Suddenly, Last Summer

I just saw Suddenly, Last Summer for the first time. I really enjoyed watching it. I didn't really know anything about the film or the story, but had pretty high expectations. I have really loved every other film that I have seen that has been based on a Tennessee Williams' play (except perhaps the Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone).

 I thought that Katherine Hepburn was really good. Montgomery Clift was okay, but it really wasn't a role meant to showcase one's acting abilities. The person that I was really blown away by was Elizabeth Taylor. I have seen her in so many really good roles and honestly thought that at this point it would be impossible to be really surprised and blown away by her, but I was. She was absolutely amazing.

As could be expected, the dialogue was also amazing. This might be my favorite Tennessee Williams script so far (though I tend to change my mind a lot). The way he creates phrases is so poetically southern and so wonderfully exaggerated and dramatic. One of my favorite quotes was when Mrs. Venable said, "My son, Sebastian and I constructed our days. Each day. We would carve each day like a piece of sculpture, leaving behind us a trail of days like a gallery of days until suddenly, last summer."

After I watched it, I became really interested in other adaptations. I found two adaptations in particular that I found to be really interesting. The first adaptation was a made-for-television movie of Suddenly, Last Summer that came out in 1993. It stars Maggie Smith as Violet Venable, Rob Lowe as Dr. Cukrowicz, and Natasha Richardson as Catherine Holly. The second adaptation that I found interesting was a 2006 stage production of Suddenly, Last Summer starring Blythe Danner as Violet Venable, Gale Harold as Dr. Cukrowicz, and Carla Gugino as Catherine Holly. This will definitely be making an appearance in a future installment of Dream Cast Thursday. This film is definitely a must-see!