A Tennessee Williams play is all sweat and rancid liquor and last-ditch moonlit thrashing. But it is also perfect, carved with patient ruthless skill into a gem full of uncertain shadows. He really is one of the best.
Ava Gardner is a crackling fuse with a full charge at its end, and watching her performance is as thrilling as a bumpy bus ride through the rainforest. Richard Burton is also sparking, shooting flame in all directions and leaving the screen seared. Grayson Hall deserves her Oscar nom, imbuing the least subtle of characters with the lightest nuances that the audience sees as clearly as Maxine. It's just a shame that Sue Lyon followed Lolita by playing this...lolita. No doubt she was typecast ‘til death.
Nothing can make me feel so full and sated in perfect degree like an excellent film of an excellent play. All hail Tennessee.