Daisy Kenyon (1947)

DAISY KENYON (DVD MOVIE) Product Description

 Faux noir !
Certainly one of Crawford's better efforts, it deserves a higher popularity than many of her others. I'm glad to see it now on DVD, but what marketing genius packaged it as "film noir" I wonder. Oh, I know that category will attract buyers who might otherwise ignore it, but it shows little knowledge or appreciation of the movie itself. Too bad, because this one deserves an audience based on it's own merits. April 26, 2008

 A Woman's Face... But Not a Film Noir
Another great movie by Otto Preminger. God! What a great actress was Joan Crawford! The plot is so melodramatic, in the same way of "Back Street", "To Each His Own" or some of those wonderful women films of the 40's. But, beware, this is not a film noir. It is a good melodrama, filmed in the same style of the best noir. April 17, 2008

 Crawford, Andrews, and Fonda in top form

Daisy Kenyon is an enjoyable melodrama with the three leads working at the top of their games. Joan Crawford returns to the kind of role that made her a top star at MGM for 18 years. Crawford is Daisy Kenyon, a commercial artist involved with a married man, successful lawyer Dan O'Mara (Dana Andrews). Their affair is beginning to wear on Daisy and she's tempted by the advances of an emotionally wounded WW II war veteran, Peter Lapham (Henry Fonda). Daisy is tired of sneaking around and playing second fiddle to O'Mara's troubled wife (Ruth Warrick) and his two young daughters (Peggy Ann Garner and Connie Marshall). Which man will Daisy end up with: the man of her dreams O'Mara or the man who loves her above all else (Lapham). Back in the day, they used to call movies like this, women's pictures because the narrative was from the female protagonist's perspective. Daisy Kenyon fits this model fairly well, but as already mentioned, the three leads elevate the material here, with good, believable performances. Crawford was powerful enough in 1947 to get what she wanted; she asked for two of the top male contract players at Fox (Andrews and Fonda) and got them. She also got to work with Otto Preminger, who was able to give this film both grit and polish. As movies from this period go, it holds up fairly well. The DVD has a good documentary on Otto Preminger and one on the making of Daisy Kenyon. Both are worthwhile and enjoyable. Why this is included in the Fox Film Noir collection is beyond me. The only thing that slightly fits the noir profile is the moody b & w photography. The characters and storyline are strictly melodrama, however. April 1, 2008

 If you're looking for noir, look elsewhere
First, despite this being promoted as part of the usually excellent Fox Noir collection, this does not qualify as "noir," not stylistically nor in terms of content. You'll find no guns, no atmospheric lighting, no location shooting, and no seedy locales or characters. It's a soap opera and a pretty poor one because there are very few moments in it that ring true. The primary problem is that Crawford is utterly miscast: she has zero sex appeal and little chemistry with either Andrews or Fonda. Perhaps with a different, younger, sexier actress the story would seem more believable, but Crawford can't pull it off. None of the main characters are very likable, so there's no one to root for, and by the time the movie ends, you just don't care. The bonus featurettes are actually the best part of this disk. Yes, the cast is hard to resist, but I suggest you rent this one first before deciding if it belongs in your library. And if you want good Joan Crawford soap opera, try Mildred Pierce, Flamingo Road or Queen Bee. March 27, 2008

 Good film whether or not film noir
There has been previous discussion whether or not this is truly Film Noir. It is hard to define film noir, so I will not argue whether it is, or is not. But film noir has a certain MOOD. If YOU feel the mood, it is film noir. If YOU don't, it's not. I don't feel the mood of how I personally define film noir in this particular movie. However, I think it's a great film. You can see Daisy struggle with her feelings throughout the entire film. And we see the two men who want her go through their own processes. I recommend it, whether it's film noir or not! March 23, 2008

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