Imitation Of Life (1959)

Imitation of Life is a romantic melodrama which deals with the issues of race, gender and class. The key point of the story is that 'it is a sin to be ashamed of who you truly are'. It is based on the life of Lora Meredith played by Lana Turner and her daughter Susie (played by Sandra Dee), accepting Annie and Sarah into their lives. Annie works as a maid and caretaker for Susie while Lora tries to pursue her dreams of becoming a Broadway actor. However, there is a twist in their lives soon after. It is proven difficult to deal with their daughters. For Lora, because her career is taking time away from Susie, while Annie's lighter-skinned daughter Sarah isn't happy about her African background identity. Since being a little girl, she was never happy about where she came from and who she is so she decided to spend most of her time pretending to be white making her obnoxious and neurotic, and also leaving her mother, Annie, heart-broken. The only down side to this film is that it is quite old and the quality is poor. But the overall film is really good and could leave you crying. I recommend this film for people over 13, as younger viewers might find the movie a little bit boring and possibly wont understand the overall message of the film, which is why i rated it ***(3 stars)