in effect when Mildred (Kate Winslet, ably filling Oscar-winner Joan Crawford's formidable shoes) breaks with her unfaithful husband, Bert (Brían F. O'Byrne), leaving the Glendale housewife to support her daughters as a waitress and part-time baker (cinematographer Ed Lachman brings her confections to delectable life). To keep up the middle-class façade, only neighbor Lucy (a fine Melissa Leo) knows about her blue-collar day job.
By protecting 11-year-old Veda (Morgan Turner) from the truth, however, Mildred encourages her snobbish tendencies, but then her pastry-making skills allow her to open a chain of restaurants with help from Lucy, feisty colleague Ida (Mare Winningham), and opportunistic realtor Wally (James LeGros, Safe), with whom she has a fling. That ends when she falls for playboy Monty (a dashing Guy Pearce), who takes a shine to Veda, at which point the girl becomes truly insufferable. The first time Mildred slaps her, it's hard not to suppress a cheer. The second time: Veda slaps her mother back. In 1937, when Mildred finally kicks her out (Evan Rachel Wood plays the teenaged Veda), you'll wonder why she didn't do it sooner.
Since 1941, audiences have debated Mildred's attempts to buy her daughter's love. Was Veda a bad seed or did slack parenting make her that way? In ditching the murder of the Curtiz film, Haynes and cowriter Jon Raymond (Meek's Cutoff) lend clarity to her motivations. Despite some awkward staging towards the end, Haynes directs with grace, and his cast rises to the occasion, particularly Winslet and O'Byrne. "Sometimes," Mildred tells Veda, "I wonder if you have good sense." The phrase applies equally well to her mother. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Product Description
She gave her daughter everything, but everything was not enough. Mildred Pierce brings to life the memorable characters introduced in James M. Cain’s classic 1941 novel of pride and privilege in the middle class. Starring Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet, and co-written and directed by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Todd Haynes, this five-part drama is an intimate portrait of a uniquely independent woman who finds herself newly divorced during the Depression years, as she struggles to carve out a new life for herself and her family. The story explores Mildred’s unreasonable devotion to her insatiable daughter Veda (Evan Rachel Wood), as well as the complex relationship she shares with the indolent men in her life, including her polo-playing lover Monty Beragon (Guy Pearce) and ex-husband Bert Pierce (Brian F. O’Byrne)
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
95 of 104 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Methodically Paced Slow Burn--Less Glamour And More Grit Distinguish This Five Part Miniseries Remake
April 1, 2011
Format:DVD
When I heard that one of my favorite indie directors, Todd Haynes, was going to revisit the classic "Mildred Pierce" envisioned by hard boiled novelist James M. Cain--I was undeniably stoked and have patiently awaited the arrival of this new interpretation. Of course, everyone knows that an original film version won Joan Crawford an Oscar (not to mention inspired my second favorite Carol Burnett show)--but that presentation was more forties melodrama than classic Cain. Haynes has already proven a knack for period detail with the Douglas Sirk homage "Far From Heaven" (my favorite film of the year it was released), so I thought he might bring new life to this familiar tale. And, indeed he has. Eschewing some of the irony and romanticism that I had expected, Haynes has opted instead for a downbeat realism that highlights the Depression era class struggles in much more detail than the previous film version.
I must admit that I literally sat there and watched the entire 5 hour HBO story from start to finish. Of course, if you have a life--you probably aren't going to do the same and that's undoubtedly a good thing. I think it is best to let this "Mildred Pierce" unfold at its own leisurely pace. In truth, for my taste, the program runs a little long at five hours. Less patient viewers might struggle with the first part and its lengthy set-up, but things heat up considerably the further into the miniseries you progress. I respect Haynes' decision to modulate the narrative pacing--it certainly gives you more of an opportunity to get invested in the characterizations. So even if you initially question where the story is going and how long it will take to get there, rest assured that patience will be rewarded.
"Mildred Pierce," at heart, is a tale of mother love and sacrifice. As Mildred, Kate Winslet seems a perfect muse to illuminate both the strength and the desperation inherent in the character. Her devotion to daughter Veda can, at times, be challenging to understand--but the miniseries is much more able to flesh out the multi-layered dynamic that keeps Mildred from being a complete sap. Veda is haughty, snobbish, and self-involved--and Mildred is both her willing victim and her enabler. Mildred rises from broke housewife to restaurant entrepreneur, but is always a source of embarrassment to the entitled girl. And through the show, the ladies contend with the various men in their lives including Brian F. O'Byrne as Veda's father and Guy Pearce as a carefree playboy that might just prove dangerous for the pair.
