We asked our social media followers to vote on the top 5 Joan Crawford films, in their opinion. Continue reading to find the ranking according to our lovely audience.
- What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
Thriller/Horror – 2h 12m
Synopsis (from Rotten Tomatoes): Jane Hudson (Bette Davis) is an aging child star left to care for her wheelchair-bound sister Blanche (Joan Crawford), also a former child actress. Stuck living together in a mansion in old Hollywood, Blanche plots to get even with Jane for the car crash that left her crippled years earlier. But Jane is desperate to keep Blanche imprisoned as she plans a new rise to fame, and tries to hide Blanche’s existence from doctors, visitors and neighbors while she devises a way to get rid of her sister. - Mildred Pierce (1945)
Noir/Drama – 1h 51m
Synopsis (from Rotten Tomatoes): When Mildred Pierce’s (Joan Crawford) wealthy husband leaves her for another woman, Mildred decides to raise her two daughters on her own. Despite Mildred’s financial successes in the restaurant business, her oldest daughter, Veda (Ann Blyth), resents her mother for degrading their social status. In the midst of a police investigation after the death of her second husband (Zachary Scott), Mildred must evaluate her own freedom and her complicated relationship with her daughter. - The Women (1939)
Comedy – 2h 13 m
Synopsis (from Rotten Tomatoes): Mary Haines (Norma Shearer) can’t believe her husband’s having an affair with salesgirl Crystal (Joan Crawford). But when Sylvia (Rosalind Russell) and Edith (Phyllis Povah) deliver the gossip firsthand, Mary heads to Reno for a divorce. En route she meets Countess de Lave (Mary Boland) and Miriam (Paulette Goddard), who coincidentally is having an affair with Sylvia’s husband. Once in Reno, the Countess finds another beau, Sylvia shows up for a divorce and Mary plots to win back her man. - Grand Hotel (1932)
Drama/Romance – 1h 52m
Synopsis (from Rotten Tomatoes): At a luxurious Berlin hotel between the wars, the once-wealthy Baron Felix von Gaigern (John Barrymore) supports himself as a thief and gambler. In this lavish adaptation of the successful Broadway play, the baron romances one of his marks, the aging ballerina Grusinskaya (Greta Garbo), and teams with dying accountant Otto Kringelein (Lionel Barrymore) against his former boss, crooked industrialist Preysing (Wallace Beery), and his ambitious stenographer, Flaemmchen (Joan Crawford). - Straight-Jacket (1964)
Horror/Thriller – 1h 33m
Synopsis (from Rotten Tomatoes): Though still mentally shaky, convicted axe-murderess Lucy Harbin (Joan Crawford) is released from the asylum where she was sent 20 years ago for slaying her unfaithful husband. Lucy goes to stay at her brother’s farm and reconnect with her grown daughter, Carol (Diane Baker), who saw her mother chop her father to pieces as a tot. Carol helps Lucy regain her old glamorous look — but suspects that history might be repeating itself when anyone who angers her mother turns up hacked to death.
Do you have a favorite Joan Crawford film? Are there any not included on this list that should be? Let us know in the comments!
Before your next Joan movie marathon, be sure to pick up The Grand Hotel Blend, a medium roasted breakfast coffee blend fit for the most luxurious of mornings.
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Dominique Benedict is the founder and owner of Breakfast At Dominique’s. Her favorite topics include classic everything from movies to music to cars and the 90s film, Dazed and Confused.