Imitation of Life poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Lana Turner, John Gavin, Juanita Moore, Sandra Dee, Dan O'Herlihy ... see more see more... , Robert Alda , Susan Kohner , Mahalia Jackson , Karen Dicker , Terry Burnham , John Vivyan , Lee Goodman , Ann Robinson , Troy Donahue , Sandra Gould , Joel Fluellen , Jack Weston , Billy House , Maida Severn , Than Wyenn , Peg Shirley , George Barrows , Myrna Fahey , Bess Flowers , Eddie Parker , Napoleon Whiting , David Tomack , Paul Bradley , Karin Dicker

This glamorized remake of the 1934 film Imitation of Life bears only a passing resemblance to its source, the best-selling novel by Fannie Hurst. Originally, the heroine was a widowed mother who kept ... read more read more...the wolf from the door by setting up a successful pancake business with her black housemaid. In the remake, Lana Turner stars as a would-be actress who is raising her daughter on her own. She chances to meet another single mother at the beach: African-American Juanita Moore. Moore goes to work as Turner's housekeeper, bringing her light-skinned daughter along. As Turner's stage career goes into high gear, Moore is saddled with the responsibility of raising both Turner's daughter and her own. Exposed to the advantages of the white world, Moore's grown-up daughter (Susan Kohner) passes for white, causing her mother a great deal of heartache. Meanwhile, Turner's grown daughter (Sandra Dee), neglected by her mother, seeks comfort in the arms of handsome photographer John Gavin. When Moore dies, her daughter realizes how selfish she's been; simultaneously, Turner awakens to the fact that she hasn't been much of a mother for her own daughter, whose romance has gone down the tubes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Flixster Users

91% liked it

8,790 ratings

Critics

83% liked it

23 critics

Unrated, 2 hr. 5 min.

Directed by: Douglas Sirk

Release Date: January 1, 1958

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: January 7, 2003

Stats: 854 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

Gavin and Turner Juanita Moore Susan Kohner Juanita Moore in Imitation of Life Juanita Moore and Lana Turner in Imitation of Life Juanita Moore in Imitation of Life Juanita Moore in Imitation of Life Susan Kohner in Imitation of Life Susan Kohner in Imitation of Life This is just a fraction of the Byrd's Juanita Moore in Imitation of Life
Upload a Photo | View All Imitation of Life Photos

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (854)

  • flixsterman
    April 6, 2012
    flixsterman
    Imitation of Life is sentimental without being sappy. It's also boldly allegorical without being preachy. I'm tempted to say that it was ahead of its time but, by 1959, it was long overdue.
  • smith44
    April 2, 2012
    smith44
    A soul chilling look at life and love, this film is devestating, extreemly moving and ultimately a soul crushing tragedy.
  • hobster1
    March 28, 2011
    hobster1
    Given her personal life, Lana Turner would seem ideally suited for a movie detailing the problematic relationship between a single mother and her teenage daughter. Indeed it was one of her greatest successes as she is excellent. The plot concerns Lora Meredith, a struggling whi... read morete widow with a child who befriends Annie Johnson, a single black mother whose husband has likewise passed on. Driven by ambition to succeed as an aspiring actress, she often makes self-serving concessions in her life. Lora regularly relies on her new friend's assistance in raising her daughter, Susie. But Annie has issues dealing with her own daughter, Sarah Jane, who is so light skinned she appears to be white. This becomes a source of contention for the little girl, embarrassed to have a mother who is black. The story touches on everything from strained families and unrequited crushes to the casting couch and racial inequality. Melodramatic? Very, but in a tremendously enjoyable way. It does seem dated, but entertains despite, or perhaps because of it. Juanita Moore is most engaging as the selfless Annie. She's sincere, sweet and dignified. She rightfully received an Oscar nomination for her part. Also receiving a nomination was Susan Kohner as the daughter who resents her. Her performance, however, is much more overwrought. The script doesn't present her as fully formed a character in the way that her actions don't always seem reasonable, especially to a modern audience.

    Artificial soap opera dressed up as exquisite drama has all the hallmarks of a Douglas Sirk Hollywood picture. It's colorful, glossy and unapologetically old-fashioned. At first glance it's easy to be mesmerized by the well appointed sets, lavish costumes, and cinematography. But beneath the stylish surface, the action casually unfolds as a harsh critique of contemporary American 1950s society. It's (thankfully) a subtle theme, one that slowly creeps up on you well after the film is over.
  • dwt5411
    February 21, 2011
    dwt5411
    Douglas Sirk's classic weepy about our innate tendency to inadvertantly drive away the ones we love the most. Lana Turner and Juanita Moore give particularly outstanding performances.
  • ajv2688
    November 17, 2010
    ajv2688
    Sometimes this movie is overly melodramatic, and gets on my nerves a little, but the story is really good and very realistic. This is a remake of the thirties film, but it's slightly better made. It's a really good movie, and I recommend seeing it.
  • rubystevens
    October 22, 2008
    rubystevens
    so it's a big soapy melodrama like i always suspected. not a huge fan of glamour girl turner and sandra dee is just annoying, but it has some painful things to say about race relations in the 50's. it was a brave film that made people think, i hope. i felt sorry for sara jane;... read more who wouldn't try to pass in those circumstances? i kinda wanted annie to get pissed off and quit acting like a maid too. it was cool to see mahalia jackson at the end. i wouldn't have watched this if it wasn't for kevin's rave review and he's right: it was long overdue
  • mjgildea
    December 9, 2007
    mjgildea
    I liked but didn't love Imitation of Life. The titles were fantastic but Douglas Sirk didn't let it as loose as he did with All That Heaven Allows and Written on the Wind when it came to the landscapes and his trademarked colors. I got the message that Sirk was conveying but I di... read moredn't really care about any of the characters. Lana Turner was kind of dead behind the eyes and artificial, Susie was generally vacuous and Sarah Jane was a raging asshole. Annie was awesome though. When people talk about how they cry at the end, I feel the intense urge to tell them to stop watching The View and to quit peeing while sitting down. But that last scene made that urge go away.
  • jjnxn
    June 20, 2007
    jjnxn
    almost obsenely lush, easy to get caught up in and moving
  • xxdebxx
    April 1, 2011
    xxdebxx
    The story begins in post WWII NYC when Lana Turner (in the role of a struggling actress) hires a maid Annie (Juanita Moore) to work for and live with Turner and her then 7 year old daughter (same age as the maid's little girl). Times are tough at first, but the foursome gets on f... read moreine. Only little Sarah Jane (the maid's daughter) has constant trouble accepting her color and her "African American" mother whom she blames for preventing her from trying to pass off as white.

