Superb 3-part miniseries details the greed and insanity of Frances Schreuder, a would-be New York socialite who drove one son to lunacy and another to murder. And it's all true!
Lee Remick gives a towering performance as the crazy woman who goes thru money and men like water, Her father is a wealthy miser in Salt Lake City, and she's constantly after him for money to support her lavish lifestyle. She uses her sons to shame him and her mother (Elizabeth Wilson in a great performance) into sending money that she then spends on herself.
She so completely dominates her sons, that they steal from their grandfather by swiping cash, bonds, stock certificates or anything else that isn't nailed down. They send it all to mama and she cashes it in. At one point, she blithely explains to a grasping friend (John Glover) how she'd simply obtain a fake driver's license and open a fake bank account to cash in some bonds.
Remick plays a woman who is totally ruthless in her pursuit of money and a lavish lifestyle among the elite. She sacrifices husbands, friends, and eventually even her sons without batting a false eyelash.
Remick plays a true monster, but she's enabled by her own mother (Wilson) who ignores her other daughters and husband to support her favorite daughter. Neither one seems to have a conscience or any sense of morality. Remick's character finally gets hers, but it's an exhausting ride in one of television's great miniseries.
Besides Remick, Wilson, and Glover (who were all nominated for Emmy Awards), the cast includes Inga Swenson as Marylyn, the oldest (and jealous) sister, Tate Donovan as the murderous son, G.D. Spradlin as the miserly father, Linda Kelsey as the middle sister who can't get far enough away from her family, Tony Musante as the first husband, Frank Military as the son driven to lunacy, Daniel Hugh Kelly as an investigator, and Don Starr as a judge.
One of the lessons this story tells is how money and privilege can help ward off the law and social services despite decades of abuse. Nothing has changed. Truly frightening.
Lee Remick gives a towering performance as the crazy woman who goes thru money and men like water, Her father is a wealthy miser in Salt Lake City, and she's constantly after him for money to support her lavish lifestyle. She uses her sons to shame him and her mother (Elizabeth Wilson in a great performance) into sending money that she then spends on herself.
She so completely dominates her sons, that they steal from their grandfather by swiping cash, bonds, stock certificates or anything else that isn't nailed down. They send it all to mama and she cashes it in. At one point, she blithely explains to a grasping friend (John Glover) how she'd simply obtain a fake driver's license and open a fake bank account to cash in some bonds.
Remick plays a woman who is totally ruthless in her pursuit of money and a lavish lifestyle among the elite. She sacrifices husbands, friends, and eventually even her sons without batting a false eyelash.
Remick plays a true monster, but she's enabled by her own mother (Wilson) who ignores her other daughters and husband to support her favorite daughter. Neither one seems to have a conscience or any sense of morality. Remick's character finally gets hers, but it's an exhausting ride in one of television's great miniseries.
Besides Remick, Wilson, and Glover (who were all nominated for Emmy Awards), the cast includes Inga Swenson as Marylyn, the oldest (and jealous) sister, Tate Donovan as the murderous son, G.D. Spradlin as the miserly father, Linda Kelsey as the middle sister who can't get far enough away from her family, Tony Musante as the first husband, Frank Military as the son driven to lunacy, Daniel Hugh Kelly as an investigator, and Don Starr as a judge.
One of the lessons this story tells is how money and privilege can help ward off the law and social services despite decades of abuse. Nothing has changed. Truly frightening.