Mildred Pierce (Michael Curtiz, 1948) is a dynamic film that attempts to reconstruct a post-war economy by teaching lessons about the importance of gender roles and a balanced family to men and women in theaters. Mildred Pierce highlights “the historical need to rebuild an economy based on a division of labor in which men control the means of production and women remain within the family, in other words the need to rebuild a failed patriarchal structure ” (Cook, 69). The film also touches on men's fear of women returning from war. Women were more independent and less feminine than before the war. “The films themselves seem to indicate how threatened and insecure hegemonic patriarchy was during the postwar years” (Benshoff, 264). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay This essay will cover a scene from Mildred's first flashback in the film which begins with Mildred fixing up her newly purchased restaurant while Monty enters and flirtatiously invites her to the beach house and ends with words of affection exchanged between Mildred and Monty relating to their beating hearts. This scene overlaps with Kay and Veda's trip to the beach with their father Bert during which Kay becomes ill with pneumonia. This essay addresses the symptomatic meaning of the film Mildred Pierce. “This is abstract and general. It places the film within a trend of thought that is assumed to have been characteristic of American society at a certain period of time” (Bordwell, 62). This film is about the deterioration of a family in post-war America. “As birth rates soared after the war, divorce rates also increased. Men and women had very different experiences of war, and the two often did not integrate easily” (Benshoff, 262). The film teaches the audience how to avoid such a failed family ideal. “The first sign of deterioration comes when Mildred's night of illicit passion with Monty is followed by Kay's death” (Cook, 74). This film establishes ideal gender roles for the redevelopment of society while defining the fear of women present in post-war America. It's important to point out that this scene is Mildred's flashback. Mildred Pierce has two distinct points of view: Mildred, the woman, and the detective, the man. “In the film, the basic split is created between melodrama and film noir, between 'Woman's Picture' and Man's Film, a split that indicates the presence of two 'voices', female and male” (Cook, 72). Mildred's flashbacks are evenly lit, but can't be trusted. “The viewer's process of gathering insights, developing expectations, and constructing an ongoing story from the plot will be partially shaped by what the narrator says or does not say” (Bordwell, 92). The detective's perspective explains the truth of the narrative, but is presented in shadows and soft lights. “Mildred's speech is the speech of melodrama, her story is the material with which the 'Woman's Picture' was made in the pre-war and war years, when it was seen that women had an active role to play in society and problems of passion, desire, and emotional excess” (Cook, 71). The melodramatic tone of Mildred's narration helps to involve the woman in the theater in the plot. This is crucial considering the message the film presents for women to get behind their men and get back in the kitchen and bake pies. The detective's speech is a representation of man's role in finding the truth through concrete evidence.“ The detective is simply concerned with establishing the truth, with solvingthe enigma, while Mildred's story contains complexity and ambiguity, showing a concern with feelings rather than facts.” (Cook, 71). This scene begins with a establishing shot of the restaurant outside, still under construction, and quickly dissolves into the interior of the restaurant with Mildred's legs, detached from her body, in the top right of the screen. Mildred's legs are the size of a fetish to control her sexuality. “A fragmented body part destroys Renaissance space, the illusion of depth required by narrative, gives flatness” (Mulvey, 838). If the man takes a small part of the woman and focuses on it, the woman, as a whole, no longer poses a threat to the man. The entire scene sexualizes Mildred. First a close-up of her legs is presented and then she in a two-piece bathing suit. At this point in the film the viewer has not yet seen the epitome of Veda's evil actions, nor the reverse shot that reveals Veda as a murderer; therefore, Mildred is still strongly suspected for the murder in the first scene. It seems like Mildred is using her sexual prowess to control Monty in this scene. Joan Crawford's acting is that of a confident woman in control. Monty asks her if she needs help with the zipper and she replies "no" with a big smile on her face. Her business isn't a success yet, but she's on the right track thanks to the property Monty has lent her. “Joan Crawford, who plays Mildred, is an ambiguous sexual figure as a star with a history of playing 'independent women' roles” (Cook, 77). It's almost as if Mildred is "sealing the deal" with her body in this scene. In post-war America, men were threatened by women's sexual potency and often sought to repress it. The film provides an example of the “brutal and forced repression of female sexuality and the institutionalization of a social site for both men (such as