Post by petrolino on Nov 10, 2018 23:40:16 GMT
In 'Picture Mommy Dead', Susan Shelley (Susan Gordon) leaves convent school to return home to her father Edward (Don Ameche). Suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of her mother Jessica (Zsa Zsa Gabor) have left Susan searching high and low for the truth behind her nightmares.
'The worms crawl in,
The worms crawl out,
In your stomach,
And out your mouth ...'
The psychological shocker 'Picture Mommy Dead' is dominated by the performance of Susan Gordon (daughter of director Bert Gordon) as traumatised, teenage Catholic Susan Shelley whose inheritance is suspended until her 25th birthday. Susan's possibly schizophrenic, dealing with extreme mood swings, hearing voices and experiencing hallucinations. Her mind is a virtual dollhouse filled with spooky apparitions, in which her dead mother plays puppet master. Susan's intense feelings of grief are continually churning.
Supporting the excellent work of Susan Gordon is Don Ameche as her peculiar father. Also on hand are Martha Hyer as Susan's stepmother Francene who plays acting governess, Maxwell Reed as caretaker Anthony who's emotionally and physically scarred, Wendell Corey as stern southern lawyer Clayborn who looks out for young Susan, Anna Lee as revered Beverly Hills scholar Elsie Kornwald and Signe Hasso as perceptive teacher Sister Rene whose convent school is run by exiled French nuns.
Greystone (Doheny) Mansion in Beverly Hills, California
'Born As Ghosts' - Rage Against The Machine
Bert Gordon references Greek mythology in 'Picture Mommy Dead' and he spins several psychedelic nightmares to entangle Susan in. Gene Tierney and Hedy Lamarr were approached to play the roles performed by Martha Hyer and Zsa Zsa Gabor in the movie but things didn't work out. Both Lamarr and Tierney got married to wealthy Texan oilman W. Howard Lee. Lamarr's retirement from films came with Harry Keller's 'The Female Animal' (1958) while Tierney ended her career with Jean Negulesco's 'The Pleasure Seekers' (1964).
