Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writers:

Tennessee Williams (play)
Gore Vidal (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

22 December 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS shocks you again as he transports you to a STRANGE, NEW BOLD WORLD!

Plot:

The only son of wealthy widow Violet Venable dies while on vacation with his cousin Catherine. What the girl saw was so horrible that she went insane; now Mrs. Venable wants Catherine lobotomized to cover up the truth.

Plot Keywords:

Memory | Widow | Poet | New Orleans | Operation

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Elizabeth Taylor	...	Catherine Holly
Katharine Hepburn	...	Mrs. Violet Venable
Montgomery Clift	...	Dr. Cukrowicz
Albert Dekker	...	Dr. Lawrence J. Hockstader
Mercedes McCambridge	...	Mrs. Grace 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 Interne

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:X (original rating) | Netherlands:6 | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:12 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Horizon Pictures (II)

Trivia:

The allusion to Herman Melville and the Galapagos islands refers to the "The Encantadas or Enchanted Isles", a series of "sketches," or short prose works, about the Galapagos Islands written primarily from Melville's own experience sailing around the islands.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Although set in 1937, costumes, hairstyles and makeup worn by Elizabeth Taylor were all contemporary in 1959.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Catherine Holly: She's here, Doctor. Miss Catherine's here.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in The Wild Thing (1992) (V)

Tennesse Does it Again

Catherine Holly, played by the indelible Elizabeth Taylor,is a woman whose conscience and memory continue to cast a foreboding shadow. Enshrouded in her memory is the unforgettable realization to which she came, suddenly last summer. Katherine Hepburn plays somewhat of a southern anchoress, Mrs. Violet Venable,whose only repose comes from memorializing her late son Sebastian in the fantastic jungalesque garden he created. On the surface Sebastian seems pensive, sincere, and wise; however, Holly knows a secret, a disturbing secret about the late Sebastian that Mrs. Venable must suppress at all costs. It remains in the hands of Dr. Cukrowicz, Montgomery Clift, to extract this secret from Holly's memory, before the secret is lost forever. I enjoyed this movie, and it kept my attention even though I had read the play I knew the outcome. It is another fine story from the mind of Tennessee Williams. The movie sticks to the play unlike other Williams' movies, like Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. The only problem is that like so many other Tennesse Williams'stories, depravity and decadence are central themes, which make it difficult at times to really like any characters or develop a fondness for the story itself.