Mildred Pierce (DVD)

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In a novel a writer can develop any number of subplots, but in a two-hour movie the filmmaker has to trim the fat and get along with bare essentials. Instead, "Mildred Pierce" tries to encompass far too much. The Wally Fay character, for instance, is given too much screen time; a friend of Mildred, Ida Corwin (Eve Arden), likewise, and for no particular reason; the two husbands; a maudlin situation with the younger daughter, Kay (Jo Ann Marlowe); a subject of Mildred's jealousy, Mrs. Maggie Biederhof (Lee Patrick); the family maid, Lottie (Butterfly McQueen); even the police inspector has too much to say. Better to have concentrated on Mildred, the second husband, and the scheming daughter, and left all the others as less-developed but colorful characters.

Anyway, the sheer number of people in the movie does raise the level of suspects involved, and it isn't until the very end that we learn the identity of the murderer. That revelation, too, should come as no great surprise. Oh, well. It's the fun along the way that counts, and Ms. Crawford puts on a great show, winning an Oscar for her performance. For Crawford fans, Curtiz fans, or noir fans, "Mildred Pierce" remains a pretty good bet.

Video:
The transfer has been remastered from restored picture and audio elements, and it looks and sounds pretty good for the trouble. Perhaps it doesn't quite match several other, old black-and-white films in terms of its contrast and definition, but it is quite clean, with few or no age spots to speak of. I can't imagine anyone complaining about the picture quality.

Audio:
The monaural sound has been reproduced via Dolby Digital processing, and it, too, is probably as good it can be. The 1.0 mono comes up bright and fresh, with only the barest whisper of background noise if turned up louder than necessary. As with so many of these older noir films, which are mostly dialogue, the midrange is all that matters, and here the audio remastering does its job well. All of the speaking parts come across clearly, smoothly, and naturally, with no trace of brightness, hardness, or edge.

Extras:
The movie is long enough that the extras spill over onto side two. The major bonus is a Turner Entertainment documentary profile, "Joan Crawford: The Ultimate Movie Star." It was made in 2002, runs over eighty-six minutes, and is divided into twenty-three chapters. Narrated by Anjelica Huston, the documentary includes interviews with family, friends, and fellow movie people, plus clips from most of her films. Needless to say, it is not always flattering. In addition, there is a cast and crew listing, with further information on Ms. Crawford; an awards list; thirty-two scene selections, but no chapter insert; and a Joan Crawford trailer gallery that contains trailers for nine of her Warner Bros. films. English is the only spoken language available, but there are subtitles in English, French, and Spanish.

Parting Thoughts:
"Mildred Pierce" was nominated for six Academy Awards: Best Picture, Jerry Wald, producer; Best Actress, Joan Crawford; Best Supporting Actress, Eve Arden and Ann Blyth; Best Cinematography, Ernest Haller; and Best Writing, Ranald MacDougall. It won for Best Actress, Ms. Crawford.

For me, "Mildred Pierce" isn't quite in the same class of noir film as "Double Indemnity" or "The Postman Always Rings Twice," but it's still a good mystery and a good character drama. It shows its age in some scenes, glamorizes smoking and drinking far too much, and it indulges in a good bit of melodrama; yet it survives them all with its riveting performances. It's one of Ms. Crawford's best films, as are the other titles in WB's box-set collection.

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