Joan Crawford Collection, Vol. 2 DVD Credits:

Region: 1

Joan Crawford Collection, Vol. 2 DVD Release Date: 12th February 2008

Our Rating: Extras Rating:

User Rating:  Log in to rate this DVD

Joan Crawford Collection, Vol. 2 DVD Review:

Joan Crawford was a remarkable personality in Hollywood, both in reputation and in the roles she played as an actress. She defined an entire generation of women’s movement in film by creating a fashion and attitude for strong women, complete with large shoulder pads to ensure Crawford was just as intimidating as her male co-stars, when necessary. Most notable was her performance as Mildred Pierce in 1945, but most of the films in this set were made before this film and Crawford shows a strength hardly seen in leading ladies regardless of what role she plays.

Sadie McKee (1934)
Sadie McKee is a predictable and enjoyable tale of the daughter of a servant who goes on to do much more with her life. Crawford plays the title character, Sadie, a stubborn young girl who leaves the safety of her place as a temporary servant when her fiancé is accused of stealing. They leave and Sadie quickly finds that her fiancé is not as honorable as she wished. The son of her former boss has random encounters with Sadie as she marries for money and becomes a boozing wife with an alcoholic husband, and eventually learns how to become the person she wants to be and get over her heart-ache.

Strange Cargo (1940)
This was Crawford’s eighth and final pairing with Clark Gable, who stars as an escaped convict willing to use Crawford to help him escape the impossible jungles surrounding his prison. Along the way they fall in love and she leads him to be a good person, but even more interesting is the strangely religious undertones of the film in which each of the convicts are fighting for their lives in a brutal and deadly manner. Adapted from a book by Richard Sale, Strange Cargo is a bizarre film that may not be the best in the group, but I was personally enthralled by the unconventional story.

A Woman’s Face (1941)
In the capable hands of George Cukor, this crime melodrama told through a series of murder trial flashbacks becomes instantly engaging, particularly a remarkable riveting sled chase climax. Crawford plays a wicked blackmailer with a scarred face to match her criminal demeanor. When a doctor suddenly fixes her face as an act of kindness he worries that he may have created a monster in the vision of a beautiful woman, but he has faith that she will change her wicked ways. She becomes a governess with the intentions of helping to kill the young boy for inheritance money, but finds that she may not be the same person she once was.

Flamingo Road (1949)
In this melodrama Crawford is a carnival dancer who stays behind in a small town when the carnival is run off by the law. A few powerful people want her out of town, but when se becomes attached to a powerful man in town she finds herself a place on the prestigious Flamingo Road, where all of the wealthiest people live. Navigating through the cutthroat world of politics becomes second nature to her as she is forced to handle the crooked ways she is attacked.

Torch Song (1953)
This one is a back-stage musical melodrama with Crawford starring at the age of fifty, still youthful despite her voice being dubbed for all of the singing. She plays a tyrannical star who demands only the best from her fellow theater workers, including a blind piano player who specifically wanted to work with her. They inevitably fall in love, although the star’s ego prevents their happiness for a time before realizing her error. Another predictable one, and also obviously during the more controlling portion of Crawford’s career, which makes it a poignant portrayal.

Our Rating: Extras Rating: User Rating:  Log in to rate this DVD

Joan Crawford Collection, Vol. 2 DVD review written by: Ryan Izay