Winslet gives a gritty and natural performance throughout. Even as tensions rise, she maintains a grounded sensibility that keeps things from veering into overwrought territory. Pearce has an oily allure and has turned into a really terrific character actor. I loved, loved, loved young Morgan Turner as the girlhood Veda. I laughed every time she said something. She speaks with such haughty precision, but isn't quite the monster that Crawford had to deal with. Perhaps the most difficult role to pull off in a naturalistic piece is the adult Veda. We don't even see Evan Rachel Wood until the final episodes and she decides to lay it all on the line. But oddly enough, this choice to go big absolutely heightens the drama of the concluding chapters. Cain is known for sexually charged crime stories--The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity, for example--and that is also territory that "Mildred Pierce" covers. But where the movie led with a crime, Haynes' version builds to one. And I think Cain would appreciate this decidedly less glamorous approach to his hard edged piece. A beautiful production--this longer version is much like reading a fine novel, but might not be for those looking for instant gratification. KGHarris, 4/11.
I must admit that I literally sat there and watched the entire 5 hour HBO story from start to finish. Of course, if you have a life--you probably aren't going to do the same and that's undoubtedly a good thing. I think it is best to let this "Mildred Pierce" unfold at its own leisurely pace. In truth, for my taste, the program runs a little long at five hours. Less patient viewers might struggle with the first part and its lengthy set-up, but things heat up considerably the further into the miniseries you progress. I respect Haynes' decision to modulate the narrative pacing--it certainly gives you more of an opportunity to get invested in the characterizations. So even if you initially question where the story is going and how long it will take to get there, rest assured that patience will be rewarded.
"Mildred Pierce," at heart, is a tale of mother love and sacrifice. As Mildred, Kate Winslet seems a perfect muse to illuminate both the strength and the desperation inherent in the character. Her devotion to daughter Veda can, at times, be challenging to understand--but the miniseries is much more able to flesh out the multi-layered dynamic that keeps Mildred from being a complete sap. Veda is haughty, snobbish, and self-involved--and Mildred is both her willing victim and her enabler. Mildred rises from broke housewife to restaurant entrepreneur, but is always a source of embarrassment to the entitled girl. And through the show, the ladies contend with the various men in their lives including Brian F. O'Byrne as Veda's father and Guy Pearce as a carefree playboy that might just prove dangerous for the pair.
Winslet gives a gritty and natural performance throughout. Even as tensions rise, she maintains a grounded sensibility that keeps things from veering into overwrought territory. Pearce has an oily allure and has turned into a really terrific character actor. I loved, loved, loved young Morgan Turner as the girlhood Veda. I laughed every time she said something. She speaks with such haughty precision, but isn't quite the monster that Crawford had to deal with. Perhaps the most difficult role to pull off in a naturalistic piece is the adult Veda. We don't even see Evan Rachel Wood until the final episodes and she decides to lay it all on the line. But oddly enough, this choice to go big absolutely heightens the drama of the concluding chapters. Cain is known for sexually charged crime stories--The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity, for example--and that is also territory that "Mildred Pierce" covers. But where the movie led with a crime, Haynes' version builds to one. And I think Cain would appreciate this decidedly less glamorous approach to his hard edged piece. A beautiful production--this longer version is much like reading a fine novel, but might not be for those looking for instant gratification. KGHarris, 4/11.
41 of 49 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
MILDRED PIERCE may be an old story - class values and the Depression circa 1931 as remember form the 1945 film written by James M Cain and starring Joan Crawford - but in the hands of writer/director Todd Haynes and Jon Raymond and especially in the sensational performances offered by Kate Winslet et al the story takes on a new luster in the current economic situation in which we find ourselves. This is not meant to be a review of the entire miniseries, but instead a signal to those who may be avoiding this version, not caring to forget the 1945 version.
Mildred Pierce (Kate Winslet) is suffering quietly in a marriage where the 'essentially unemployed' husband (Brían F. O'Byrne) is having an affair to fill his idle hours and when Mildred discovers this she sends him packing: she has two daughters to raise in a 'proper way' and is encouraged by her friend and neighbor (Melissa Leo) to live her own life. Mildred becomes employed as a waitress (much to the chagrin of her snotty daughter Veda - Morgan Turner) and eventually turns her waitressing into a business of her own (she has always sold her pies and cakes for income), taking up with her husband's 'friend' (James LeGros) who later helps her finance her ventures in the restaurant business. As Mildred celebrates her success in readying her restaurant she meets a dashing rich lad from Pasadena (Guy Pearce) and after a spur of the moment one night trip to Santa Barbara she returns very happy only to find her younger daughter Ray is hospitalized...and the story will be continued.
