Based on a stage play by Tennessee Williams that was adapted into a screenplay by Williams and Gore Vidal, the melodrama has eccentric heiress Violet Venable (Katharine Hepburn, THE AFRICAN QUEEN) persuading lobotomy doctor Cukrowicz (Montgomery Clift, FROM HERE TO ETERNITY) into performing the surgery on her institutionalized niece Catherine Holly (Elizabeth Taylor, WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOLFF?) with the lure of funding the state hospital the doctor works at.
Violet’s behavior quickly undermines her intentions — is she trying to help Catherine or hide something about her beloved son Sebastian, who died while on vacation the previous summer with Catherine. As the story unfolds, the tale becomes more and more torrid as only a Tennessee Williams tale can get.
Grounding the suds are the wonderful performances of the cast. Hepburn is perfect as the controlling mother who certainly loves her son too much, if you know what I mean. Clift’s performance as the nervous, but kind, doctor is unusual and adds the right tone of uncertainty to all the scenes. Taylor is a force to behold and suits the material perfectly.
Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz (ALL ABOUT EVE) uses the black-and-white photography to his advantage to create a surreal feel to the film’s New Orleans setting. The production design of the Venable’s jungle-like garden is wonderful. The staginess of the production only shows in the scene when Dr. Cukrowicz meets Mrs. Venable for the first time. After that the force of the story drives the heavily dialogued picture forward to its unusual and, for the unknowing viewer, shocking conclusion.
The film deals with taboos that are barely addressed today let alone in 1959. However, the reasons why they are not discussed may have changed. By the end, Mrs. Venable becomes a bigger mystery than she was in the beginning. Her final ascent up her gilded elevator is reminiscent of Norma Desmond’s decent down the stairs in SUNSET BLVD. This story is a fascinating look into the lives of a set of peculiar characters and how the mind hides the truth when we are not willing to confront it.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
