and talent, and today she’s one of my favorite actresses. Mommie Dearest is too flawed a film for even nostalgic revisionism to one day convert into a misunderstood classic; but I think there stands a good chance that time will be kinder to Faye Dunaway’s performance. Like many of the under-appreciated performances of Marlon Brando that have come to light to be among his best (Reflections in a Golden Eye), Dunaway’s Joan Crawford may be a bit “out there” at times, but it is a fascinating, almost athletic performance. Perhaps far more layered and intelligent than the film deserves.
Understatement of the Year Dept: "Today Faye sees herself 'as starting on a second phase of my professional life, just as Joan Crawford did...'" People Magazine Oct. 1981
BONUS MATERIAL Mommie Dearest First Draft Screenplay (Anne Bancroft version) Mommie Dearest shooting script (Faye Dunaway version)
Copyright © Ken Anderson About Ken Anderson: LA-based writer and lifelong film enthusiast. You can read more of his essays on films of the ’60s & ‘70s at Dreams Are What Le Cinema Is For
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