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A Life of Her Own

Play trailer Poster for A Life of Her Own Released Sep 1, 1950 1h 48m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 4 Reviews 68% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
Lily James (Lana Turner) moves from her small hometown in Kansas to New York City, with dreams of becoming a successful model. Despite a close friend's suicide, Lily's determination leads to fame and fortune. But when she meets a rich mine owner named Steve Harleigh (Ray Milland), Lily realizes that money alone cannot buy happiness. She falls for Steve and the lovers begin a passionate affair, but Lily feels guilty when she learns about Steve's paraplegic wife (Margaret Phillips).
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A Life of Her Own

Critics Reviews

View All (4) Critics Reviews
Richard Brody The New Yorker The movie feels amazingly inward and tamped down, as if the director and the actors are collectively holding their breath in anticipation of romantic disaster. Oct 19, 2022 Full Review Francois Truffaut Cahiers du Cinéma [Cukor] makes, out of every five films, one masterpiece, three other very good ones, and the fifth still interesting. We must place this admirable film beside Holiday, Philadelphia Story, and Little Women. Apr 4, 2022 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Starring Lana Turner and Ray Milland, this melodrama about adultery is a minor film in George Cukor's impressive output. Rated: C Jul 5, 2010 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews This artificially dramatic fluff piece seems as if it was ripped out of the pages of a woman's confessional magazine ... . Rated: C Mar 26, 2010 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Gary K. N The test of any great artist is making mediocre material effective. Lana Turner succeeds in doing that in this film. She is obliged to run through a range of emotions as she struggles to deal with an insoluble personal dilemma, and does it very well. The problem is that the story itself is a pedestrian love triangle that lacks the nuances of a real life adultery in which the trio maturely work out some accommodation. That is less dramatic, of course, than the "all of nothing" Hollywood treatment, which leads to histrionics and dead ends. But audiences wouldn't accept a tale of successful adultery in 1950, and the story doesn't hold up as well as the acting. The entire cast is superb and deserved better. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/21/24 Full Review Audience Member Lana Turner is brilliant as a successful, but lonely, woman having an affair with a married man. The adultery is further complicated by the health condition of the man's wife. Director George Cukor handles it all with smooth sensitivity. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member really good melodrama kinda weepie at least I did anyway. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Even Ray Milland can't save this movie lol. It seems to drag on a bit and George Cukor has done way better than this flick. Prob just made it to fill in a gap somewhere in his repertoire lol. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Lana Turner & Ray Milland make Adultery look Glamorous, but then realize the true costs Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Audience Member good stuff well acted Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/25/23 Full Review Read all reviews
A Life of Her Own

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis Lily James (Lana Turner) moves from her small hometown in Kansas to New York City, with dreams of becoming a successful model. Despite a close friend's suicide, Lily's determination leads to fame and fortune. But when she meets a rich mine owner named Steve Harleigh (Ray Milland), Lily realizes that money alone cannot buy happiness. She falls for Steve and the lovers begin a passionate affair, but Lily feels guilty when she learns about Steve's paraplegic wife (Margaret Phillips).
Director
George Cukor
Producer
Voldemar Vetluguin
Screenwriter
Isobel Lennart
Distributor
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co
Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 1, 1950, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 20, 2016
Runtime
1h 48m
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