Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

[iamwhatiseem]

I have never seen the movie in it's entirety.

Treat yourself and then comment.

That was speaking past tense.
This is the review forum.
I just watched the full movie prior to making the review, I wouldn't make a review on a film I haven't watched

 

[The Duke]

That was speaking past tense.
This is the review forum.
I just watched the full movie prior to making the review, I wouldn't make a review on a film I haven't watched

Tommy's not the sharpest marble in the bag.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

Tommy's not the sharpest marble in the bag.

Aye - and I would prefer he leave his sexual obsessions out of the review forum.

 

[Flopper]

I have never seen the movie in it's entirety. Bits and pieces here and there.
A movie that ran away with the oscars in 1959.

My impressions...
1) Elizabeth Taylor - never really got why she was the BOMB sexually speaking. She had a flat butt, skinny as a rail with small hips. Not that interesting.
2) Burl Ives was a solid actor. The scenes between him and Newman are memorable.
3) I grew tired of Newman's self loathing character. Okay okay he is a spoiled brat of a man... they carried that mode on for too long.
4) The transition of Newman's character from a "30 year old child" to becoming a man ready for responsibility was way-way too fast. The movie should have spent more time on that, rather than droning on with scene after scene of him loathing.

All in all, it is a very solid movie.

Possibly your frustration with Newman is due to the fact that Newman is playing against character. Typical Newman plays a strong character only rarely showing weakness and most often the hero. In his role of Brick he certainly is no hero. Newman plays Brick as Williams wrote the role, a weak, guilt ridden, drunk. Only in the closing scenes of the movie do we see Brick defending Maggie, even thou he believes she is lying leading to some sort of reconciliation.

I think both Taylor and Newman were very good. However, Burl Ives as Big Daddy was wonderful casting. He played the same role on Broadway. Ben Gazzara, who played Brick in the Broadway production would have been a better choice than Newman but Newman was a better box office draw.

You would get some argument here on Taylor not being sexy. In her youth she had a near perfect figure, 34-21-25. Taylor was never known as the hottest actress in Hollywood but rather the hottest actress who consistently gave great performances (6 Oscar nominations and two win) .

 

[Flopper]

kazan followed william,s' script fairly well so those flaws in timing are not so much with the movie.

big caddy's plantation represents the "film noir" america that seems so desirable to some. newman can not grow up because his suppressed tendencies could not even be discussed. the females were economically dependent on their men folk, however weak .

of the several great tennessee williams movies, probably "streetcar named desire" is best.

I agree, Streetcar had to be the best. In drama critics pick of the best Tennessee Williams plays, 3 always come out in the top 5.
Streetcar Named Desire
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
The Glass Menagerie

Tennessee Williams Best Works have been about family dynamics. In these dramas there is a family crisis at hand or one brewing.

There is always a strong underlying theme in Tennessee Williams plays. When you hear it you wonder how could I have missed that. In Cat it is fear of dying and lying. Most of the characters in the play lie to each other and themselves over and over, and Big Daddy is so terrified of death that he forces his doctor to lie to the family.

 

[Flopper]

i think in the 1950s the newman character might have been hinted to have "homosexual tendencies," but the thought of an actual homosexual in a movie of the time was unmentionable.

In the movie there were a few hints that there might be some homosexual tendencies in Brick. That probably went over the heads of most everyone in the audience in the 50s but not today. If Kazan had followed Williams play, the movie would have never made it past Hayes, the censors who were empowered to enforce conservative Christian values in the movies.

If you were raised on pre-1960 movies you might well believe that homosexuality was born in the 60's.

 

[Flopper]

Thats it. But it unbalanced the film. Everyone looks at Liz and cant understand him.
There waas another film of th time about a lesbian relationship. That was never spelt out and it seemed odd. Shirley Maxlaine was in it I think.

The Children's Hour. If came out toward the end of the Hayes Code era.

It was an excellent movie. There was actually no sex, a confession of love and a hug That was it but it was enough to turn the town against the two teachers and cost them their jobs. Just a few years earlier, this movie would have sent the Hayes censors into apoplexy.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

Possibly your frustration with Newman is due to the fact that Newman is playing against character. Typical Newman plays a strong character only rarely showing weakness and most often the hero. In his role of Brick he certainly is no hero. Newman plays Brick as Williams wrote the role, a weak, guilt ridden, drunk. Only in the closing scenes of the movie do we see Brick defending Maggie, even thou he believes she is lying leading to some sort of reconciliation.

I think both Taylor and Newman were very good. However, Burl Ives as Big Daddy was wonderful casting. He played the same role on Broadway. Ben Gazzara, who played Brick in the Broadway production would have been a better choice than Newman but Newman was a better box office draw.

You would get some argument here on Taylor not being sexy. In her youth she had a near perfect figure, 34-21-25. Taylor was never known as the hottest actress in Hollywood but rather the hottest actress who consistently gave great performances (6 Oscar nominations and two win) .

Nah... I just grew tire of all the time the director spent constantly showing the brooding of Brick. Enough already - we get it. IMO - the best part of the movie was the 10 minutes or so when Brick and Big Daddy was in the basement. Those were the best and most powerful scenes in the film.

Elizabeth Taylors figure by the number 34-21-25 is pretty much what I mean. She lacked female shape. Marylyn Monroe was 35-22-35. That bottom number is THE number that defines the "hour glass"
My personal preference is a woman with shape and curves, not "pencil like" or the inverted triangle that Taylor was.

 

[Flopper]

Nah... I just grew tire of all the time the director spent constantly showing the brooding of Brick. Enough already - we get it. IMO - the best part of the movie was the 10 minutes or so when Brick and Big Daddy was in the basement. Those were the best and most powerful scenes in the film.

Elizabeth Taylors figure by the number 34-21-25 is pretty much what I mean. She lacked female shape. Marylyn Monroe was 35-22-35. That bottom number is THE number that defines the "hour glass"
My personal preference is a woman with shape and curves, not "pencil like" or the inverted triangle that Taylor was.

I saw a revival of the play on Broadway and the actor who played Brick played him just like Newman did.

Yes, that scene with Big Daddy made the play. One other scene that was very good was when Brick backup Maggie's claim of being pregnant even thou he knew it was a lie. That lead to the final scene where the two come together and have a few memorable lines. "Maggie states that the lie is going to become the truth. She proposes that she and Brick get drunk after they have conceived. She switches off the lamp and declares her love for him. Brick comments that it would be funny if her declaration were true."

One place where the play differs a bit from the movie is that in the play, Maggie was portrayed much more as a gold digger. She loved Brick but she clearly married him for the money.

 

[skye]

GOD what a great classic....

one of the best movies with E Taylor...

 

[Flopper]

GOD what a great classic....

one of the best movies with E Taylor...

In my book, she is one of the great actors of the 20th century. She was not only a talented actress, but also a captivating beauty with striking violet eyes, which contributed to her iconic status.

I think her greatest performance was Martha in Whose Afraid of Virginia Woof. The play is far from being a pleasant evening experience but once you understand what it's all about then Taylor and Burton's performance really shines as well as the genius Edward Albee.