KNITTING

Following on from my previous post, here's my take on a 1964 cracker with St Joan of Crawford starring in Strait-jacket. Joan, well into her fifties plays twenty something Lucy Harbin. She's out of town so her hubbie gets it on with a town tramp but Lucy's train comes home early, she saunters off the choo choo to arrive home and find her man sleeping in bed with his chick. Lucy goes loopy, finds an ax and walks in on them chops off their heads and carries on chopping with her young daughter Carol watching. There's an odd narration at the beginning when Lucy first appears wearing a fabulous silk dress, Mildred Pierce wig and what seem like tin castanets for bangles. "Lucy Harbin, born and raised on a farm. Parents-poor, education-meagre. Very much a woman and very much aware of the fact.

Cut to twenty years later where Lucy is in her mid 40s?! and is released from the institution to her brother and daughter's care on a farm. But the killings begin again... has Lucy recovered or is she back to her axe chopping ways?!

This movie was made after Joan's success in "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?" and she camps it to the max. After being released, Joan looks very dowdy but a quick trip in town with her daughter and she looks exactly as she did all those years ago when she killed her hubby. Joan herself was Queen of Pepsi by this time and had Pepsi coolers installed all over the set, she managed to get a case of Pepsi on screen during a kitchen scene and even had a VP of Pepsi play her doctor in the film who was sharply killed off with yet another axe all without telling the director!

Joan as Lucy has to be seen to be believed in various scenes. She gets a visit from the doctor who thinks she's gone round the bend again and asks what she does all day.. "Knitting" she replies rather vaguely. Then she meets her daughter's fiance and takes an immediate fancy to him. This scene is rather gruesome to watch but vintage Crawford nonetheless. Joan as Lucy pours the drinks but when the fiance walks in, her voice drops two octaves and her breasts get perkier. She slaps on the gramophone and leans in seductively whilst her daughter sits on the sidelines in a strop. This gets worse when Joan aka Lucy somehow sticks her fingers in said fiance's mouth, teasing him with her slutty fingers!

Joan pulls herself together for a visit to the fiance's parents who are unsure of Carol's suitability for their son as Joan's character has been a tad wierd and Carol less than forthcoming with information about her past. This is clearly a car crash waiting to happen and sure enough, Lucy freaks out admitting that she'd been in a straitjacket in a mental asylum "IT WAS AN ASYLUM!! IT WAS TWENTY YEARS OF PURE HELL!!!!" Between Joan's murders at the beginning of the movie and a few more later on, Joan's character is the main suspect for doing it again and it all comes out in the wash in typical Crawford fashion with face masks and bracelets and axe throwing all part of the finale.

Many reviewers were unkind to Strait-jacket upon release, one saying - Joan Crawford with an ax?! Anyone for tennis?! I have to disagree as this is Crawford's show from start to finish, she dresses too young, murders her husband, wears her usual heels and a bad ass wig all the while appearing to be going more insane with every scene. It doesn't get much better than this and she made damn sure that she got the end scene in her favour. Although in reality, it's a B Movie, Joan gives a triple A performance despite being strapped into a straitjacket and wearing rather loud bangles that jingle a lot. Watch this for Joan's tour de force performance and her age defying outfits alone - she's unmissable!