fathers and husbands) and women (such as mothers and wives) that rests uncomfortably on this repression.” (Cook, 69). Mildred's sexuality is repressed by the realization, later in the film, that it is Monty who is using Mildred and not the other way around. The most interesting cinematic shot of this scene shows Mildred entering a room in the beach house with Monty in hot pursuit. Monty stops in the doorway while Mildred goes to the closet to look for a bathing suit. Initially, nothing seems unusual or strange in this photo shot. However, when Mildred approaches the camera, something happens that the viewer was not expecting: Mildred enters the frame from the left on the screen, whereas moments before she was moving down from right to left on the screen. Then two images of Mildred are presented and the viewer realizes that the initial shot wasn't real. It was just a reflection in the mirror of a closet door. This cinematic trick makes the viewer wonder what is real and what is simply an illusion. At this point, the viewer may question the validity of Mildred's flashback at all. Even though Mildred is not the femme fatale in this film, she is still a woman. In post-war America, women could not be trusted. This scene is all a flashback sequence told from Mildred's point of view. It could be argued that flashback sequences, like the one in question, are presented based on how Mildred remembers them. “Mildred's story proves ambiguous, thus foregrounding the work of repression involved in narrative resolution” (Cook, 73). Curtiz's choice of bright lighting is appropriate because this appears to be a happy time in Mildred's life. There is no need for strong contrasts between light and dark, likemany other less light scenes in the film. “Soft lighting was usually applied to dark and mysterious scenes” (Bordwell, 130). Instead, Curtiz relies on double meanings to highlight the question of what is real and what is an illusion. An example is when Mildred, looking at the ocean from the window of the beach house, responds: “You have a wonderful view.” Monty, looking at her body, replies, "Well, I wouldn't say that... I hope the dress fits her better than the robe." Monty knows he's talking about the ocean and not its appearance, but he twists his question. There are other ways to interpret Mildred's question. Mildred might draw attention to Monty's point of view, a man's point of view. One man's point of view represents the truth in this film, and in post-war America, what mattered was one man's point of view. Through the denial of the woman's point of view, the man can regain the upper hand. “As if to restore the proper patriarchal order, American culture attempted to deny or degenerate the stronger woman that wartime conditions had created” (Benshoff, 262). After a wide shot of Mildred and Monty jumping into the ocean together, the film fades inside the beach house where Mildred is drying off by the fire. Another illusion is presented here through Mildred's reflection in the mirror as Monty prepares a drink on the left of the screen. Curtiz is once again playing with the viewer's perception of reality versus illusion, who to trust in this scene, and whether the scene should be trusted. In this scene the viewer is not yet aware that Veda is the true femme fatale. and not Mildred, however Mildred is still a woman in post-war cinema and is therefore painted in a negative light. Its narrative cannot be trusted and oozes sexuality. Mildred's character parallels Veda's character. “The film asks us, through the device of metaphorical substitution, to confuse the evil Veda with the honest Mildred, thus establishing Mildred's innate guilt, even if she is not guilty of the actual murder” (Cook, 71) . Although Mildred did not kill Monty, she is guilty of an even greater crime in post-war America: pursuing a career and becoming breadwinner. “Mildred's taking over of her father has led to the collapse of every social and moral order in her world” (Cook, 75). At the end of this scene, Monty and Mildred hug and exchange words of affection. However, through camera movement, Curtiz allows the viewer to see through Mildred and Monty's false feelings for each other. As Monty and Mildred embrace, there is music playing in the background coming from a record player off-screen. The disc starts skipping and Mildred replies, "The disc Monty, the disc." Just before Mildred says this, Monty says, “When I'm close to you like this there's a sound in the air like wings flapping. Do you know what it is? My heart beats like that of a schoolboy. To which Mildred replies, “I thought it was mine.” The camera then slowly pans to the right until it reveals the record player and the mirror image of Monty and Mildred embracing in the same frame. The viewer can now make the connection and understand that it is not their heart that beats. It's just the sound of the record player skipping. The beach house setting is important to the entire narrative of the film. The beach house in this scene provides the location of the romance between Mildred and Monty and will later provide the location of Monty's murder. Monty's murder is the direct result of his bond with Mildred; therefore the beach house should provide a sense of foreshadowing to the viewer. A parallel can be drawn between Mildred and, 2007. 833-844.