For those who may have doubts about extending the original 90 minute movie into a 5 hour miniseries, have no fear. The expansion of the story is well conceived and executed - and the opportunity to see Kate Winslet own this role is well worth the time. Grady Harp, March 11
Mildred Pierce (Kate Winslet) is suffering quietly in a marriage where the 'essentially unemployed' husband (Brían F. O'Byrne) is having an affair to fill his idle hours and when Mildred discovers this she sends him packing: she has two daughters to raise in a 'proper way' and is encouraged by her friend and neighbor (Melissa Leo) to live her own life. Mildred becomes employed as a waitress (much to the chagrin of her snotty daughter Veda - Morgan Turner) and eventually turns her waitressing into a business of her own (she has always sold her pies and cakes for income), taking up with her husband's 'friend' (James LeGros) who later helps her finance her ventures in the restaurant business. As Mildred celebrates her success in readying her restaurant she meets a dashing rich lad from Pasadena (Guy Pearce) and after a spur of the moment one night trip to Santa Barbara she returns very happy only to find her younger daughter Ray is hospitalized...and the story will be continued.
For those who may have doubts about extending the original 90 minute movie into a 5 hour miniseries, have no fear. The expansion of the story is well conceived and executed - and the opportunity to see Kate Winslet own this role is well worth the time. Grady Harp, March 11
27 of 33 people found the following review helpful
By Jym Cherry
Format:DVD
In Todd Haynes adaptation of "Mildred Pierce," gone is the noir drama of the 1945 movie of the same name with Joan Crawford, and some screenwriting from William Faulkner, and it's replaced with a more faithful to the James M Cain novel, which is a much more realistic portrayal of the times, and captures the bright realism of the novel which is plays more like a Edward Hopper painting than noir.
As in the novel, Mildred Pierce is a `grass widow,' which is depression era parlance for a divorced woman, needs to support her family of two children, Veda and Ray, because her husband Bert can't find a job and is carrying out an affair with a married woman. After Mildred throws Bert out she finds she only has skills enough for restaurant work and making pies. An employment agency sends her out on a job as a maid but pride won't allow her to take the job because she has to wear a uniform and defer to the lady of the house. Recuperating from the humiliation she felt at having to take a job as a maid in a diner she discovers they need a new waitress, and Mildred swallows her pride and takes the job. She quickly learns all the in's and out's of the restaurant business and opens her own, which in short order is successful. Her daughter Veda, who seems to have been born a snob, continually humiliates Mildred and those around her she considers of a lower social status (Why Veda feels that way we're never told, except from glimpses of Mildred behaving the same way such as kicking Bert only because she didn't get a winter fur coat) shows an interest in, and talent for playing the piano and as she grows older becomes an operatic singer. On the eve of opening her first restaurant Mildred meets, and has an affair with Monty Beragon, a faded aristocrat who's fortune's are in decline while Mildred's fortunes incline.
"Mildred Pierce" hangs squarely on Kate Winslet's shoulders as Mildred, not only does she turn in a strong performance she works in some nuances that inform the viewer of some of the texture of the novel.
Guy Pearce as Monty Beragon has another role, while not totally disappearing into the character gives a performance of the character that starts as a carefree playboy, to a rangy dissipate, while his appearance mirrors that change. His demeanor at first quite carefree but as time goes on, the elements that make Monty a charming aristocrat in decline darken and we see those same elements of him in a different light.
Rachael Evan Walker doesn't show up as the older Veda until part 4 and while she shows some very affected mannerisms for the snobbish Veda. Towards the end looks very vampiric as Veda takes everything Mildred has. Unfortunately, other than two very tempestuous scenes, that she makes the most of, Wood is mostly shown singing at various operatic venues. As the younger Veda, Morgan Turner is the snobbish, haughty child who you would like to slap her face off for her affrontery.
Mare Winningham as Ida is totally wasted in a part that could have been played by anyone. The two main male characters Bert (Brian F O'Byrne) and Wally Burgan (James LeGros) aren't given much to do except react to Mildred, especially Bert. But then they're weren't given a lot to do in the Cain novel either.
Since it follows the novel so closely it has some of the failings of the novel. There isn't a lot of action or inner drama. Some of the dialogue feels clunky pulled right from the novel, whether it's because some of the vernacular has become anachronistic since Cain wrote the novel in 1941, or it was clumsily written by Cain. An example, Veda's dialogue some times doesn't sound like a real person would say it, but a character in a book would.
HBO also has a half hour making of "Mildred Pierce" that I'm sure will make it to the DVD when they release it.
