Loved it!
Although this is not Joan's best movie script she could have chosen, you cant take your eyes off of her. This movie is a great camp classic, she does a laughable black face and is mean to blind people!
shareI agree that this movie is "agreeable", especially if you are a Joan Crawford
fan (of which I am definitely one); BUT....there is NOTHING laughable about
ANYONE performing in blackface, or being mean to blind people!!!
NOT A DAM THING!!!!
"OOO...I'M GON' TELL MAMA!"
You are of course right, but I find it very interesting that Maidie Norman is Ann, her secretary/companion, and is portrayed as a classy, intelligent, Black woman, and not at all a stereotypical maid. The film presents both a negative and positive portrayal of Black people in what is surely one of the most unique situations in a film of this period. It makes me wonder who is responsible for Miss Norman's character.
shareVery interesting observation. Although I did notice how classy she was portrayed in this character, I noticed that she was also the one who made her own notes on suggested dialogue that "Jenny" (Joan) needed in a scene from the play they were rehearsing.
Just a note of interest: Duke Ellington wrote his classic "Sophisticated Lady" with Maidie Norman in mind.
"OOO...I'M GON' TELL MAMA!"
Wow!! I didn't know that Maidie was the inspiration for "Sophisticated Lady"! Wow!! Thanks
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Wow! I didn't know that about Maidie Norman either. If you've never seen The Well, check it out. The movie stars Maidie Norman and Harry Morgan - both also in Torch Song.
shareYour post about Maidie Norman is a gem in all these negative criticisms. For 1953 it is fantastic to see Joan Crawford's assistant/maid/companion portrayed by, to use your words a "classy, intelligent black woman". There is nothing stereotypical about her. It is an odd juxtaposition to Crawford's Two Faced Woman number but black face was an american tradition that thankfully no longer exists. I actually enjoy this movie and it really is more of a drama with music than a musical. I don't think it was ever intented to be a full fledged MGM musical since it is not produced by any of the MGM musical producers, i.e. Arthur Freed, Joe Pasternak or Jack Cummings. Actually the dramatic tension, scipt and acting in the movie are excellent. I am not distracted by the dubbing of Crawford by India Adams - I think her voice is a great match for Crawford's speaking voice and sounds like that's the way she should sing. And the songs are actually very nice - except the huge, glaring mistake of Two Faced Woman. I can't understand what Charles Walters was thinking by including that number - and for a man who was a choreographer and knew how to stage a number his staging of this number, particularly the chorus, is pretty lame.
If a little more care were taken in the musical/dance sequences this could have been a top notch little musical drama. I think the Crawford/Wilding pairing really works. Dramatically it is quite convincing and there are GREAT touches like having Crawford's character give a party and all the guests are men, probably mostly gay men, with not one woman in sight. That is a stroke of genius and not camp but actually the reality of that kind of star performer. It was a very astute detail by Charles Walters if only he put that kind of detail and attention into the Two Faced Woaman number or trashed it totally for something better.
>> I agree that this movie is "agreeable", especially if you are a Joan Crawford
fan (of which I am definitely one); BUT....there is NOTHING laughable about
ANYONE performing in blackface, or being mean to blind people!!!
NOT A DAM THING!!!!
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Kind of depends, right?
"A Liberal is someone who doesn't take his own side in a fight." - Lyle H. Rossiter Jr, MD
I hope your joking... In that context blackface and being mean to blind people is way funny, but I think being mean to a real blind person and doing blackface to be mean to black people would be really cruel but come on, you should be able to laugh at anything!
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