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Reviews
Mommie Dearest (1981)
Unbelievable how misunderstood this film seems to have been.
One of my favorite movies of all time. This film is in no way a comedy, nor "cult," nor overacted, nor deserving of any Razzies or any other such nonsense. Okay, I did think the young Christina Crawford was a little over the top, but I can completely believe that any daughter of a glamorous and pampered movie star would behave in much the same way. Faye Dunaway's performance is fearless, brutal, complex, even vulnerable, and absolutely unforgettable. I found her character's behaviors incredibly disturbing to watch, and incredibly cathartic, because I was raised a mother who Dunaway's character reminds me of often in this film. Even though most people apparently though the wire hanger scene was ridiculous, to me it rang absolutely true.
I honestly had no idea the film was so poorly received when it came out; I was shocked. I love this movie, and it's one of those films I can watch again every few months. I would ask the critics who poke fun at the film to go back and watch "Sunset Boulevard" again, a brilliant movie I've never heard a bad word about, go and revisit Norma Desmond and all of her vanity and psychosis, so haunting and unforgettable, and tell me again if Faye Dunaway's performance is over-acted.