''Bigger Than Life'' is a 1956 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Nicholas Ray Nicholas Ray (born Raymond Nicholas Kienzle Jr., August 7, 1911 – June 16, 1979) was an American film director, screenwriter, and actor best known for the 1955 film '' Rebel Without a Cause.'' He is appreciated for many narrative features p ...

and starring James Mason, Barbara Rush, and Walter Matthau. Its plot follows an ailing school teacher and family man whose life spins out of control when he misuses

cortisone Cortisone is a pregnene (21-carbon) steroid hormone. It is a naturally-occurring corticosteroid metabolite that is also used as a pharmaceutical prodrug; it is not synthesized in the adrenal glands. Cortisol is converted by the action of the enz ...

. It is based on a 1955 article by medical writer Berton Roueché in ''

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 ...

'', titled "Ten Feet Tall". In addition to starring in the film, Mason produced it. Though it was a box-office flop upon its initial release, many modern critics hail it as a masterpiece and a brilliant indictment of contemporary attitudes towards mental illness. In 1963, Jean-Luc Godard named it one of the ten best American sound films ever made.

Plot

Schoolteacher and family man Ed Avery has been suffering bouts of severe pain and even blackouts. His strange illness begins to concern his wife, Lou. After he collapses at home one night, Ed is hospitalized. When a cab driver visits Ed, Lou—who suspected him of being unfaithful —learns that he works part-time as a dispatcher to help pay their bills. They kiss, and when the doctors expect Lou to leave the room, Ed declares that there are no more secrets. The diagnosis is

polyarteritis nodosa Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a systemic necrotizing inflammation of blood vessels (vasculitis) affecting medium-sized muscular arteries, typically involving the arteries of the kidneys and other internal organs but generally sparing the lungs' ...

, a rare inflammation of the arteries. Ed probably has only months to live. He agrees to experimental treatment with the hormone

. Ed makes a remarkable recovery, and begins to spend more time with Lou and their young son, Richie. However, shortly after beginning his cortisone regimen, Ed is subject to turbulent

mood swing A mood swing is an extreme or sudden change of mood. Such changes can play a positive part in promoting problem solving and in producing flexible forward planning, or be disruptive. When mood swings are severe, they may be categorized as par ...

s and begins abusing the pills; he lies to his doctor to obtain more. Though Ed has taken a sabbatical from his teaching position, he remains on the local

Parent–Teacher Association A parent–teacher association/organization (PTA/PTO), parent-teacher-friend association (PTFA), or parent–teacher–student association (PTSA) is a formal organization composed of parents, teachers and staff that is intended to facilitate parent ...

board. At one of their meetings, Ed blatantly insults a mother about her child's intelligence, and seems unbothered when his colleague, Wally Gibbs, informs him the woman is the association president. Later, Wally stops at the Avery home and informs Lou of Ed's extravagant and abrasive behavior. Ed returns in the midst of the conversation, and makes a snide remark implying that Wally is attracted to Lou. When Wally leaves, Ed insults Lou, deeming her intellectually inferior to him and unworthy of their marriage. After consuming another full prescription of cortisone, Ed impersonates a doctor and forges a new prescription at the local pharmacy. Later, while playing football with Richie, Ed grows disproportionately aggressive, pushing the child beyond his limits. The incident disturbs Lou, who observes it from the kitchen window. Wally later confronts Lou with research suggesting that cortisone can trigger

psychosis Psychosis is a condition of the mind that results in difficulties determining what is real and what is not real. Symptoms may include delusions and hallucinations, among other features. Additional symptoms are incoherent speech and behavior ...

in some patients when taken in high doses. Ed's mental state further declines, and he continually insults those around him, expressing abject arrogance, grandiosity and anger over minor inconveniences. When Lou attempts to inform Ed that the cortisone may be negatively affecting him, Ed reminds her that his polyarteritis will recur without it, and that he will not survive. That night, Ed forces Richie to stay up late into the night to study mathematics, and verbally abuses the child when he is unable to solve certain problems. At dinner, Ed announces he wishes to divorce Lou. A desperate Richie raids Ed's medicine cabinet the following day, hoping to steal his father's cortisone pills and dispose of them. When Ed corners Richie in his bedroom, Lou phones Wally for help. To chastise Richie, Ed reads a passage from the Bible recounting the

binding of Isaac The Binding of Isaac ( he, , ), or simply "The Binding" (, ), is a story from Genesis 22 of the Hebrew Bible. In the biblical narrative, God tells Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, on Moriah. As Abraham begins to comply, having bound Isa ...

