IMO both Lana Turner AND Ray Milland were waaaaay too old for the parts. Their age was distracting.
The ending also didn't make sense, like was the audience supposed to infer what she did after walking away from Mary's apt? And WHY was she walking around w/that porcelein shoe on her?
Mary Ashton, the "over the hill" model jumped out of her apartment window to her death. Just prior to that she had given Lana Turner the porcelain shoe which she said had brought her luck.
IMO. Lana Turner looked too old in almost all her roles- think Imitation of Life.
I think breaking the shoe at the end implied that she was through with New York and the "high life" and she would get on with her life - without the company of married men.
shareLana was only 29 when the movie was made, but she was on her 3rd husband and 4th marriage when the movie was made and looked older than she was, but I agree with you that it was a bit distracting. Luckily her baby face carried it off okay. Milland's age didn't bother me as much (he wasn't a small town kid trying to make it big in NY in the world of modeling) - he was married, a businessman in NY... he didn't need to be youthful for that, just a little vulnerable to falling for someone other than his wife.
shareI know the story behind her receiving the show but my thing is....it's not like it was charm sized. It was more of a whatnot or knickknack to be sitting on a shelf in her house on display......it seemed odd for her to carry it around w/her like a rabbit's foot, four leaf clover or any other smaller lucky charm IMO.
shareI wonder, even though there was no scene for it, if she had been contemplating suicide since the breakup and then had the shoe with her at that point; she seemed to deliberately walk to Mary's apartment house. I understand about knick-knack vs. charm, but I wasn't too bothered by it or by her final decision. I just wish she had a more definitive future to look toward (like model management, e.g.) that would put her enhanced skills and experience to good use. Or is that too feminist for the movie's time? LOL