by Sara Clements

“Lucy Harbin took an axe. Gave her husband 40 wacks. When she saw what she had done, she gave his girlfriend 41.”

Are some “bad moms” just a fictitious image created by nasty daughters? If you know anything about Joan Crawford, the similarity between Mommie Dearest and William Castle’s Strait-Jacket is clear. Strait-Jacket isn’t simply a film about a murderous mother, just like Mommie Dearest isn’t simply a book/film about an abusive one. Both are told through the eyes of a daughter scorned, and as such, manipulates the viewer into believing one side without exploring the other. Sometimes, it’s the daughter who wields the axe.