As in the novel, Mildred Pierce is a `grass widow,' which is depression era parlance for a divorced woman, needs to support her family of two children, Veda and Ray, because her husband Bert can't find a job and is carrying out an affair with a married woman. After Mildred throws Bert out she finds she only has skills enough for restaurant work and making pies. An employment agency sends her out on a job as a maid but pride won't allow her to take the job because she has to wear a uniform and defer to the lady of the house. Recuperating from the humiliation she felt at having to take a job as a maid in a diner she discovers they need a new waitress, and Mildred swallows her pride and takes the job. She quickly learns all the in's and out's of the restaurant business and opens her own, which in short order is successful. Her daughter Veda, who seems to have been born a snob, continually humiliates Mildred and those around her she considers of a lower social status (Why Veda feels that way we're never told, except from glimpses of Mildred behaving the same way such as kicking Bert only because she didn't get a winter fur coat) shows an interest in, and talent for playing the piano and as she grows older becomes an operatic singer. On the eve of opening her first restaurant Mildred meets, and has an affair with Monty Beragon, a faded aristocrat who's fortune's are in decline while Mildred's fortunes incline.
"Mildred Pierce" hangs squarely on Kate Winslet's shoulders as Mildred, not only does she turn in a strong performance she works in some nuances that inform the viewer of some of the texture of the novel.
Guy Pearce as Monty Beragon has another role, while not totally disappearing into the character gives a performance of the character that starts as a carefree playboy, to a rangy dissipate, while his appearance mirrors that change. His demeanor at first quite carefree but as time goes on, the elements that make Monty a charming aristocrat in decline darken and we see those same elements of him in a different light.
Rachael Evan Walker doesn't show up as the older Veda until part 4 and while she shows some very affected mannerisms for the snobbish Veda. Towards the end looks very vampiric as Veda takes everything Mildred has. Unfortunately, other than two very tempestuous scenes, that she makes the most of, Wood is mostly shown singing at various operatic venues. As the younger Veda, Morgan Turner is the snobbish, haughty child who you would like to slap her face off for her affrontery.
Mare Winningham as Ida is totally wasted in a part that could have been played by anyone. The two main male characters Bert (Brian F O'Byrne) and Wally Burgan (James LeGros) aren't given much to do except react to Mildred, especially Bert. But then they're weren't given a lot to do in the Cain novel either.
Since it follows the novel so closely it has some of the failings of the novel. There isn't a lot of action or inner drama. Some of the dialogue feels clunky pulled right from the novel, whether it's because some of the vernacular has become anachronistic since Cain wrote the novel in 1941, or it was clumsily written by Cain. An example, Veda's dialogue some times doesn't sound like a real person would say it, but a character in a book would.
HBO also has a half hour making of "Mildred Pierce" that I'm sure will make it to the DVD when they release it.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another Kate Winslet winner.
Kate Winslet again shows that she is one of the best actresses of our time. This film is extremely well done.
Published 17 days ago by David R Dickson
4.0 out of 5 stars
great acting
Usually I'm not a big fan of these kind of films/shows but with such a cast, even I enjoyed it. Kate winslet is great in the leading role and the other actors don't fall short. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Amiram Burg
5.0 out of 5 stars
mildred pierce
i really enjoyed this mini series .. i hadn't seen it before and was pleasntly surprised
although i have always enjoyed the acting of kate winslet. Read more
although i have always enjoyed the acting of kate winslet. Read more
Published 2 months ago by christine kelly
3.0 out of 5 stars
A well made remake expansion on a classic
The acting is first class by all the cast, story line held your interest for the duration although very slow at times. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Vince Patten
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not Old Hollywood
This is not your mothers Mildred Pierce. While closer to the book then the Joan Crawford version. That version was a far superior film.
Published 3 months ago by Barron J. Barton
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Note-Perfect Take on a Gritty, Intense Classic Filled With...
I've seen this as well as the one with Joan Crawford from the 1940s, and I've read the book. This mini series is an almost word-for-word reproduction of the novel; very little was... Read more
Published 3 months ago by J. F. Henken
5.0 out of 5 stars
good
Good mini series. . .keep my interest and kinda wished it keep going. . . . . . . .
Published 3 months ago by tammy
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very Good
I love the characters and the time it is set in - just before the 2nd world war. I still have two more episodes to watch.
Published 3 months ago by Nancy Harris
3.0 out of 5 stars
I believe the word is earnest
What were they thinking making this a five-part film? It was The Singing Detective?
Think Jane Austen and Persuasion. Now think WATCHING Jane Austen pen Persuasion. Read more
Think Jane Austen and Persuasion. Now think WATCHING Jane Austen pen Persuasion. Read more
Published 3 months ago by L. Monstuart
5.0 out of 5 stars
good show
I would recommend this series to anyone who likes drama and strong character development. The story was really interesting and it held my attention to the end.
Published 3 months ago by Christopher Morris
