Suddenly, Last Summer (film)
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''Suddenly, Last Summer'' is a 1959
Southern Gothic Southern Gothic is an artistic subgenre of fiction, country music, film and television that are heavily influenced by Gothic elements and the American South. Common themes of Southern Gothic include storytelling of deeply flawed, disturbing or ...
mystery film A mystery film is a genre of film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, i ...
based on the 1958 play of the same name by
Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thre ...
. The film was directed by
Joseph L. Mankiewicz Joseph Leo Mankiewicz (; February 11, 1909 – February 5, 1993) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Mankiewicz had a long Hollywood career, and won both the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best A ...
and produced by
Sam Spiegel Samuel P. Spiegel (November 11, 1901December 31, 1985) was an American independent film producer born in the Galician area of Austria-Hungary. Financially responsible for some of the most critically acclaimed motion pictures of the 20th centur ...
from a screenplay by
Gore Vidal Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and ...
and Williams with cinematography by
Jack Hildyard Jack Hildyard, B.S.C. (17 March 1908, London – September 1990, London) was a British cinematographer who worked on more than 80 films during his career. Career He made several films with David Lean including ''The Sound Barrier'' (1952) ...
and production design by
Oliver Messel Oliver Hilary Sambourne Messel (13 January 1904 – 13 July 1978) was an English artist and one of the foremost stage designers of the 20th century. Early life Messel was born in London, the second son of Lieutenant-Colonel Leonard Messel a ...
. The musical score was composed by
Buxton Orr Buxton Orr (18 April 1924 – 27 December 1997) was a Glasgow-born Anglo-Scottish composer and teacher. Life Originally trained as a doctor, Orr gave up medicine and switched to music in 1952, studying composition at the Guildhall School of M ...
, using themes by
Malcolm Arnold Sir Malcolm Henry Arnold (21 October 1921 – 23 September 2006) was an English composer. His works feature music in many genres, including a cycle of nine symphonies, numerous concertos, concert works, chamber music, choral music and music ...
. The plot centers on Catherine Holly, a young woman who, at the insistence of her wealthy aunt, is being evaluated by a psychiatric doctor to receive a
lobotomy A lobotomy, or leucotomy, is a form of neurosurgical treatment for psychiatric disorder or neurological disorder (e.g. epilepsy) that involves severing connections in the brain's prefrontal cortex. The surgery causes most of the connections t ...
after witnessing the death of her cousin Sebastian Venable while travelling with him in Spain the previous summer. The film stars
Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...
,
Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...
and
Montgomery Clift Edward Montgomery Clift (; October 17, 1920 – July 23, 1966) was an American actor. A four-time Academy Award nominee, he was known for his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men", according to ''The New York Times''. He is best remembered ...
with
Albert Dekker Thomas Albert Ecke Van Dekker (December 20, 1905 – May 5, 1968) was an American character actor and politician best known for his roles in ''Dr. Cyclops'', ''The Killers (1946 film), The Killers'' (1946), ''Kiss Me Deadly'', and ''The Wild Bun ...
,
Mercedes McCambridge Carlotta Mercedes Agnes McCambridge (March 16, 1916 – March 2, 2004) was an American actress of radio, stage, film, and television. Orson Welles called her "the world's greatest living radio actress." She won an Academy Award for Best Support ...
, and
Gary Raymond Gary Barrymore Raymond (born 20 April 1935) is an English film, television and theatre actor. Biography Gary Raymond was born in Brixton, London, to theatrical parents, both of whom were variety artistes. The youngest of three brothers, Gary a ...
.


