interestingly, it was the character's actual name. tennessee williams was surprised when the film of his original screenplay was termed 'evil' and banned. he knew what a little sweetheart of a movie it was.
by 1956 director elia kazan had successfully filmed tennessee's 'streetcar.' how do you top that? i figure he must have walked into the actor's studio, the selective hive of the most talented and serious thespians of it's day and just started pointing. i want you and you and you. eli wallach, karl malden, and carroll baker made 'baby doll' one of the sweetest, exciting, and offensive (in some circles) films ever.
with tennessee (like harold pinter) you don't move one comma. the dialogue is poetic yet hysterical. the characters are comical yet heartbreaking. the scene on the swing is both chaste and powerfully erotic. this film ought to play theatres around the world every valentine's day.
No comments:
Post a Comment