Mildred Pierce Film Analysis

The star system was an important part of the Studio System in classical Hollywood cinema. From the 1910s, stars were born. Studios create new personas, new names and new backgrounds for the stars. A new image, whether or not it had anything to do with how the person really was in real life, would be invented for the new stars. The stars would be distinctively different and moviegoers would be able to recognise them individually. The Hollywood studios, that the stars are under contract with, managed their publicity, roles, lifestyles and even fan clubs. During the classical Hollywood period, the stars themselves did not have much say in the films that they appear in. The companies would choose the role they deem most suited to boost their popularity.

After playing certain roles, moviegoers may associate the stars as characters from those films instead of who they really are.
In this essay, I would be talking about Joan Crawford, how Hollywood created her image, how her image was shaped by the films she did, especially Mildred Pierce (1945, Michael Curtiz), and how her real self was related to her images of the characters that she played.
Joan Crawford, born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was groomed by MGM where she became a big star in the 1920s. Her last name – LeSueur – did not sound real and instead gave the studio head an impression of a sewer. The publicity group from MGM decided that she would be called Joan Crawford and she then went on promoting with that name. In the late 1930s, Joan’s popularity declined and her films began to lose much money. Together with other MGM actor and actresses, she was labelled “Box Office Poison”. Joan signed contract with Warner Brothers in 1943 where she took on the film Mildred Pierce and revived her movie career. She won the Oscar’s best actress award in 1946 with that film. From a humble beginning, she rose to become one of Hollywood’s most prominent actresses of the classical times. During her 45 years in the film industry, from 1925 till 1970, evolving from silent to sound films, she stayed devoted to her career and maintained her position in this tough business.
Joan took charge of her image very carefully and was extremely conscious about the quality her films. She would refuse to take on roles that she considered as poor material and would turn down the offers from television and films in which she felt would hurt the image of Joan Crawford. Warner Brothers was flabbergasted when Joan agreed that they should put her salary on hold while she waited for a script that she thinks is right. No other star agreed with such a decision from the company. This suggested that Joan was a very determined lady who truly cared about her image and works.
A film star’s image did not come from only the films that he or she starred in, but also influenced by publicity and other public appearances. Promotion of films and press coverages also played an important part in shaping the image of a star. Joan knew that as a star, moviegoers and the public would relate themselves with her and hence she maintained her image very carefully both on and off screen. Public views would also affect her image as Joan Crawford as gossips can spread quickly by the word of mouth. “People expect to see Joan Crawford, not the girl next door. If they want to see the girl next door, let them go next door.” (Chandler, 2008) This showed how meticulous she was and also how devoted she was in towards her career as an actress. Studios may deliberately promote certain stars to have a particular image or style that is popular to the crowds and easily remembered. Joan Crawford became an icon for confident and independent women from films such as Mildred Pierce. This was emphasized by the broad shoulders of her coat in Mildred Pierce. Her physique could also have been a reason why she often played the role of a strong woman. “I supposed it had something to do with my chin and my eyes, physical attributes which had nothing to do with me, except for my genes.” (Chandler, 2008) After the star gains popularity for having a certain image or characteristic, studios may decide to continue to promote and publicise the star with that similar image as it is what the audiences admired. Studios would then continue to earn while the stars maintained their popularity among the crowds.
Joan Crawford’s image on screen could be said to be similar to and had effect on her real-life situations.

In Mildred Pierce, Joan plays Mildred, a female protagonist. Bert, the inactive husband, was jobless and Mildred had to support the family. She left the abuses of the patriarchal authority, opened her own restaurant and became a strong woman who was financially independent. Monte, who ended up leaching on her wealth, is also considered the ‘wrong man’. Waldman calls this the ‘wrong man’ solution: the only thing wrong with the heroine’s former situation of confinement is that she fell victim to the ‘wrong man’. The ‘right man’ will correct the problem’. (Williams, 1988) Joan had 4 marriages, in which the first 3 of them ended in divorce. In one of her marriages, her husband had become comfortable with her being the breadwinner of the family. His incompetence and temperate character soon got on her nerves. Mildred’s rejection of patriarchy, taking over the role as a father, showed the independence of women during post-war

