Sirk's last film in Hollywood, and last commercial film, is an absolute melodramatic triumph—a story of two intertwined families, where materialistic optimism is constantly contrasted with racist tension and the breakdown of family relationships.
Cast: Lana Turner, Juanita Moore, John Gavin, Sandra Dee, Susan Kohner, Mahalia Jackson, Robert Alda, Dan O'Herlihy, Karin Dicker, Terry Burnham, John Vivyan, Lee Goodman, Ann Robinson, Troy Donahue, Sandra Gould, David Tomack, Joel Fluellen, Jack Weston, Billy House, Maida Severn, Than Wyenn, Peg Shirley
Produced by: Ross Hunter Music by: Frank Skinner, Henry Mancini Cinematography by: Russell Metty Editing by: Milton Carruth
In 2015, the United States Library of Congress selected Imitation of Life (1959) for preservation in the National Film Registry, finding it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The 1934 version of Imitation of Life was added to the National Film Registry in 2005.
The 1969 Diana Ross & the Supremes song "I'm Livin' in Shame" is based upon this film.
The 2001 R.E.M. song "Imitation of Life" took its title from the film, though none of the band members had ever watched it. Wiki
About this movie
Title: Imitation of Life (1959)
Directed by: Douglas Sirk
Date of birth: 26 April 1897, Hamburg, German Empire
Date of death: 14 January 1987, Lugano, Ticino, Switzerland
Writing credits: Eleanore Griffin, Allan Scott, Fannie Hurst (novel)
Music: Frank Skinner, Henry Mancini
Year: 1959
Country: USA
Language: English
Color: Color
Runtime: 125 min.