Mildred Pierce miniseries on HBO

[Tomasso]

March 27th on HBO.




[video=youtube;pzgL7emRnXs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzgL7emRnXs[/video]

Filming took place (in part) at Winfield Hall , the former summer home of F.W. Woolworth in Glen Cove NY.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

They've been running a 30 minute or so long "Making of...' featurette on HBO for the last few weeks, and it looks good. That's not to say it will be, but we'll see. When I first heard they were doing it, I thought, "Here we go again...a classic redone and destroyed." My fingers are crossed.

 

[skyvue]

Which classic are you bemoaning the redoing of? The Joan Crawford movie?

I love that picture, but it's hardly faithful to the great James M. Cain novel, which this miniseries is said to be. So think of the miniseries as an adaptation of the novel, not a remake of the movie. That's what it's intended to be.

 

[Benzadmiral]

The casting looks spot-on. Yes, the Crawford film wasn't a close adaptation of Cain's novel by any means, so this should be intriguing.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Kate Winslet is one of the very few actresses today who I think would have been a star in the Golden Era itself. Her presence in this production alone makes it worth watching.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Some of this was filmed in Peekskill, NY, just ten minutes from where I live. There are areas in the downtown section with lots of reasonably well preserved twenties-forties architecture. From the looks of that half-hour making-of doc, it appears that the beautifully restored 1930 Paramount Theater is prominently featured.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

Which classic are you bemoaning the redoing of? The Joan Crawford movie?

I love that picture, but it's hardly faithful to the great James M. Cain novel, which this miniseries is said to be. So think of the miniseries as an adaptation of the novel, not a remake of the movie. That's what it's intended to be.

A very valid point - I must admit that I have not, as yet, read the original novel. I did like the Crawford version. I can imagine, based on the hints in the Crawford film, about things that had to be cut to shorten the story, OR because the censors wouldn't allow them to be in the film. I shall put the book at the top of my "To read" list and then report back. But as always, it seems that MOST movies never live up to the version that makes it to the silver screen. I should've taken that into account.

 

[Feraud]

I didn't care for the story but am looking forward to this. Winslet is a great actress who elevates any film she is in. What sold me on this production is Guy Pierce. He will play a cameo, support, or lead role with absolute skill. He is one of my favorite male actors working today.

 

[Benzadmiral]

I was hoping I'd get to see this on Sunday, but I don't have HBO and neither does the lady I'm visiting in Pittsburgh. Let us know how it is.

 

[Brunoee]

Thanks for sharing this great information.

 

[mattfink]

I watched the first two installments last night...fantastic!

 

[Late to the Party]

I want all the shoes. All of them!

 

[Mojito]

Looking forward to seeing this. I own a few of the vintage hats that are featured very briefly in one scene (a milliner's window).

 

[scotrace]

Now really unhappy to not have HBO!

 

[Tomasso]

I don't have HBO

You can view it online.

 

[rue]

I don't have cable, so thank you Tomasso

 

[Doctor Strange]

I thought Parts 1 and 2 were a little slow-moving, but very well done overall. Kate Winslet was great, as always. Excellent production design, sets, costumes, etc.

But I have the same problem that I seem to recall having with the old 1945 film: Veda is such a monster from the get-go, and Mildred actually encourages many of her pretensions rather than smacking her down (though yes, she does lose her temper and spank her at one point). Their relationship is so obviously toxic that it's hard to feel sympathy that Mildred is being ill-used: Veda's just such bad news as a little girl that it shouldn't surprise Mildred that she's gonna be big trouble when she's older!

 

[scotrace]

You can view it online.

Odd codec. Only seems to work with Ballmer Boxes.

 

[mattfink]

Slow moving? It's not Boardwalk Empire.....it's all drama.

 

[Doctor Strange]

I said "a little slow-moving" - I'm not convinced that this story really needs to be 5+ hours long. Okay, there was a lot of exposition to get out of the way: let's see how the pacing feels in the later episodes.