Plot

In 1937 New Orleans, Catherine Holly is a young woman institutionalized for a severe emotional disturbance that occurred when her cousin, Sebastian Venable, died under strange circumstances while they were on summer holiday in Europe. The late Sebastian's wealthy mother, Violet Venable, makes every effort to deny and suppress the potentially sordid truth about her son and his demise. Toward that end, she attempts to bribe the state hospital's administrator, Lawrence J. Hockstader, by offering to finance a new wing for the underfunded facility if he promises that his brilliant young surgeon John Cukrowicz will treat her niece. Mrs. Venable meets with Dr. Cukrowicz, and their conversation deals rather with Sebastian. Mrs. Venable describes him as a sensitive poet and recounts her travels with him. Catherine has been confined to a private women's mental institution since returning from Europe several months earlier, after suffering a severe shock from the events surrounding Sebastian's death. Beginning to doubt that Catherine is as deranged as Mrs. Venable claims, Cukrowicz moves Catherine into the state hospital for observation. Catherine's mother, and brother, pay her a visit there and reveal that Mrs. Venable will pay them a large sum of money if they sign papers to commit Catherine to the institution and allow a lobotomy to be performed. The doctor persuades Mrs. Venable to meet Catherine. In the ensuing confrontation, Catherine tries to get her aunt to reveal Sebastian’s true nature, vaguely hinting that he was homosexual. In a last-ditch effort to help Catherine, Cukrowicz takes her to the Venable estate where he administers a drug that will allow her to overcome any resistance to remembering what happened that summer. Catherine recalls how she and Sebastian spent their days on the beach in the Spanish town of Cabeza de Lobo and reveals that Sebastian was using her to attract young men in order for him to seduce them. Because the boys are desperate for money, Sebastian was successful in his efforts; however, he began to make plans to depart for Northern Europe. One "scorching white-hot day", Sebastian and Catherine were beset by a team of boys begging for money. When Sebastian rejected them, they pursued him through the streets of the town. Sebastian attempted to flee, but the boys swarmed around him at every turn. He was finally cornered among the ruins of a temple on a hilltop. In the meantime, Catherine had been frantically trying to catch up with Sebastian, but she reached him only to see him overwhelmed by the boys. According to Catherine, the boys tore Sebastian apart and ate pieces of his flesh like goblins. Catherine breaks down screaming and crying as she recalls the horror. Violet Venable walks away rambling while mistaking Cukrowicz for Sebastian. As Cukrowicz turns away, the hospital administrator quickly asks if there could be any truth in what Catherine said. Cukrowicz returns outside and calls to Catherine and she turns around and grabs his hand and they walk away.


Cast

*
Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...
as Violet Venable *
Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...
as Catherine Holly *
Montgomery Clift Edward Montgomery Clift (; October 17, 1920 – July 23, 1966) was an American actor. A four-time Academy Award nominee, he was known for his portrayal of "moody, sensitive young men", according to ''The New York Times''. He is best remembered ...
as Dr. John Cukrowicz *
Albert Dekker Thomas Albert Ecke Van Dekker (December 20, 1905 – May 5, 1968) was an American character actor and politician best known for his roles in ''Dr. Cyclops'', ''The Killers (1946 film), The Killers'' (1946), ''Kiss Me Deadly'', and ''The Wild Bun ...
as Dr. Lawrence J. Hockstader *
Mercedes McCambridge Carlotta Mercedes Agnes McCambridge (March 16, 1916 – March 2, 2004) was an American actress of radio, stage, film, and television. Orson Welles called her "the world's greatest living radio actress." She won an Academy Award for Best Support ...
as Mrs. Grace Holly *
Gary Raymond Gary Barrymore Raymond (born 20 April 1935) is an English film, television and theatre actor. Biography Gary Raymond was born in Brixton, London, to theatrical parents, both of whom were variety artistes. The youngest of three brothers, Gary a ...
as George Holly *
Mavis Villiers Mavis Villiers (born Mavis Clare Cooney; 10 December 190923 February 1976) was an Australian-born British actress of stage, film and television. Her parents were John Cooney and Clara Smythe. Her brother, Cecil Cooney, was a camera operator an ...
as Miss Foxhill *
Patricia Marmont Patricia Eileen Marmont (9 August 1921 – 3 December 2020) was an American-born British actress in Hollywood films and on television, and a theatrical agent. Marmont's best known role was as the Trojan princess Andromache in the 1956 film ''Hel ...
as Nurse Benson * Joan Young as Sister Felicity *
Maria Britneva Maria Britneva, Baroness St Just, (2 July 1921 – 15 February 1994) was a Russian-British actress who was a close friend of Tennessee Williams. As co-trustee of the trust which he set up for his sister, she became his literary executor. Earl ...
as Lucy * Sheila Robbins as Dr. Hockstader's Secretary * David Cameron as Young Blonde Intern


