Suddenly, Last Summer (film)
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- This article is about the 1959 film. For the play, see Suddenly, Last Summer.
| Suddenly, Last Summer | |
|---|---|
 Film poster |
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| Directed by | Joseph L. Mankiewicz |
| Produced by | Sam Spiegel |
| Written by | Gore Vidal Tennessee Williams (play) |
| Starring | Elizabeth Taylor Katharine Hepburn Montgomery Clift |
| Music by | Malcolm Arnold Buxton Orr |
| Cinematography | Jack Hildyard |
| Editing by | William Hornbeck Thomas Stanford |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) |  22 December 1959 |
| Running time | 114 min |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US $3,000,000 (estimated) |
| IMDb profile | |
Suddenly, Last Summer is a 1959 drama film made by Columbia Pictures Corporation, based on the play of the same title by Tennessee Williams. The film was directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and produced by Sam Spiegel from a screenplay by Gore Vidal and Tennessee Williams, based on Williams' play. The music score was by Malcolm Arnold and Buxton Orr and the cinematography by Jack Hildyard. The production was designed by Oliver Messel.
The film stars Elizabeth Taylor, Katharine Hepburn and Montgomery Clift with Albert Dekker, Mercedes McCambridge and Gary Raymond. Eddie Fisher and Gore Vidal make uncredited appearances.
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[edit] Background and production
The original play on which the film is based is a one-act play, part of the double-bill called Garden District, paired with Something Unspoken, performed Off-Broadway in 1958.
The production was fraught with difficulties. Hepburn was apparently resentful of the attention Taylor was receiving. In addition, Mankiewicz and Spiegel reportedly disliked Clift. Reasons given include that he was gay and that he was unable to film for more than a few hours a day. He was also in pain as a result of the car-crash in which he had been involved three years earlier, and relying heavily on drugs and/or alcohol. Katharine Hepburn was deeply resentful of the treatment Clift was receiving, and despite the moral support both she and Taylor (who had been instrumental in getting him the role) provided to Clift, his behaviour on the set caused much negativity among the crew. At the end of filming, Hepburn famously spat at Spiegel, Mankiewicz or both.[1]
The film was shot entirely in England, at Shepperton Studios and in London between May and August 1959. Despite opening up the play to include some exteriors and additional scenes, the film cannot hide its stage origins and was felt by some critics to be dialogue-bound [2].
[edit] Plot
- Tagline
- Suddenly, last summer, Cathy knew she was being used for something evil!
Wealthy New Orleans matron, Violet Venable (Katharine Hepburn), is determined to have her niece, Catherine Holly (Elizabeth Taylor), lobotomized. Catherine tells about a horrifying past incident during a vacation trip that has made her breakdown and become totally mad. The stories are about the death of Sebastian, Mrs. Venable's son and failed poet. The wealthy dowager urges neurosurgeon Dr. John Cukrowicz (Montgomery Clift) to act as a psychiatrist in the case. He is called in to seek the truth, treat and interview Catherine, and determine whether drastic measures are necessary. Mrs. Venable suggests a lobotomy to excise the memory of the incident and prevent the mad ravings from occurring.
In the film's final scene, tormented Catherine, in a climactic lengthy monologue, describes the bizarre murder of her predatory homosexual cousin Sebastian (son of his doting mother). While traveling with him in Spain during their vacation the previous summer, he used her as a means to attract and lure boys. The young boys turned on Sebastian and he was murdered. She describes how she watched his body being ravaged and cannibalized by angry young boys at the Spanish coastal resort:
“He-he was lying naked on the broken stones...and this you won't believe! Nobody, nobody, nobody could believe it! It looked as if-as if they had devoured him!...As if they'd torn or cut parts of him away with their hands, or with knives, or those jagged tin cans they made music with. As if they'd torn bits of him away in strips!”
At the film's end, Catherine (referring to herself in the third person) tells Dr. Cukrowicz that she has returned to a less painful present: "She's here, Doctor. Miss Catherine's here."
[edit] Cast
- Elizabeth Taylor - Catherine Holly
- Katharine Hepburn - Mrs. Violet Venable
- Montgomery Clift - Dr. John Cukrowicz
- Albert Dekker - Dr. Hockstader
- Mercedes McCambridge - Mrs. Holly
- Gary Raymond - George Holly
- Mavis Villiers - Miss Foxhill
- Patricia Marmont - Nurse Benson
- Joan Young - Sister Felicity
- Maria Britneva - Lucy
- Sheila Robbins - Dr. Hockstader's Secretary
- David Cameron - Young Blonde Intern
- Roberta Woolley - Patient
[edit] Awards and nominations
[edit] Academy Awards
Both Katharine Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor were nominated for the Best Actress award. The surprise winner that year was Simone Signoret for Room at the Top. The film was also nominated for Best Art Direction for Oliver Messel, William Kellner and Scott Slimon.
[edit] Golden Globe Awards
Taylor and Hepburn were also nominated for the Best Actress award and Taylor won the award.
[edit] Other awards
Elizabeth Taylor won the Laurel Award for Top Female Dramatic Performance.
