Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Mildred Pierce



Mildred Pierce is a five-part miniseries that first aired on HBO on March 27, 2011. Adapted from James M. Cain's 1941 novel, it was directed by Todd Haynes, and starred Kate Winslet in the title role, alongside Guy Pearce, Evan Rachel Wood, and Melissa Leo.Carter Burwell wrote the original score for the miniseries.
Mildred Pierce received generally favorable reviews. Metacritic assigned the series an average score of 69/100 based on 28 reviews from mainstream critics. Salon.com called it a "quiet, heartbreaking masterpiece", while The New York Times reviewer, Alessandra Stanley, commented that while the miniseries was "loyally, unwaveringly true to James M. Cain's 1941 novel", it did not "make the most of the mythic clash of mother, lover and ungrateful child", and was "not nearly as satisfying as the 1945 film noir".

Novelist Stephen King, reviewing Mildred Pierce for The Daily Beast and Newsweek, praised the acting of Winslet, Pearce and Wood, and admired the show's attention to detail and structure, but complained that the five-hour adaptation was "too damn long".

The series was shown Out of Competition at the 68th Venice International Film Festival 2011.


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