Autumn Leaves (B+ or 3/4 stars)
50 yr. old Joan Crawford plays Millicent Wetherby, a self-employed, 40-something freelance typist who considers herself a lonely old maid in 'Autumn Leaves' (a black-&-white melodrama directed by Robert Aldrich). After attending a concert at the L.A. Symphony Hall, Millicent gets picked up in a crowded diner by a man about 20 yrs. her junior, Burt Hanson (Cliff Robertson). The ardent, but handsome young man, just out of the army & settling in L.A. from Wisconsin (or maybe its Chicago ... watch the film to find out the truth), fights off her rejections over their age difference & they eventually marry. Their temporary wedded bliss soon ends, though, when Burt's sketchy past surfaces; such as him being a liar, some bouts with mental disorder annnnnnd, a visit from his vengeful ex-WIFE Virginia (Vera Miles). "Milly" didn't know he'd been previously married. It is then also learned that Burt's father (Lorne Greene) is alive & not dead as Burt had told her.
When Burt reluctantly agrees to meet his father, Milly learns that Virginia & Mr. Hanson have been having an affair! Burt is devastated (and now really mentally imbalanced). Milly meets Virginia & Mr. Hanson to verbally slam them. But they then demand that Burt sign away to 'them' his deed inheritance from his deceased mother. When Burt finds out that Milly met with them, he physically assaults her (slams a typewriter down on her hand); insanely believing that Milly is actually partnering up with the other two to steal his property inheritance. Distraught Milly then feels she has no choice but to consult a psychiatrist and, eventually has him committed to a sanitarium. Milly's big worries ... will he come out okay? Can he be fixed? Will he even remember Milly when he's finally released? And if he does, who's to say that he'll want to be with someone who'll remind him of his mentally unstable past?
Melodrama, melodrama, melodrama. That said, it's contained enough, good-looking enough, & superbly acted - thus, my high B+/3 star rating. Though this film is nearly 2 hours of soap opera, the actors lift it higher than those genre roots. Joan Crawford is excellent; showing vulnerability as a lonely victim with longtime suffering. Though Crawford is obviously one tough broad, I believed her insecurities here as Illy. The romance aspect is believable, too. And that's a testament to Crawford, as well as a wonderful Cliff Robertson. He's just so natural in the role; the kind of actor who brings out the best in others (in this case, Crawford) by simply living the character. I think it's interesting that Robertson was able to surprise Crawford enough with his acting choices that it forced her to be more natural in the role, and less "I'm the statuesque STAR, Joan Crawford!!" as she sometimes comes across in her performances. Their chemistry worked.
Sappy narrative aside, I just really enjoyed watching these 2 actors perform. As mentioned above, it also helps that the film looks very good (with dimension-lending black-&-white photography, soft lighting, pretty locales, etc.). The last scene of the film is a good one (I'm finding that far too many movies in the 1950s end limply). And then, of course, there's the wildly popular titular song, sung by Nat King Cole. Crawford's name, along with the hit song, went a long way in making this film as moderately successful at the box office as it was. So overall, yes, this may be a stylish, if overly-melodramatic "weepie". It's not perfect. There's an awkward swimming-in-the-ocean scene btwn. Crawford & Robertson that is both poorly edited and also comes across as an unintentional parody of the famous Burt Lancaster/Deborah Kerr beach scene in From Here to Eternity. I cringed at that, haha. But I actually really dug this movie; far more so than I imagined I would.
When Burt reluctantly agrees to meet his father, Milly learns that Virginia & Mr. Hanson have been having an affair! Burt is devastated (and now really mentally imbalanced). Milly meets Virginia & Mr. Hanson to verbally slam them. But they then demand that Burt sign away to 'them' his deed inheritance from his deceased mother. When Burt finds out that Milly met with them, he physically assaults her (slams a typewriter down on her hand); insanely believing that Milly is actually partnering up with the other two to steal his property inheritance. Distraught Milly then feels she has no choice but to consult a psychiatrist and, eventually has him committed to a sanitarium. Milly's big worries ... will he come out okay? Can he be fixed? Will he even remember Milly when he's finally released? And if he does, who's to say that he'll want to be with someone who'll remind him of his mentally unstable past?
Melodrama, melodrama, melodrama. That said, it's contained enough, good-looking enough, & superbly acted - thus, my high B+/3 star rating. Though this film is nearly 2 hours of soap opera, the actors lift it higher than those genre roots. Joan Crawford is excellent; showing vulnerability as a lonely victim with longtime suffering. Though Crawford is obviously one tough broad, I believed her insecurities here as Illy. The romance aspect is believable, too. And that's a testament to Crawford, as well as a wonderful Cliff Robertson. He's just so natural in the role; the kind of actor who brings out the best in others (in this case, Crawford) by simply living the character. I think it's interesting that Robertson was able to surprise Crawford enough with his acting choices that it forced her to be more natural in the role, and less "I'm the statuesque STAR, Joan Crawford!!" as she sometimes comes across in her performances. Their chemistry worked.
Sappy narrative aside, I just really enjoyed watching these 2 actors perform. As mentioned above, it also helps that the film looks very good (with dimension-lending black-&-white photography, soft lighting, pretty locales, etc.). The last scene of the film is a good one (I'm finding that far too many movies in the 1950s end limply). And then, of course, there's the wildly popular titular song, sung by Nat King Cole. Crawford's name, along with the hit song, went a long way in making this film as moderately successful at the box office as it was. So overall, yes, this may be a stylish, if overly-melodramatic "weepie". It's not perfect. There's an awkward swimming-in-the-ocean scene btwn. Crawford & Robertson that is both poorly edited and also comes across as an unintentional parody of the famous Burt Lancaster/Deborah Kerr beach scene in From Here to Eternity. I cringed at that, haha. But I actually really dug this movie; far more so than I imagined I would.