Was she really a big star or just a train wreck?

I think she was a train wreck and Hollywood wasn't the problem. The film IMHO is a train wreck as well; it wallows in clichés and over the top scenes. Ironically, Kim Stanley who plays Frances' mother starred in a film called The Goddess (1958) in which she played a lonely, unloved young girl who sought fame as a cure for her emptiness. The Goddess is a powerful film with an indelible performance by Stanley.

She debuted in A pictures. If she had played the game she would have done well. She was beautiful when groomed and a good actress. I think she started with minor emotional issues and major stubborn ness. The booze and Benzedrine made it much worse. She made too many enemies in the business which made her more isolated. It made her life one big war she wwouldn't back down on and it crushed her. To say she was a train wreck is too simple.