Absolutely brilliant

A Masterpiece!

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

We viewed this movie last night through TCM on demand; I'd only seen parts of it in the past, not the whole film. I was impressed by Joan Crawford's skillful depiction of a highly intelligent woman whose face had been disfigured when she was as child. Her character seemed to be a genius in her knowledge and musical abilities. Because of her appearance she'd been shunned and unjustly treated; this forced her to hide half of her face from others. She spends most of her time in seclusion with a band of misfits and crooks. Her rejection by society turned her into a seemingly heartless blackmailer among other things. We could see that beneath her bitterness was a spark of something else, something good perhaps; her doctor played by Melvyn Douglas sees this too. Her doctor presents her with hope to restore her face using his skill, but will it work? It was an unusual role for Ms. Crawford IMO, at this stage in her career I'd figured she'd always want to look her most beautiful in roles. I couldn't imagine her appearing less than attractive even for part of a film; yet here she allowed her face to appear disfigured in some scenes. It was reminiscent for me of scenes that Gloria Grahame did years later in 'The Big Heat', another excellent film. The supporting cast in 'A Woman's Face' is good, especially Conrad Veidt as the evil man who has her in his power because he finds her attractive. For him she is willing to do anything...almost. The unthinkable crime he wants her to commit is the crux of the story, I won't reveal it here except to say at times we were on the edge of our seats wondering would she do it. Also of note in the supporting cast are Marjorie Main as a servant jealous of Joan and Albert Bassermann as a kindly grandfather. I highly recommend this film and give it a rating of 8 out of 10 stars.

A Woman's Face is a trashy, pseudo horror movie like film but one presented as an A-picture melodrama. I've watched A Woman's Face five times as of writing this review and gets better every time I watch it. Within the last year I've felt the motivation to watch the film three times, something which is almost unheard of for me; this movie is that good. I've now decided, screw it, this is my favourite Joan Crawford film and considering there's tough competition from Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?, Mildred Pierce and The Women, that's saying a lot. Every major cast member in A Woman's Face is superb. I know that sounds like a generalization but it's true. Firstly there's Conrad Veidt as Torsten Barring. I adore every second this man is on screen; he's just so delightfully sinister but in the most absorbingly charming manner - I'm swept of my feet by his presence. I can completely buy into the romance he shares with Anna Holm (Crawford) because he looks past her facial disfigurement and is unbothered by it. Melvyn Douglas is the other great charmer of the cast, whom I've yet to see paired with an actress who he didn't share great chemistry. Ossa Massen, Reginald Owen, Albert Bassermann, Marjorie Main (unrecognisable here) and Donald Meek are also all equally memorable and stand in the strong characterisations of their roles. Likewise on re-watching look out for the moments of foreshadowing ("You love children? I loathe them").Then there's Crawford herself in a once in a life time role as a facially disfigured woman, a part few actresses would be prepared to play. Her character of Anna Holm only engages in deceitful acts because of society's mistreatment of her since childhood but is otherwise good at heart. Anna tries to make the best for herself and doesn't dwell into a victimhood complex ("I don't care for pity ether"); she runs her own tavern, pursues different talents and less virtuously is involved in criminality. Regardless throughout the film my heart pours out for the poor woman and yet even with the disfigurement I still find Crawford to be incredibly beautiful in this film, nor does the disfigurement ever take away from the asset that is her stunning body. If anything the moment in which Anna returns from a shopping trip and is wearing a very excessive blouse to take attention away from her face is the one moment in the film in which her character comes off to me as pathetic sight.A Woman's Face is one of the few thrillers George Cukor directed with echoes of Hitchcock throughout, such as the shots of the smelter plant and a waterfall in the background (similar to the scenery in films such as Foreign Correspondent), to the film's suspenseful scenes such as that atop the cable car. This sequence itself is absent of any music, simply allowing the sound of the nearby waterfall and the smelter plant increase the tension while the film's climax on the other hand offers a sort of Ben-Hur on sleds finale. Since I consider this film far superior to Hitchcock's thriller offering that year of Suspicion, Cukor out Hitchcocked Hitchcock. With Cukor being one of the great masters of his trade, the cinematography of A Woman's Face is a feast for the eyes. Technically speaking, the scenes at the hospital and Anna's subsequent unbandaging are my favourite part of the film. Along with A Woman's Face and the 1934 medical drama Men In White, it makes me wonder if it's just me or do medical interiors and apparatuses make for some of the best subjects to capture on film.Being a remake of a Swedish film, there's something somewhat unconventional about A Woman's Face for a Hollywood film. The movie does manage to capture the essence of its Northern European setting (despite much of the cast supporting American accents) and offers a slice of Swedish culture with its dancing sequence.I consider 1941 to be the greatest year in history of cinema. The output of this single year is the jealous vain of entire decades and A Woman's Face just adds to this. Melodrama seems to have a bad reputation for no good reason. Like many things it can be done well and done poorly. A Woman's Face represents the old Hollywood melodrama tailored to perfection.

