"Excellent"
Imitation of Life (1934) Review
By Christopher Null
The great Claudette Colbert stars in an equally great melodrama from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Colbert is a single mother who, after taking in an itinerant black maid and fellow single mother (an impressive Louise Beavers), opens a pancake shop on the boardwalk and turns her enterprise into a success after boxing "Aunt Delilah's" pancake flour.
With a deep undercurrent involving gender roles and race relations (and this is deep in the era of segregation), it's a subtly different experience than the similar Mildred Pierce. As well, the movie looks incredible, especially considering it was made in 1934, and its sophisticated story is modern enough to be equally powerful today. The last half drags a bit with its unlikely love triangle, but otherwise it's a knockout.
Facts and Figures
Year: 1934
Reviews
Contactmusic.com: 4 / 5
Cast & Crew
Director: John M. Stahl
Producer: Carl Laemmle Jr.
Screenwriter: William Hurlbut
Also starring: Claudette Colbert, Warren William, Ned Sparks, Louise Beavers, Juanita Quigley, Rochelle Hudson, Seble Hendricks, Fredi Washington, William Hurlbut
Contactmusic