Production

''Suddenly, Last Summer'' is based on a one-act play by
Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thre ...
that originally was paired with ''
Something Unspoken This is a list of the one-act plays written by American playwright Tennessee Williams. 1930s ''Beauty Is the Word'' ''Beauty Is the Word'' is Tennessee Williams' first play. The 12-page one-act was written in 1930 while Williams was a freshman a ...
'' as part of the 1958 off-Broadway double-bill titled ''Garden District''. The work was adapted for the screen by
Gore Vidal Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and ...
; though Williams also received credit, he later said that he had nothing to do with the film. Vidal attempted to construct the narrative as a small number of very long scenes, echoing the structure of the play. Following ''
A Streetcar Named Desire ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of pers ...
'' (1951) and ''
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' is a three-act play written by Tennessee Williams. An adaptation of his 1952 short story "Three Players of a Summer Game", the play was written by him between 1953 and 1955. One of Williams's more famous works and his p ...
'' (1958), ''Suddenly, Last Summer'' was the third of Williams' plays to be adapted for the screen that dealt with the subject of
homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...
, although it was far more explicit in its treatment than either of the previous films were allowed to be under the
Motion Picture Production Code The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...
. Working in conjunction with the
National Legion of Decency The National Legion of Decency, also known as the Catholic Legion of Decency, was a Catholic group founded in 1934 by Archbishop of Cincinnati, John T. McNicholas, as an organization dedicated to identifying objectionable content in motion pictur ...
, the Production Code Administration gave the filmmakers special dispensation to depict Sebastian Venable, declaring "Since the film illustrates the horrors of such a lifestyle, it can be considered moral in theme even though it deals with sexual perversion." Publicity stills of Sebastian were shot – showing him as a handsome, if drawn, man in a white suit – but his face never is seen in the released film. Williams asserted that no actor could portray Sebastian convincingly and that his absence from the screen only made his presence more strongly felt. Elizabeth Taylor selected ''Suddenly, Last Summer'' as her first project after recently ending her contractual commitment to
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
. At the time, she was the biggest box office draw in Hollywood, and she used this power to insist that Montgomery Clift be hired for the film. As a result of a May 1956 car crash near the home of Taylor and her then-husband
Michael Wilding Michael Charles Gauntlet Wilding (23 July 1912 – 8 July 1979) was an English stage, television, and film actor. He is best known for a series of films he made with Anna Neagle; he also made two films with Alfred Hitchcock, '' Under Capric ...
, Clift had become heavily dependent on drugs and alcohol. When he was unable to find a doctor willing to attest to his
insurability Insurability can mean either whether a particular type of loss (risk) can be insured in theory, or whether a particular client is insurable for by a particular company because of particular circumstance and the quality assigned by an insurance p ...
, producer
Sam Spiegel Samuel P. Spiegel (November 11, 1901December 31, 1985) was an American independent film producer born in the Galician area of Austria-Hungary. Financially responsible for some of the most critically acclaimed motion pictures of the 20th centur ...
approved his casting and went ahead with filming anyway. Clift found the long scenes exhausting and had to have his longest scene shot in multiple takes, one or two lines at a time. His shaky performance led director
Joseph Mankiewicz Joseph Leo Mankiewicz (; February 11, 1909 – February 5, 1993) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Mankiewicz had a long Hollywood career, and won both the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best A ...
to ask Spiegel several times to replace the actor. Most of the crew were sympathetic toward Clift, but Katharine Hepburn was especially resentful of the poor treatment to which Mankiewicz subjected him. Indeed, Hepburn found Mankiewicz's conduct so unforgivable that as soon as he called the final "cut" of the film, she asked him to confirm that her services were no longer required, and when he did, she spat in his face. Sources differ as to whether she also spat in Sam Spiegel's face. Problems beset the film's musical score as well.
Malcolm Arnold Sir Malcolm Henry Arnold (21 October 1921 – 23 September 2006) was an English composer. His works feature music in many genres, including a cycle of nine symphonies, numerous concertos, concert works, chamber music, choral music and music ...
originally was retained to work on it, but he apparently found certain aspects of the story so disturbing that he withdrew from the project after composing only the main themes.
Buxton Orr Buxton Orr (18 April 1924 – 27 December 1997) was a Glasgow-born Anglo-Scottish composer and teacher. Life Originally trained as a doctor, Orr gave up medicine and switched to music in 1952, studying composition at the Guildhall School of M ...
completed the score. Taylor, following her final monologue wherein she describes Sebastian's murder, burst into tears and could not be consoled. Using
method acting Method acting, informally known as The Method, is a range of training and rehearsal techniques, as formulated by a number of different theatre practitioners, that seeks to encourage sincere and expressive performances through identifying with, u ...
techniques, she had tapped into her grief over the 1958 death of her third husband
Mike Todd Michael Todd (born Avrom Hirsch Goldbogen; June 22, 1909 – March 22, 1958) was an American theater and film producer, best known for his 1956 production of '' Around the World in 80 Days'', which won an Academy Award for Best Picture. Act ...
. Production on ''Suddenly, Last Summer'' took place between May and September 1959. Interior scenes were shot at
Shepperton Studios Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not to be confused w ...
in Surrey, England. The "Cabeza de Lobo" sequence was filmed at Majorca in the Balearic Islands and at Begur, Spain, Castell-Platja d'Aro, Costa Brava, and S'Agaró in Gerona, Spain.