. When Lou pleads with Ed, Ed states he plans to carry out a

murder–suicide A murder-suicide is an act in which an individual kills one or more persons either before or while killing themselves. The combination of murder and suicide can take various forms: * Murder linked with suicide of a person with a homicidal idea ...

, killing her and Richie before ending his own life. In a rage, Ed locks Lou in a coat closet, blares the volume on the family's television set, and goes to Richie’s bedroom armed with a blade from a pair of scissors. When Ed arrives at Richie’s bedroom he begins to

hallucinate A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinati ...

, and Richie flees downstairs just as Wally bursts into the house. In a scuffle, Wally manages to beat Ed unconscious. Ed is subsequently hospitalized and heavily sedated. His doctor, Dr. Norton, informs Lou that the cortisone may have resulted in irreversible brain damage, and that he may never return to his prior mental state; despite this, Ed will still require strictly-meted doses of the cortisone to survive. Norton states that, should Ed be able to recall the events of the previous weeks, he may have a chance of mental recovery. Lou and Richie visit Ed in his hospital room. Ed awakens and, though disoriented, soon recognizes them both. Ed, fully able to recall the events, embraces his wife and son.

Cast

Reception

''Bigger Than Life'' was not a financial success. Mason, who produced the film as well as starring in it, blamed its failure on its use of the relatively new

widescreen Widescreen images are displayed within a set of aspect ratios (relationship of image width to height) used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ratio greater than t ...

CinemaScope format. American critics panned the film, considering it melodramatic and heavy-handed.

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 d ...

'' called it tedious, "dismal", and "more pitiful than terrifying to watch". However, the film was well received by the influential magazine '' Cahiers du cinéma''. Jean-Luc Godard called it one of the ten best American sound films. Likewise, François Truffaut praised the film, noting the "intelligent, subtle" script, the "extraordinary precision" of Mason's performance, and the beauty of the film's CinemaScope photography. Modern critics have praised

's use of widescreen cinematography to depict the interior spaces of a family drama, rather than the open vistas typically associated with the format, as well as his use of extreme close-ups in portraying the main character's psychosis and megalomania. The film is recognized for its multi-layered examination of the American nuclear family in the

Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

era. While the film can be read as a straightforward exposé on

medical malpractice Medical malpractice is a legal cause of action that occurs when a medical or health care professional, through a negligent act or omission, deviates from standards in their profession, thereby causing injury or death to a patient. The neglige ...

and the overuse of prescription drugs in modern American society, it has also been seen as a critique of

consumerism Consumerism is a social and economic order that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. With the Industrial Revolution, but particularly in the 20th century, mass production led to overproduction—the su ...

, the traditional family structure, and the claustrophobic conformism of suburban life. Truffaut saw Ed's drug-influenced speech to the parents of the

parent–teacher association A parent–teacher association/organization (PTA/PTO), parent-teacher-friend association (PTFA), or parent–teacher–student association (PTSA) is a formal organization composed of parents, teachers and staff that is intended to facilitate parent ...

as having fascist overtones. The film has also been interpreted as an examination of masculinity and a leftist critique of the low salaries of public school teachers in the United States. In 1998,

Jonathan Rosenbaum Jonathan Rosenbaum (born February 27, 1943) is an American film critic and author. Rosenbaum was the head film critic for ''The Chicago Reader'' from 1987 to 2008, when he retired. He has published and edited numerous books about cinema and has ...

of the '' Chicago Reader'' included the film in his unranked list of the best American films not included on the AFI Top 100.

References

Sources

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External links