    Years pass, the family gains a good fortune and the girls grow up to young women, but life is not just constant bliss: the racial self-hatred of Sarah Jane (now played by Susan Kohner) is seriously affecting her life and self-image and she never misses the opportunity to degrade and humiliate her Mom for just being a maid while the teenaged Susie (Sandra Dee) develops feelings for Steve Archer (John Gavin), the potential fiancé of Lora which predictably leads to trouble.

    Ostensibly Lana Turner portrays the main character. Hers is the familiar, rags-to-riches tale, made even more glamorous by its show business context. But by the end of the film, her story is secondary. What makes this movie fascinating are the scenes between long suffering Annie and her daughter Sarah Jane. This is definitely a tear jerker so be sure to have a box of tissues for the film's conclusion.
  • littlecharmer1959
    March 26, 2009
    littlecharmer1959
    As with other Sirk films it is overly melodramatic but it's a real tearjerker too. Obviously it brings to light some important racial issues of the time. Juanita Moore and Susan Kohner are the real stars here, their scenes together are heartbreaking but wonderfully played. If you... read morer not already starting to choke up then your certainly will at the funeral scene.
    Overall great performances, moving story and also lovely to look at.

View All Imitation of Life Reviews

Critic Reviews

May 20, 2011
TIME Magazine

Imitation of Life is still a potent onion. When passed before the moviegoer's eyes, it may force theater owners to install aisle scuppers to drain off the tears. Full Review

Variety Staff
March 19, 2009
Variety Staff, Variety

While this device lends more scope, it also results in the overdone busy actress/neglected daughter conflict. Full Review

Bosley Crowther
March 25, 2006
Bosley Crowther, New York Times

This modernized remake of Miss Hurst's frankly lachrymose tale is much the same as its soggy predecessor. It is the most shameless tear-jerker in a couple of years. Full Review

Dave Kehr
January 1, 2000
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

Douglas Sirk's 1959 film was the biggest grosser in Universal's history until the release of Airport, yet it's also one of the most intellectually demanding films ever made in Hollywood. Full Review

May 20, 2011
TV Guide's Movie Guide

You'll be horrified at how this hokum manipulates you, but the best strategy is to just surrender and enjoy it. Full Review

Ian Freer
May 20, 2011
Ian Freer, Empire Magazine

A consummate display of populist weepie-making. Full Review

Cole Smithey
April 29, 2011
Cole Smithey, ColeSmithey.com

[VIDEO] Set in postwar New York, "Imitation of Life" is a wonderfully deceptive film. Full Review

Rob Nelson
August 20, 2009
Rob Nelson, City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul

What [the characters] need most from their maker is something he couldn't have given them at the time: the 1960s. Full Review

Geoff Andrew
February 9, 2006
Geoff Andrew, Time Out

Forget those who decry the '50s Hollywood melodrama; it is through the conventions of that hyper-emotional genre that Sirk is able to make such a devastatingly embittered and pessimistic movie. Full Review

Steve Crum
September 25, 2005
Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com

Glossy soaper ahead of its racially themed time.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Why Did I Get Married?
    Why Did I Get Married? (73%)
  • Mildred Pierce
    Mildred Pierce (100%)
  • Sapphire
    Sapphire (0%)
  • Valley of the Dolls
    Valley of the Dolls (100%)

More Movies like Imitation of Life

Facts

Submit a Fact | View All
    • Lora Meredith: I'm going up and up and up. And no one's going to pull me down. [ambitious actress telling husband she's no housewife]
Submit a Fact | View All

Imitation of Life : Watch Free on TV

Imitation of Life Trivia

  • Which movie, starring Natalie Wood, was a heart-rendering story of a girl whose mother was African American and whom she was ashamed of?  Answer »
  • Who was the female lead in Imitation Of Life in 1959  Answer »
  • In the first movie "Imitation Of Life" What was the women's relationship to each other.  Answer »
  • Sandra Dee's film debut was in Imitation Of Life?  Answer »
More Imitation of Life Trivia

Movie Quizzes

Create a Quiz |

All Quizzes

Video Clips

Upload a Video |

All Imitation of Life Videos

Meet Other Fans

Add Imitation of Life to favorites

Recent News

No recent headlines. Got one?

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

No skins yet. Interested in creating one?