Reception


Critical response

Contemporary reviews were mixed. Although Hepburn and Taylor received some positive notices for their performances, the film was judged as having suffered for being stretched to feature length and having its content toned down from that of the play.
Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...
of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' outright panned the film, writing that
"the main trouble with this picture is that an idea that is good for not much more than a blackout is stretched to exhausting length and, for all its fine cast and big direction, it is badly, pretentiously played ... Elizabeth Taylor is rightly roiled as the niece, but her wallow in agony at the climax is sheer histrionic showing off. . . Joseph L. Mankiewicz's direction is strained and sluggish, as is, indeed, the whole conceit of the drama. It should have been left to the off-Broadway stage."
''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' called it "possibly the most bizarre film ever made by any major American company," adding,
"The film has some very effective moments, but on the whole it fails to move the spectator. Perhaps the reason is that what was a long one-act play has been expanded in the screenplay, by Williams and Gore Vidal, to a longish motion picture. Nothing that's been added is an improvement on the original; the added scenes are merely diversionary."
''Harrison's Reports'' wrote "Aside from the fact that the film will draw curiosity-seekers in droves, the film is a mystery—and the mystery is why Sam Spiegel, a brilliant producer, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, an excellent director, and Columbia, a responsible distributor, even bothered with it in the first place."
John McCarten John McCarten (September 10, 1911, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – September 25, 1974, New York City) was an American writer who contributed about 1,000 pieces for ''The New Yorker'', serving as the magazine's film critic from 1945 to 1960 and B ...
of ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'' called the film "a preposterous and monotonous potpourri of incest, homosexuality, psychiatry, and, so help me, cannibalism." Richard L. Coe of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' delivered a mixed review, calling the film "undeniably powerful" and Hepburn "utterly brilliant," but found that
"in even trying to fit this analogy of depravity into something approximating our film standards, the whole point is submerged in mists of allusion which only knowledge of the original play can penetrate ... It can be said that the moral is utterly valid, that those we buy and use utterly destroy us, for Mrs. Venable and her wealth are as destroyed as her son and his selfishness. But by framing the statement in so purposely shocking a story and then by not being truly honest about even that, the film too often becomes purposeless, evasive."
''
The Monthly Film Bulletin ''The Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 to April 1991, when it merged with ''Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those with a ...
'' wrote that by extending the stage version to feature film length, "the story now sags sufficiently for one to question its credentials, and to realise that its attempt to illuminate the darker corners of the mind is actually nothing more than a slightly infantile fantasy of guilt and masochism." The review also criticized "the spineless box-office ending, which balances Catherine's recovery against a contrived, conventional retreat into madness on the part of Mrs. Venable." John L. Scott of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' was more positive, calling the film "an absorbing, in part, shocking motion picture," in which Hepburn and Taylor "pull out all the histrionic stops, resulting in performances that will undoubtedly bring plenty of votes come Oscar-nominating time." Several people involved with ''Suddenly, Last Summer'' later went on to denounce the film. Despite being credited for the screenplay, Tennessee Williams denied having any part in writing it. He thought Elizabeth Taylor was miscast as Catherine, telling ''Life'' in 1961 "It stretched my credulity to believe such a 'hip' doll as our Liz wouldn't know at once in the film that she was 'being used for something evil.'" Williams also told ''The Village Voice'' in 1973 that ''Suddenly, Last Summer'' went too far afield from his original play and "made imthrow up." Gore Vidal criticized the ending which had been altered by director Joseph Mankiewicz, adding "We were also not helped by ... those overweight ushers from the Roxy Theatre on Fire Island pretending to be small ravenous boys." Mankiewicz himself blamed the source material, describing the play as "badly constructed ... based on the most elementary Freudian psychology."Quoted in


Box office

''Suddenly, Last Summer'' was a hit at the box office, earning $6.4 million in
theatrical rental A box office or ticket office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a wicket. By extension, the term is freq ...
s in the United States and Canada and $9 million worldwide.


Accolades


Notes


References

* * * * * * * *


External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Suddenly, Last Summer (Film) 1959 drama films 1959 films American drama films American LGBT-related films American black-and-white films Films about cannibalism Columbia Pictures films 1950s English-language films Films about psychiatry American films based on plays Films directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz Films featuring a Best Drama Actress Golden Globe-winning performance Films produced by Sam Spiegel Films scored by Malcolm Arnold Films set in 1937 Films set in country houses Films set in New Orleans Films set in Spain Films shot in England Films shot in Spain Films with screenplays by Gore Vidal Southern Gothic films Films based on works by Tennessee Williams 1950s LGBT-related films 1950s American films