vincentlynch-moonoi When I was young I always thought that one of the two most beautiful women in the world was Lana Turner (the other being Sophia Loren). 40 years later I haven't changed my mind. But the verdict on Lana Turner's acting is, for me, still out. I remember seeing her in a long interview a few years before her death, and being disappointed that while she wasn't a dumb blond, she also was no rocket scientist. Be that as it may, she has some fine moments in this melodrama, but you have to understand from the beginning, that this is not an uplifting film. In fact, it's downright depressing...well, "depressing" may be overstating it.In the opening, the Turner character is leaving her small town to become a model in NYC. At first it goes well. Tom Ewell knows she "has it" and hires her and helps make her a success. But her first new friend in the big city is an alcoholic has-been model who quickly commits suicide. She also falls in with Barry Sullivan...clearly a downbeat.Then she meets Ray Milland, who is excellent here. They fall in love, knowing that Milland is married...and what's more to an invalid who became crippled in a car accident he caused. Eventually, Lana decides to confront the crippled wife (excellently played by Margaret Phillips), but discovers she's a wonderful woman, so she decides to end the relationship with Milland.I typically enjoy supporting actor Louis Calhern, but he's not so likable here...he's the cad who introduces Lana to his friend (Milland), whom he knows is married. Tom Ewell's role, while key to the story is not large, but he plays it very well...a little bit different than what I typically expect of him. But, considering that this was directed by George Cukor, I was disappointed. Apparently the filming was problematic from the beginning. Most disappointing was the ending. Was she going to commit suicide or was she just depressed? Was she going to return to her hometown or get on with her modeling? Your guess is as good as mine...because as you leave the film she is just walking down a NYC street. Perhaps if the ending had been more concrete I would have been more satisfied with the film.

moonspinner55 Kansas girl makes a splash in New York City as a print model, but her love affair with a married man may ruin her. From the era where independent career girls were only ambitious until a man entered the picture, this "woman's movie" is naive and rather unconvincing, though it is seldom soft; the knowing dialogue has a sharp, bitter edge, and the performances are solid, making it a cut above the usual soap opera. Isobel Lennart's screenplay is dotted with cutting little truths--too many, perhaps; often, the greedy masochism is underlined with a moral conscience (and tinkling piano keys) which turns the whole thing into a heavy-breathing melodrama for sufferers on the high road. Lana Turner does a lot of striding up and down, and she seems too seasoned to be a novice in the film's opening scenes, but her desperate gaiety is touching. Ray Milland does his usual colorless nice-guy turn, but Ann Dvorak is startling playing an over-the-hill model and Margaret Phillips (as Milland's wife--an invalid who beams with sanity and understanding like a saint) is excellent in the film's big scene, where the two women meet. Not an important picture, nor a provocative one, but a star-vehicle that does manage to touch upon some resonant truths about women, their careers, and their fragile hearts. **1/2 from ****

Virginia I kept trying to identify the music being played throughout the movie. All I could recall were the words "Too soon, too soon". Can anyone tell me the name of the song and who recorded it? I think it was a female. At first, I thought it was "Laura", but knew that was not it. If anyone can tell me what it is, I would appreciate it. Lana Turner was still beautiful, as usual, but I did not think Ray Milland was right for that part. I don't recognize the woman who played his wife, don't recall ever seeing her in anything else. As much as I have seen movies, I am surprised this was one I hadn't seen. It was okay, but I guess Lana Turner's best movies were her earlier ones.

blanche-2 Lana Turner heads an excellent cast in "A Life of Her Own," a 1950 film directed by George Cukor. Its other stars are Ray Milland, Louis Calhern, Margaret Phillips, Barry Sullivan, Tom Ewell, Ann Dvorak, and Jean Hagen.Both the beginning of the film and the end are the best parts; the in between is incredibly slow. Turner plays a young woman from Kansas who comes to New York to break into the modeling business. She meets what could be her future if she's not careful: a washed up, alcoholic, desperate has-been, beautifully portrayed by Ann Dvorak. No need to tell you what happens there - you've seen it a million times.As her career progresses, Turner meets a married millionaire, Steve, played by Ray Milland. She knows he's married and it starts off platonically enough. But, as we learn what seems like hours later, he's a lot more than married.This is a great cast, right down to the smaller roles, which includes Phyllis Kirk, one of my favorites, and Hermes Pan, who so often worked with Fred Astaire on choreography.Turner is excellent and has some fine dramatic scenes; Milland is handsome and sympathetic as her boyfriend. Margaret Phillips, as his wife, does a marvelous job, and Tom Ewell is a joy. Actually, everyone is very good.Alas, there's not much of a script here and you know what's going to happen along the way. The very end shows Cukor's directing mastery. Given what he had to work with by way of a script, it's a very well done movie. I shudder to think what it would have been like in someone else's hands.