Queenie

is it Merle Oberon portrait ? maybe. but the feelings is than it is far accuracy, scene for silhouette of American dream, melodramatic and nice. it has a lead virtue - the cast. Mia Sara does a splendid work in a role who remains clone of so many fragile characters. Joss Ackland is perfect bad guy and Kirk Douglas creates an interesting drawing of providential man. but, behind atmosphere, fight of ambitious young woman, it seems be not exactly a portrait but a mask. one of Hallmark films style, slices of pink novels, it is beautiful and touching first for a special public. window out of dusty reality, it is a large isle of fiction as diaphanous curtain for a dancer.

"Queenie" stars Mia Sara as a half-caste young girl in India who leaves her homeland, goes to England to be discovered, and becomes a movie star. This was inspired by the life of actress Merle Oberon, who was half-caste, and in fact, the book this was based was written by her stepson Michael Korda. I have mixed feelings about that, as his book was what is called a roman a clef, a fictional book whose main character is a real person. Her plight was the basis from which all things fictional happen in the book and therefore the movie. I feel like he profited by her private life, though none of the dramatics here really happened. Not knowing or considering the real actress, the movie is a good fast-moving and involving film with Kirk Douglas as the producer who makes her a star and Claire Bloom as her mother with very soap opera-ish melodramatics. Is that redundant? I would recommend this to anyone who didn't know about the life and career of Merle Oberon, but for those who do, it may feel a bit disrespectful of her memory to indulge in Korda's imagination and fantasy.

Contrary to some of the comments regarding Queenie's character and ethnicity, I wish to clarify this. Queenie, (or Merle Oberon)was not a "Eurasian". There is a vast difference between someone who is Eurasian to that of an Anglo Indian in British India. Her mother in real life was of Indian heritage whilst her father was British. If her father was from another country that would have made the family "Eurasian". I say this not for any political reasons but for historic accuracy.

I found this film most enjoyable and entertaining.The acting is superb all around. Having seen it sometime ago, I was thrilled to be able to purchase the DVD on Amazon recently.

The pace was lethargic, the acting stilted and because there were some excellent actors involved, I can only assume it was the fault of the director.If you are committed to a 4 hour TV serial, it must take a lot of skill to maintain the tension. The ending was also false and typical American/Hollywood hypocrisy. Nevertheless, it told an interesting story and most certainly was not total garbage. What I do dislike, however, is "faction", when you are never sure how much you are being told, in this case about Merle Oberon, is true. Was there actually a suspicious death in India? Was her mother her servant at any time? Was she ever involved in making a film in India? If all this was fiction, as I suspect it was, then why drag Merle Oberon's name into it anyway?

When I started out watching the 4-hour miniseries Queenie, I thought I'd certainly turn it off after the first fifteen minutes or so. How could an epic period piece starring the girlfriend in Ferris Bueller's Day Off be any good? Well, my apologies to Mia Sara, because not only was Queenie riveting, but she gave a very good performance as well!

The miniseries starts off with Kate Emma Davies as young Queenie, a fantastic look-a-like for Mia Sara. She's half Indian but passes for white; but she gets teased at school and shunned by white society. All she wants is out of life is to become a movie star. She doesn't have a crush at school, and she's not aware of any sex and power struggle between men and women. Unfortunately, because she's so beautiful, men can't keep their hands off her, starting with her schoolteacher. Throughout the episodes, when Mia Sara takes the lead, it's heartbreaking to watch Queenie change her life view. Because she's continually objectified and desired by men, she learns that she can use her body to get other things she wants, and she turns into a completely different person. It's tragic, but also true to life and quite fascinating.

I don't want to spoil the plot, because Queenie has such an eventful life and comes in contact with so many interesting characters, but I highly recommend this miniseries if you like the genre. With seasoned veterans joining the supporting cast-Kirk Douglas, Claire Bloom, Joss Ackland, Joel Grey, Martin Balsam, Sarah Miles, Topol, and Leigh Lawson-every scene is well-acted and compelling. I was on the edge of my seat during Queenie's journey, and just like every great miniseries, there's sadness, suspense, romance, violence, secrets, blackmail, and the perfect tying of all loose ends. For a very fun weekend with your mom, rent Queenie, light a fire, and bring out the china tea set!

Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, since there may or may not be a rape scene, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.