Laikals The greatest movie ever made..!

Roy Hart If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Hayleigh Joseph This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

sdave7596 "The Damned Don't Cry" released in 1950, stars Joan Crawford in the type of film she was famous for throughout much of her 'second' career at Warner Brothers. Crawford plays Ethel Whitehead, a working-class mother married to a loser. She stays with him because of their son; the son is then tragically killed, and Ethel leaves her dumbell husband and her parents behind. Ethel get hired as a "model," one who is also expected to entertain the male clientele. There she meets a dull but honest accountant, Martin (Kent Smith). He loves her and wants to marry her, but Ethel has her eyes on a new man, a handsome -- and dangerous --wealthy hotshot named George (David Brian). He introduces her to a world of riches beyond her wildest dreams, but at a price. The film gets involved and complicated, with George wanting Ethel (who has now changed her name to Lorna!) to seduce his rival, Nick, (Steve Cochran) to gain access to all his connections and secrets. The film has some implausible situations, to say the least. Crawford, at age 45, was a tad bit too old for the role, although she looks great. The character of slimeball Nick (Cochran) has wealth built on ruthlessness. He is obviously a good 12 - 15 years younger than Crawford, and his immediately falling for her seems a stretch, considering he could likely have any woman he wanted. Nevertheless, this is Crawford's show, and she does not disappoint, although the script is somewhat routine of movies of that era. The supporting players are fine in their respective roles. David Brian and Steve Cochran play their roles with all the appropriate sleaze required of them. Kent Smith, playing a milquetoast, turns out to be the real deal: his love for Ethel, in the end, does not waiver.

moonspinner55 Gertrude Walker's story "Case History", known at the time for being partly inspired by Virginia Hill's life, becomes tough Joan Crawford vehicle from Warner Bros., some of it wonderfully juicy. A runaway wife (guess who?) gets a job modeling clothes for a low-rent fashion company (while entertaining the clients after-hours!); she meets a timid accountant and introduces him to a shady nightclub manager, who then introduces the couple to the governor, a crook with ties to racketeering. The governor, married but having a torrid affair with our heroine, sends her out under an alias to spy on a casino owner who may be in-cahoots with the mob, and she falls for him too! Very lively, engrossing, and ridiculous--but enjoyably so. Joan gives a tight, taut performance (one of her best from this period), and she's matched wonderfully by smoldering Steve Cochran, snarling David Brian, and a young Richard Egan as the spouse she escaped from. Only Kent Smith stumbles as the CPA (his weak profile and slack chin make him an automatic doormat for any scenario). Otherwise good fun, though the title is mysteriously irrelevant. **1/2 from ****

writers_reign Based loosely on the real-life affair between socialite Virginia Hill and mobster Bugsy Siegel this entry is a curious hybrid of Citizen Kane and Mildred Pierce. Both Kane and Pierce begin with the death of a principal character then segue into flashback mode in an attempt to uncover the facts leading to the death. In Kane the death was a natural one and it is the media who instigate the flashback in the interests of a better news story; Mildred Pierce begins with a homicide (as does The Damned Don't Cry) and it is the police who want to get at the truth - as it is here. The Damned Don't Cry may not be in either league but it is far from chopped liver. Crawford turns in one of her finer performances and is light years ahead of her three leading men - Kent Smith, David Brian and Steve Cochran - in Masterclass Acting and the film is satisfying in virtually all departments.

bob_gilmore1 Joan Crawford delivers a vintage performance in this rags to riches story of married early middle aged woman who leave her husband following the tragic death of her son. She has had enough of the grinding poverty associated with living in a small house with her in-laws and husband which is positioned close to pumping oil wells. Her mission is to be someone important, a woman of society. The method used is that of sleeping her way to the top of the syndicate latter.None of this material is new or groundbreaking. "Flamingo Road" released earlier when Crawford was nearing the end of her stay at Warner Brothers covered much of the same ground. The Damned though benefits from even brisker than usual pacing and a strong supporting cast. The increased sexuality of the storyline was indicative at all the major studios as they saw the rise in the popularity of television was starting to cut against their numbers.It may not be of the caliber of "Mildred Pierce" but it is very representative of the performances she was giving at the time