period.
In the film, Mildred loved her children dearly and placed them as her highest priority. However her excessive love for them, especially her indulgence towards Veda, was seen as the cause of Veda’s materialism and class issues. In some aspects, Mildred Pierce was similar to Joan’s own life. Veda, Mildred’s daughter, had unrealistic materialistic demands and she found Mildred’s working-class origins to be an embarrassment. However, Mildred never gave up on Veda but instead kept trying for Veda to return to her side. Christina, Joan’s real-life adopted daughter, also grew up to despise Joan and wrote a book titled Mommie Dearest, claiming that she was adopted as a publicity stunt and was abused as a child. Joan adopted five children as she was unable to have her own. One was reclaimed by his birth mother. Christina was adopted in 1939 during the down time of Joan’s career. In Joan’s point of view, she had tried her best to share and give her daughter Christina everything that she had, but she could not reach Christina. It was the same for Joan’s oldest son, Christopher. Things did not go well for Joan and her two oldest children. However, it was entirely opposite for her two younger children who said denied the claims of the book. The book was seen as a way to gain money from Christina by making use Joan’s reputation and putting her in bad light. The release of Mommie Dearest did affect Joan’s image as a mother to a certain extent as some pitied her while others took in that story.
It is generally common for people to remember certain actors and actresses from the roles and character that they have outstandingly played in specific films. Mildred Pierce took place in the post-depression years when there was prejudice against the working class women whereby women were depriving men of jobs. Women had to enter the workforce as men went out to war. During the 1930s and 1940s, the main audiences of Hollywood films were females. With the intention of bringing in more revenue, Hollywood studios would then produce films catered to women instead. Some female stars at that time would be marketed with a glamourous image that women would idolise and relate to. Hence, it was profitable to market Joan Crawford during that period of time as moviegoers then could relate with Mildred being a strong and independent woman. “I was an actress. They confused the character I was playing with me.” (Chandler, 2008) Joan Crawford often appeared on screen as a hard-working woman who finds love and success. She was a great actress who succeeds in portraying her characters well and was one of Hollywood’s top stars in the 1930s. It was her role in Mildred Pierce which she earned an Oscar award for best actress in 1946. The film was also nominated for best motion picture and cinematography (Black and White) in that same year. With Mildred Pierce being so popular during that period of time, it is not surprising that moviegoers associated Joan with Mildred’s image of a strong and determined woman for a very long time years on.
During the period of star system, the star also has a marketing function of selling the film. The pairing of Joan Crawford and Better Davis in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane captured much public attention as rumours had it that these two top actresses had been rivals and their hatred lasted long even until Joan’s death. The casting was said to have been not of coincidence as the director also knew of their life-long feud. In the film, Bette plays Jane Hudson, the girl who used to be a big child star. She then grew up in the shadows of Blanche Hudson, played by Joan, who achieved stardom. Jane was trapped in the mentality of stardom as a child and she kept Blanche, who was crippled due to a car crash to get even with Jane, in captive in their home. The bad blood between the Hudson sisters was also portrayed in reality as they retaliated and got back at each other using devious ways during the filming. The notorious rivalry between the two magnificent actresses during the classical Hollywood period definitely played a part in the film’s popularity. What Ever Happened to Baby Jane was a box office hit, with Bette Davis nominated for Oscar’s Best Actress in a Leading Role in 1963. The reputation of a star, and what the star is known for, impacts the success of a film to certain extent. The content of the film also does in turn continue to affect the image of the star.
In conclusion, Joan Crawford was a magnificent actress of the classical Hollywood period.

Her image as a glamorous independent woman in Mildred Pierce during the depression era allowed women to feel relatable to her. She was hence able to make a comeback in 1945 after receiving much attention again from the public. Joan knew the importance of a star’s image in the Hollywood industry and cautiously took great care of her own, rejecting roles that she felt would bring down the name of “Joan Crawford”. Joan taking up the role as Blanche Hudson in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane also shows how certain stars function as a marketing idea and that this led the film to its great success. Having acted in many films and taking up different roles, audiences would generally remember the stars for the more prominent characters they played in a particular film. Their image would then easily be confused with the film character. Joan Crawford won the Oscar’s award for Mildred Pierce in 1945 and hence, it would not of much surprise that the public’s image of her was shaped by the role she played

then.