Simply Perfect

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

. . . zucchini, celery stalks, or salami while viewing SUDDENLY, LAST SUMMER. Though "Johnny Knoxville" was born too late to become the capital of "Tennessee Williams," the conclusion of this horror flick would make an even better JACKASS movie stunt than that room full of mousetraps or all of those catapulted Port-a-Johns. While the build up to what must be a pretty universal sexual fantasy seems to be "padded" by at least half an hour of extraneous "fluff" (do we REALLY need to see a Venus Fly-Trap being fed?), when the other shoe finally drops it's at least a Size 10. SUDDENLY, LAST SUMMER provides quite a bit of food for thought, with enough left over for a Boy Scout picnic on the beach. Some sources claim that SUDDENLY is based upon a stage play originally dedicated to JFK's lobotomized sister. (Others say this is just a wild rumor dreamed up by SUDDENLY's screen adapter, political novelist Gore Vidal of the Tennessee Gores.) At any rate, I suddenly have a craving now for something sweet, like a Ding Dong.

I recommend that you don't read this review if you haven't seen this film, but intend to. This film is all about suspense that builds to a shocking end. It is usually classified as a mystery, but could almost rank as horror."Suddenly, Last Summer" is an excellent film made by talented movie professionals, and it deserved all the accolades and awards for which it was nominated and won. However, I'm always surprised by some people who attempt to gloss over, or even deny, the extremely harsh subject matter of its story. Plain and simple, the story is based on a wealthy man who was secretly a homosexual child molester – an intense subject for 1950s movies. This man also possessed a lurid charm, and was loved and respected by family and community. The man spent much of his life traveling extensively overseas, secretly using his inherited wealth to lure young poor foreign boys into sex, until one summer his criminal escapades came crashing down in a bizarre dramatic and gory end that resulted in his death. The movie starts at the point of his death, and this post plot is perhaps most shocking of all: his wealthy mother (played by Katharine Hepburn) had actually assisted him in his past crimes, and after his death she takes extreme felonious measures in a desperate attempt to bury her son's dark secret.Playing the villain in a movie was a departure for Hepburn, but she performed it with her usual perfection, as proved by both her and Taylor's nominations for best actress.Even today this would be a gritty subject for a movie; so it must have been really taboo in the 1950s. It is my understanding that even Tennessee Williams (author of the original play) was not happy that it was made into a movie. I don't think a movie like this could easily be made today, and be as successful. It is certainly not for children, although they'd probably watch it without understanding its full implications. But I don't like adults who try to hide this movie's subject matter, and pretend it's about psychiatry, because it's not.This film also exemplified the social activism of Elizabeth Taylor and Katharine Hepburn, both women ahead of their time, both considered this film important in dealing with unpleasant truths, something neither woman shrank away from during their careers. Both women were also expressly angry with director Joseph Mankiewicz's ill treatment of actor Montgomery Clift during the filming of this movie. Clift was going through a tough time, having recently suffered his infamous car accident. I think Clift cast as Dr. John Cukrowicz was one of the key elements to this film's success.

a film of actors. that defines this adaptation of Suddenly, last summer by Gore Vidal. perfect performances of Hepburn and Taylor, who seems crash Montgomery Clift, the inspired manner to build the tension, the images - skin for monologue, and, sure, the ambiguous manner to define homosexuality. a film who provokes at each new view. because it is precise, cold and fascinating. because the story has Tennessee Williams ' dramatic, but it breaks the circle of a simple adaptation. because it is a duel between two great actresses who, each, impose , in deep manner, her mark on the role. it is a great film for the opportunity of public to make a trip in himself's world. and that could not be a surprise . not only for the force of Elizabeth Taylor to translate the universe of play but for the art of Mankiewicz.

Ironically, Elizabeth Taylor, who plays a woman who is used as a decoy to attract young men in this film, was also used to attract customers to the film. The film was advertised with a picture of Elizabeth in a bathing suit. She was a wonder of nature, indeed.This was made during the heyday of psychoanalysis. The psychoanalysts felt free to talk about cannibalistic fantasies, relating them to everything from their beloved Oedipus complex to hot dog eating contests.Thus, the cannibal behavior was a familiar trope to that segment of the population who were likely to see this movie. It wouldn't have been strange at all.Family members regularly interfe3rred with the treatment of mental patients in the era which is depicted in the film. This would not have seemed strange to a 1960 audience either.Nevertheless, the whole endeavor still came across as overheated pretentious nonsense. Hepburn was being uberHepburn, Taylor was also over the top at times, and Clift seemed so lost that he looked like he was a patient at the institution.