This is a shaded Crawford performance, showing her dramatic range better than most. As the conflicted Anna, she goes through a number of emotional changes in subtle fashion. Defaced by a facial scar, Anna strikes back at the world by heading up a blackmail ring. Then, by chance, she meets up with cosmetic surgeon Dr, Segert (Douglas), who restores her underlying beauty. Too bad he's married. With the operation, Anna can now lead a normal life, except her cruel boyfriend Torsten (Veidt) has a hold on her, and dispatches Anna to kill his toddler nephew who stands to inherit the fortune Torsten would otherwise inherit. So what's she going to do now that she has a chance to lead a normal life. Will Torsten's hold cause a relapse into her former criminal life.The sleigh chase and roaring cataract below may be the most exciting sequence in any of Joan's many dramatic films. It's certainly the high point here. Douglas and Veidt are excellent in their roles; however, Massen's over the top as Douglas's unfaithful wife. On the whole, the MGM production is excellent, especially the ballroom scenes. However, some of the outdoor process shots and miniatures are sometimes apparent. Director Cukor's a little out of his usual sophisticated element, but keeps things moving seamlessly.Too bad the film has drifted around in the Crawford canon because it's one of Joan's best, both for her and for the audience.

Joan Crawford is one of the legends of Hollywood, and I think most of that has to be due to her face. I am not sure what others think, but in my opinion, Crawford had one of the most interesting faces of any actor or actress to ever grace the silver screen. It certainly helped her in making films, and in A Woman's Face, it is all important in establishing her character.As the film opens, we are shown only the back of who we assume to be Crawford, and indeed for the first third of the film she is photographed only from one side. Her character, Anna Holm, has had a horrendous scar on her face for many years and uses it as the basis for her vindictive and menacing behavior and demeanor. However, when a kind surgeon (Melvyn Douglas in a thankless role) suggests she have it fixed, perhaps her life will change along with her looks.As I said before, to see Joan Crawford is to see only a small part of her. With such a complex face, it is almost impossible to understand just what exactly is going on underneath. What struck me as so interesting is that she is to play a woman undergoing dramatic changes in her lifestyle, yet she keeps mostly a straight face all throughout. Even in scenes where she is supposed to be happy or joyous, I felt that she was hiding true feelings underneath. Her face has such a stone-cold and distant look and feel to it that I am fascinated how she is ever able to convince people that she could play a happy person. Indeed, for much of her career she played the hostile-type woman usually feared or hated by others. As beautiful as she was, I think there was a lot more going on.As for the film, it is mostly standard with very few surprises. Told in flashback, we see many witnesses' perspectives and they all seem to be exactly the same. There is a subplot involving a villainous Conrad Veidt as a man after a rich uncle's inheritance, and the climax takes place in the snowy forests of Russia. The ending is conventional, but all along Crawford is able to carry the film due mostly to her fascinating looks and complexion. Despite the story being rather lackluster, to see her is to be amazed and stunned by her, and know why she is such a legend today and always will be.