Mildred Pierce

A Methodically Paced Slow Burn--Less Glamour And More Grit Distinguish This Five Part Miniseries Remake
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...

Off to a Fine Start
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...

Faithful to the Novel
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...

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