Main Cast: Susan Hayward, Lee Bowman, Eddie Albert, Marsha Hunt, Carl Esmond
Release Year: 1947
Country: US
Run Time: 103 minutes
Plot
A woman struggles to reassemble her broken life in this drama that features Susan Hayward in her first starring role. The woman started out as a night-club singer, but abandoned her career after marrying a budding radio star. At first she does everything she can to insure his success, but when he finally hits the big-time, the woman finds herself deeply depressed and turning toward the bottle for solace because he is increasingly absent from her life. She becomes a full-fledged alcoholic and her husband, unable to take it anymore begins divorce and custody procedures. It takes such extreme measures to wake her up to her problem. Fortunately, with hard work, and renewed support from her husband, she overcomes her addiction. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Review
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. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
