Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman

Director: Stuart Heisler Stuart Heisler

Overview

In this drama, a woman struggles to reassemble her broken life. The woman started out as a night-club singer but abandoned her career after marrying a budding radio star. When he finally hits the big-time, the woman finds herself deeply depressed and turns toward the bottle for solace.

Product Details

Release Date:	01/12/2018
UPC:	0887936993855
Original Release:	1947
Rating:	NR
Source:	Film Detective
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[B&W]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo]
Language:	English
Time:	1:40:00
Sales rank:	39,966

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Susan Hayward	Angie Evans Conway
Lee Bowman	Ken Conway
Marsha Hunt	Martha Gray
Eddie Albert	Steve Nelson
Carl Esmond	Dr. Lorenz
Carleton Young	Mr. Elliott
Charles D. Brown	Mike Dawson
Janet Murdoch	Miss Kirk
Tom Chatterton	Edwards
Sharyn Payne	Angelica
Robert Shayne	Mr. Gordon
Larry Blake	Emcee
George Meeker	Wolf
Erville Alderson	Farmer
George Meader	Attorney
Matt Dennis	Offstage Voices
Ruth Sanderson	Maggie
Steve Olsen	Bartender
Fred Browne	Bartender
Margo Woode	Actor
Virginia Carroll	Woman
Nanette Vallon	Woman
Dorothy Christy	Woman
Al Hill	Man
Richard Kipling	Man
Clarence Straight	Man
William Gould	Judge
Connie Leon	Mary
Vivian Oakland	Woman at Bar,Woman at bar
Peg La Centra	Offscreen voice
Robert Verdaine	Maitre d'
Laurie Douglas	Singer
Ernie Adams	Waiter,Waiter
Ethel Wales	Farmer's Wife
Ralph Montgomery	Doorman
Noel Neill	Girl at Party
Lee Shumway	Benson
Joan Shawlee	Fulton
Bess Flowers	Inquisitive Party Guest
Barbara Woodell	Girl
Alice Fleming	Miss Tierman
James Craven	Sam Winsley
Frances Morris	Mrs. Benton
Hal Derwin	Actor

Technical Credits

Frank Cavett

Dorothy Parker

Stuart Heisler	Director
Walter Wanger	Producer
Frank Cavett	Screenwriter
Dorothy Parker	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Susan Hayward's career was made with Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman, the film that catapulted her to stardom and earned her a well-deserved Oscar nomination. Something of a distaff answer to The Lost Weekend, Smash-Up would be welcome if it were nothing other than a vehicle for Hayward's no-holds-barred, bravura performance. That it also features an intelligent screenplay and assured direction is an unexpected bonus. While never hiding the fact that it is essentially a melodrama, the film's manipulations are carried off lightly; the viewer knows that he's being set up to have his emotions pulled one way or another, but it works so well that he really doesn't mind too much. Somehow, the writers have made the plot twists and turns seem inevitable rather than expected. There's also some very fine work from Eddie Albert and Marsha Hunt, and good (if less than dazzling) work from Lee Bowman. But it's Hayward's film all the way, and she delivers everything that's asked of her. One of the pleasant surprises is how touching, warm, and vulnerable the actress is. Her tough-broad persona, which came to border on camp in some of her later work, is present in this film, but it's only a part of her complex personality. Although Hayward would turn in performances that equaled her work here, none surpassed it.