Susan Hayward stellar performance as the tragic Lillian Roth In the frank biographical film, I'll Cry Tomorrow, may leave moviegoers wondering why she didn't beat out Italy's Anna Magnani for the coveted Academy Award for best actress.

In the '40s, Hayward had a distinctive and rather bitchy sex appeal and clear hunger for stardom that gave way in the '50s to a weary but still authoritative command of frank self-pity and tough-broad defiance.

Few actresses from Hollywood’s Golden Age are as ripe for rediscovery as Susan Hayward.

Almost the entire picture lacks credibility in spite of the theoretical likelihood of the situations depicted.