Suddenly, Last Summer
Columbia Pictures (1959)
Drama, Queer Themes/Interest, Thriller
In Collection
#542
8*
Seen ItYes
043396047525
IMDB   7.6
114 mins USA / English
DVD  Region 1   NR (Not Rated)
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
Director
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Producer Sam Spiegel
Writer/Composer Gore Vidal
Tennessee Williams
Cinematography Jack Hildyard
Music Malcolm Arnold
Buxton Orr


A wealthy harridan, Violet Venable (Katherine Hepburn), attempts to bribe Dr. Cukrowicz (Montgomery Clift), a young psycho-surgeon from a New Orleans mental hospital that is desperately in need of funds, into lobotomizing her niece, Catherine Holly (Elizabeth Taylor). Violet wants the operation performed in order to prevent Catherine from defiling the memory of her son, the poet Sebastian. Catherine has been babbling obscenely about Sebastian's mysterious death that she witnessed while on holiday together in Spain the previous summer. Written by alfiehitchie
Edition Details
Distributor Sony Pictures
Release Date 8/15/2000
Packaging Snap Case
Screen Ratio Fullscreen (4:3)
Fullscreen (4:3, Letterboxed)
Widescreen (1.85:1)
Widescreen (1.66:1)
Subtitles English; Spanish; Portuguese; English (Closed Captioned); Korean; Thai; Chinese
Audio Tracks Dolby Digital Stereo [English]
Dolby Digital Mono [English]
Dolby Digital Mono [Spanish]
Dolby Digital Mono [Portuguese]
Mono [English]
Mono [Portuguese]
Layers Dual Side, Dual Layer
No. of Discs/Tapes 1
Personal Details
Purchase Date 8/23/2016
Location Personal Library
Owner Deitz
Store Amazon
Condition New
Links ++ Review: Cinema Queer (Michael D. Klemm) A MUST READ
‡ Indie Wire" Decoding "Suddenly Last Summer"
- Review: NY Times
Suddenly, Last Summer at Core for Movies
IMDB
TheMovieDb.org

Features
Photo Gallery
Production Notes
Talent Files
Vintage Advertising
Filmographies. Photo gallery. Photo montage.

Notes
This play was released the year I graduated from high school, 1959, in a small village in Western New York-- I did not see it back then, and doubt that even if I had that I would have had any understaning of Sabastian's secret or his mother's motivations -- I am told that it was controversial, and that it was well known that Sebastian's secret was his taste for young boys -- The morality police required that the movie be written in an obscure way, therefore the word homosexual is never used -- Some modern critics have declared the film highly homophobic and perhaps a reflection of Tennessee William's personal demons -- Having experienced that age, our Western society has made tremendous progress since then -- Modern values imposed on a '50s film does not give it its proper due -- I found it a very fine film, adapted by screen writer Gore Vidal from the Tennessee Williams' play, with great actors, director, and production -- For its time it was groundbreaking --Williams' (and Vidol's) use of language was hypnotic -- I found Michael D. Klemm's review highly informative and a "Must Read" -- see links.