Mommie Dearest (movie)
| Mommie Dearest | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Frank Perry |
| Screenplay by |
|
| Based on | Mommie Dearest by Christina Crawford |
| Produced by | Frank Yablans |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Paul Lohmann |
| Edited by | Peter E. Berger |
| Music by | Henry Mancini |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 129 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $10 million |
| Box office | $19 million |
Mommie Dearest is a 1981 American biographical psychological drama[2] movie directed by Frank Perry and starring Faye Dunaway, Steve Forrest, Mara Hobel, Diana Scarwid and Xander Berkeley. The movie shows Christina Crawford's adoptive mother, Hollywood actress Joan Crawford, as an abusive, controlling and manipulative mother. Christina and her brother Christopher are suffering child abuse from their mother.
Cast
[change | change source]- Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford
- Diana Scarwid as Christina Crawford (adult)
- Mara Hobel as Christina Crawford (child)
- Xander Berkeley as Christopher Crawford (adult)
- Jeremy Scott Reinbolt as Christopher Crawford (child)
- Steve Forrest as Gregg Savitt
- Howard da Silva as Louis B. Mayer
- Rutanya Alda as Carol Ann
- Harry Goz as Alfred Steele
- Michael Edwards as Ted Gelber
- Jocelyn Brando as Barbara Bennett
- Priscilla Pointer as Margaret Lee Chadwick
- Belita Moreno as Belinda Rosenberg
- Alice Nunn as Helga
Production
[change | change source]The movie was adapted for the screen by Robert Getchell, Tracy Hotchner, Frank Perry, and Frank Yablans from Christina's 1978 autobiography of the same name. The executive producers were Christina's husband, David Koontz, and Terry O'Neill, Dunaway's then-boyfriend and soon-to-be husband. The movie was distributed by Paramount Pictures, the only one of the "Big Eight" movie studios for which Crawford had never appeared in a movie.
Reception
[change | change source]The movie was not considered successful at the box office, making just over $19 million in North America[3] from a $10 million budget.[4] Despite receiving mostly negative reviews from movie critics, the movie's melodramatic script and Faye Dunaway's acting, made it a cult movie and an "unintentional comedy".[5] It is often considered one of the worst movies ever made. It was nominated for nine Golden Raspberry Awards (Razzies) at the 2nd Golden Raspberry Awards, and won five, including "Worst Picture" and "Worst Actress" for Faye Dunaway.[6]
References
[change | change source]- ↑ "MOMMIE DEAREST (AA)". British Board of Film Classification. September 30, 1981. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
- ↑ "Mommie Dearest (1981) - Frank Perry | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie". Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
- ↑ "Domestic box office gross". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on December 4, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
- ↑ "AFI". AFI Catalog. Archived from the original on May 1, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
- ↑ QueenB. "MOMMIE DEAREST – Midnight Screening of 1981 Cult Classic! « Long-standing Beach Cinematheque". Lbcinema.org. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved January 12, 2014.
- ↑ Gary Susman. "17 Things You Never Knew About 'Mommie Dearest'". Moviefone. Archived from the original on August 16, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
Other websites
[change | change source]- 1981 movies
- English-language movies
- American biographical movies
- 1980s biographical movies
- 1981 drama movies
- 1980s American drama movies
- American psychological movies
- 1980s psychological movies
- Paramount Pictures movies
- Cult movies
- Movies based on books
- Movies about actors
- Movies about child abuse
- Movies set in Los Angeles
- Movies set in California
- Movies set in New York City
- Movies set in the 1930s
- Movies set in the 1940s
- Movies set in the 1950s
- Movies set in the 1960s
- Movies set in the 1970s