Review of Mommie Dearest (1981) by Danielle S — 21 Jun 2008

Joan Crawford: "No... wire... hangers. What's wire hangers doing in this closet when I told you: no wire hangers EVER?".

Film legend Joan Crawford (Dunaway) seems to have it all: a thriving career, a beautiful Brentwood mansion, and a hunky boyfriend. However, Joan is determined to also have a child, so she adopts young Christina (Mara Hobel). However, the obsessive-compulsive actress is not well suited to the task. Joan proceeds to deliver a seminar on how not to raise children: taunting Christina when she loses to her mother in a pool race, starving her because she won't eat raw steak, beating the crap out of her with a wire hanger, all in the name of raising Christina to be a proper young lady. As Joan's career starts to fade, she becomes even more desperate, stealing the now-older Christina's (Diana Scarwid) role on a soap opera. In her final years, Joan descends into a vodka-fueled funk but, despite the years of abuse and histrionics, Christina still loves her "Mommie Dearest." Faye Dunaway practically chews the scenery as Joan Crawford. There is absolutely no restraint to her performance, and sometimes it's difficult not to laugh. Nevertheless, Dunaway's makeup is very convincing, she ages impressively, and she looks uncannily like Crawford. The other performances fade into the background. This is Dunaway's one-woman show. And look out, because she shows it all. For all its sins both in intent and execution "Mommie Dearest" is one of those films you have to see to believe. Though it's excessive style might underplay the seriousness of child abuse and alcoholism, it emerges as one of those films that isn't to be taken too seriously- so don?t.